Online Newsletter

28 November 2019

© Suara Papua This month in photos.

Clockwise from top-left
(1) OPM Chairman
Jeffrey Bomanak receives
the offi cial invitation from
Ismael Toroama
(Bougainville
Revolutionary Army) for
© Jeffery Bomanak
West Papua to witness
the referendum process
of Bougainville

(2) Papuan exodus

students reject
government efforts to
repatriate them back to
their study cities

(3) Villagers gather

Celebrating the Papuan Youth around Papuan student

Lemitur Wandik’s funeral
pyre who was shot dead
In celebration of the Indigenous Peoples Heroes
by the military in the
Day on November 10, we are taking this opportunity Tolikara District. ID
to put the spotlight on the historic role of West continues to deploy
security forces by the
Papua’s Indigenous youth who carry the banner of
thousands to WP
the national struggle for self-determination and
liberation. Read more.
(4) Pilipus Robaha,
Deputy Chairperson of
the National Solidarity of
Students and Youth in
West Papua was
arbitrarily arrested last
Nov 26 - the latest under
the ongoing crackdown

Deafening silence Papuan local council Wamena Investigation:

as West Papua crisis rejects plan to create What the government is Contact Us!
deepens new provinces not telling us merdeka.sec@gmail.com
 The Papuan Struggle for Independence
FEATURED
ARTICLE at the End of the Special Autonomy
by Maximilian (pseudonym)

The Papua Political Education academics, politicians, religious leaders,

Series (I-IV) written by Dr. Agus church and customary institutions,
Alue Alua might give us a including students, to consolidate
comprehensive picture of the themselves and unite.
condition of the Papuan people,
The peak of the consolidation in Jayapura
the Papuan political elite, up to the
agreed on 100 Papuans under the
resistance movements that attempted to take advantage
leadership of a Papuan figure named Tom
of the momentum of reforms at that time. Dr. Agus Alua
Beanal to meet with the Indonesian
explained that at the beginning of the reform movement,
president. These 100 Papuans are
Papuan students began to rise in open protests in Jakarta,
religious leaders, academics, and youth
Indonesia. The student movement arose and pushed for a
and students involved in the
campaign on gross human rights violations that occurred
consolidation mentioned above. There
in the Biak Islands of Papua known as 'Biak Berdarah’ [1]
are 16 Papuan students from various
(Bloody Biak) at that time. The same action also took place
study cities in Indonesia involved.
in Jayapura, Wamena, Merauke, Sorong, and almost all
cities in Papua took the same action that sued and Furthermore, the team that was formed
condemned human rights violations that occurred in which is well known to this day as Team
Papua developing to a more substantial proposition, 100, left for Jakarta and finally got an
namely self-determination (Papua Merdeka). unsatisfactory answer from the then-
Indonesian president. BJ Habibie [4], the
The actions carried out by Papuan youth and students are
Third President of Indonesia, who had
inseparable from the repressiveness of the Indonesian
relinquished Timor-Leste, even asked
security forces. They received intimidation and violence
Team 100 to reflect on its intention to ask
from the police and also the Indonesian National Army
Indonesia to release Papua as an
(TNI), which caused quite a lot of civilian casualties. The
Independent State. BJ Habibie even gave
casualties on the part of civil society has led to new
a subtle warning to the team to not return
conflicts and intensified turmoil. This is evident in
nor make any movements that will lead to
Jayapura City, which has a role as the center of
national disintegration in Papua.
government in the Land of Papua. Jayapura City is a
center for political elites, a center for the "Papua
Merdeka” [2] and "NKRI Harga Mati,” [3] campaigns which
is put to good use by Papuan leaders across the
Photo: The site of the 1998 Biak Massacre
movement and