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Increasing tension in West Papua, focused on the 1st December
Australia West Papua Association (Sydney) Media release - November 28, 2011 (includes reply from AusAid, see below)
AWPA has written to the Kevin Rudd concerning West Papua national flag day (letter below). Joe Collins of AWPA said "because of the dangerously deteriorating situation in West Papua we are asking the Foreign Minister to use his good offices with the Indonesian Government asking that it controls its security forces in West Papua, urging that the security forces should be kept in their barracks during any West Papuan celebrations on the 1st December as a way of avoiding possible bloodshed. We are also urging the foreign minister to ask the Indonesian Government to allow full and free access of journalists to Papua and to send Australian embassy staff to monitor and observe events on December 1".
For more information contact Joe Collins Mob 04077 857 97
Australia West Papua Association (Sydney)
PO Box 28
Spit Junction
Sydney
Australia 2088
The Hon Kevin Rudd MP
Minister for Foreign Affairs
Parliament House
Canberra
ACT 2600
28 November 2011
Dear Mr Rudd,
I am writing to you concerning increasing tension in West Papua[1], presently focused on the 1st December which is West Papuan national flag day. Fifty years ago on the 1st of December 1961, in the then Dutch colony of West New Guinea, The West Papuan flag, called the Morning Star was flown for the first time officially beside the Dutch Tricolour. The Dutch were finally about to give the West Papuan people their freedom. However, it is one of the great tragedies that at their moment of freedom it was cruelly crushed and West Papua was basically handed over to Indonesia in 1963.
The West Papuan people raise their flag as an act of celebration but also of protest against the injustices they suffer under Indonesian rule. We believe that the West Papuan people will celebrate the 50th anniversary of the first flying of their flag with peaceful rallies in various parts of the territory on the 1st December. We are concerned that the security forces will use any rallies as an excuse to crackdown on the West Papuan people.
One of the most famous West Papuan political prisoners is Filep Karma who was arrested on the 1st December 2004 for being part of a rally where the Morning Star flag was raised. In May 2005, a court sentenced Filep Karma to 15 years jail on charges of treason against the state. Amnesty International considers Filep Karma to be a prisoner of conscience who has been detained solely for the peaceful exercise of his right to freedom of expression.
Because of the dangerously deteriorating situation in West Papua we urge you to use your good offices with the Indonesian Government asking that it controls its security forces in West Papua, urging that the security forces should be kept in their barracks during any West Papuan celebrations on the 1st December as a way of avoiding possible bloodshed.
We also urge you to ask the Indonesian Government to allow full and free access of journalists to Papua and to send Australian embassy staff to monitor and observe events on December 1.
Yours sincerely
Joe Collins
Secretary
AWPA (Sydney)
[1] AWPA (Sydney) uses the name "West Papua" to refer to the whole of the western half of the Island of New Guinea.
Reply from AusAid to AWPA letter re food shortage
Australian Government
AusAid
Canberra ACT
6 December 2011
Dear Mr Collins,
Thank you for your letter of 24 November 2011 regarding reports of a food crisis in the Intan Jaya district of Papua.
Australia is concerned about these reports and is committed to helping the people of Papua and West Papua, which are two of Indonesia's poorest provinces.
Australian aid to Papua has grown substantially in recent years, from $1.8 million in 2004-05 to $16.4 million in 2010-11. Papua and West Papua are two of five priority provinces of the Australian aid program in Indonesia.
To date, Australian programs to Papua and West Papua have focused on maternal and child health, HIV/AIDS, community development, governance and scholarships. This focus will continue, with australia examining the prospects for additional efforts in the areas of health, education, infrastructure and local governance. Australia has also recently announced a $112 million rural development initiative which will focus on some of Indonesia poorest provinces, including Papua and West Papua. The initiative aims to improve the lives of one million impoverished Indonesian farmers and help them grow more food, encouraging a move away from subsistence farming towards producing for markets.
I hope this information is helpful and thank you for your interest in Australia's aid program.
Yours sincerely
Nick Cumpston
A/G Assistant Director-General
Indonesia East Timor Group
See also:
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