The issue of Papuan independence has been thrown into the spotlight with the controversial death of an activist.

Graphic mobile phone footage of Yawan Wayeni’s final moments is being circulated on the internet.

It shows Indonesian police officers taunting him as he lies dying from the gunshot wounds they had inflicted upon him.

Al Jazeera’s Step Vassen reports from Jakarta.

*The video contains disturbing images*

By Maire Leadbeater

A leaked video clip from Indonesian controlled West Papua should be as
unsettling for Indonesia as the Wikileaks 2007 video showing a helicopter
strike in Baghdad was for the United States. It would serve as a good
introduction to the discussion on West Papua at this week’s Pacific Island
Forum.

The clip shows a Papuan man severely wounded in the stomach, surrounded by
armed paramilitary police who taunt him as lies dying from the injuries they
inflicted on him. Yawan Wayeni was an escaped political prisoner – in his
dying moments he raised an arm to call for freedom from Indonesia, as a
policeman asks “How are you going to get freedom when you are like this?”
Long minutes pass before someone calls for a stretcher and a sarong to bind
Yawan’s wound.

Yawan died a year ago on remote Serui Island, but it is only recently that
the 7 minute clip has gained international media attention – it was the
focus of an August 1 story in the Los Angeles Times. Gradually the conflict
in West Papua is coming out of the shadows.

Despite Indonesia’s restrictions on the entry of journalists and human
rights activists, a small stream of undercover reports has emerged in the
international media including the BBC, Al Jazeera and The Economist.

In June, the advisory Papuan People’s Assembly (MRP) came out with set of
radical recommendations. The MRP called for the Regional Parliament to hand
back the ‘Special Autonomy’ law of 2001, for an independently mediated
dialogue with Jakarta and a referendum on Papua’s future political status.
To show their support for these resolutions, Papuans mobilised in
unprecedented numbers – up to 20,000 – and marched twice over a 17 kilometre
route from the MRP base to the Jayapura parliament buildings.

Special Autonomy’s package of financial and legislative measures might sound
good on paper but it has delivered neither wellbeing nor empowerment. The
people were promised a fairer share of the abundant wealth from their
mineral and timber resources, but living standards continue to fall. In
the highland areas schools and health clinics don’t function because they
have no staff. Due to the high level of migration from other parts of
Indonesia, the indigenous people are close to becoming a minority in their
own land.

The Papuan people have effectively been subjected to a dual colonisation. A
border was drawn down the middle of the island of New Guinea by European
colonialists at the turn of last century, with the Dutch assuming rights
over the western half. By the early 1960s the Dutch had begun to cede
political control to the Papuan people but Jakarta insisted that the
territory should join the other former Dutch territories as part of the
Republic of Indonesia. Under pressure from the United States, the
Netherlands backed out and in 1969 Indonesia ‘legitimated’ its rule by a
fraudulent Act of Self-Determination called the Act of Free Choice. At a
time when the population was around a million, 1,022 hand picked elders
unanimously voted for Indonesia in a process manipulated by the military.
The OPM or Free Papua Movement mounted a poorly armed guerrilla resistance
and over the years it is estimated that the David and Goliath conflict has
led to the deaths of up to a hundred thousand Papuans.

West Papua has had consistent support from only one of its Melanesian
neighbours: Vanuatu. In July, Vanuatu’s Parliament passed a unanimous
resolution which commits that country to concrete and practical measures to
promote freedom for West Papua. These include raising the issue at the
Pacific Islands Forum and calling on the UN General Assembly to ask the
International Court of Justice to arbitrate on the legitimacy of West
Papua’s incorporation into Indonesia.

The New Zealand Government has a well-practised approach called ‘quiet
diplomacy’ that equates to polite and ineffective representations on human
rights. Under the umbrella of ‘engagement’ New Zealand has resumed defence
ties consisting mainly of bilateral officer training exchanges. New Zealand
has also provided training in community policing to the West Papuan police.

We are also complicit in the resource exploitation of West Papua. The
tropical hardwood, kwila, most of it logged illegally or in dodgy
concessions backed by the military, finds its way here as outdoor furniture
and decking. Several New Zealand institutions such as the Super Fund and the
ACC Corporation have investments in West Papua’s Freeport mine, one of the
most environmentally destructive in the world.

It is not too late for New Zealand to take a fresh look at the tragedy on
our doorstep. The Papuans are calling for a peaceful dialogue with Jakarta
and they want international mediation. New Zealand has played regional
peacemaker once before for war torn Bougainville. We could do the same
again either on our own or in concert with Vanuatu and other Pacific Island
Forum nations.

Filep Karma was arrested at that ceremony and jailed 15 years for flying the outlawed Papua flag.

And he warns, in a secretly recorded interview with Al Jazeera, that the decision to renew military co-operation between the US and Indonesia could have dangerous consequences for the Papuan people.

Step Vaessen reports.

Click here to watch the video:

Al Jazeera: Interview with Filep Karma

‘Palmed Off’ is a short film by LifeMosaic based on the voices of indigenous people’s in 20 Indonesian communities. All have directly experienced the impacts of oil palm plantations taking over the land that they have lived on and worked on for generations. The community members offer testimonies on the impacts of oil palm plantations on their local economies, on the local environment, on their culture and on the prospects for the future generations. They feel it is urgent to tell their story. If you or your organisation would like a DVD copy of the film please contact us at info(at)lifemosaic.net

On 27 May 2010 the Green Party, Rainforest Action and the Indonesian Human Rights Group went to visit “Trade Me” headquarters in Wellington to ask them to stop the trade in illegal kwila (a tropical hardwood) on their site. Our campaign to ban the illegal and unsustainable logging trade has a focus on kwila because 80% of the illegal imported timber is kwila, which is used for decking and furniture. My Members Bill was voted down last year, but the groups have continued protesting and pressure on retailers has brought some very positive results. We want to close the internet loophole and make sure companies that are using the “Trade Me’ site to trade in kwila are blocked.

Click here to read full article: No Kwila timber on Trade Me!

By Chris Lang, 28th May 2010

Here’s a copy of the Letter of Intent (pdf file 1.5 MB) signed yesterday by Norway’s Minister of the Environment and International Development Erik Solheim and Indonesia’s Foreign Minister RM Marty M. Natalegawa. One billion dollars sounds like a lot of money, but it’s worth putting in perspective.

In 2010 alone, Norway will invest US$21.7 billion in its petroleum industry, including oil exploration. Every day, Norway produces 2.2 million barrels of oil. Oil production is declining, according to the Ministry of Petroleum and Energy, but gas production is increasing. This then is where Norway’s money comes from. Similar to its dual role in Amazon conservation and destruction, Norway is simultaneously ensuring that climate change gets worse, while claiming to address climate change through financing REDD.

Will the Norway-Indonesia forest deal at least reduce deforestation in Indonesia? Not very likely, at least judging from the Letter of Intent.

Click here to read more:

“Up for Grabs: Deforestation and Exploitation in Papua’s Plantations Boom“

Ask Nestle to give the rainforests a break.

Kit Kat – crunchy, chocolate, forest destroyer. Nestlé, maker of Kit Kat, uses palm oil from companies who are trashing Indonesian rainforests, threatening the livelihoods of local people and pushing orang-utans towards extinction.

We all deserve to have a break – but having one shouldn’t involve taking a bite out of Indonesia’s precious rainforest. We’re asking Nestlé to give rainforests and orang-utans a break and stop buying palm oil from destroyed forest.

Click here to read more, and sign the petition: Greenpeace: Ask Nestle to give the rainforests a break

Have a break? from Greenpeace UK on Vimeo.

Sari Rosa Moiwend will make a presentation on the situation of her people in Jayapura, West Papua

The Mama-mamas of West Papua
at
The Peace Place

2f/22 Emily Place

Auckland Central

7.15 Wednesday 17 March 2009.

The presentation will be preceded by a finger-food supper, commencing at
6.30 pm.

ALL WELCOME BRING A PLATE

Rosa has been in New Zealand since April 2009, studying English at UNITEC.
Her study has been funded by Caritas Aotearoa-New Zealand.

She has been a researcher and staff member of the Justice and Peace Office
of the Catholic Diocese of Jayapura.

Pax Christi Aotearoa-New Zealand has just completed the first stage of a
project to help the Mama-mamas hold their traditional place in the
market-places of West Papuan cities and towns.

Radicalisation and Dialogue in Papua

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

Indonesia’s easternmost province of Papua saw an upsurge in
political violence in 2009, continuing into 2010. One factor was
the increased activity of militant activists from the central
highlands, many of them members of the West Papua National
Committee (Komite Nasional Papua Barat, KNPB). They decided
there was no longer any hope of achieving their main objective –
a referendum on independence – through peaceful means, and led
some to advocate violence and in some cases directly participate
in violent acts. Their tactics are decried by many Papuans, but
their message resonates widely, and the frustrations they
articulate are real. A dialogue between Papuan leaders and
central government officials, if carefully prepared, offers the
possibility of addressing some longstanding grievances, without
calling Indonesian sovereignty into question.

Click here for the full article: International Crisis Group Asia Report Nº188: Radicalisation and Dialogue in Papua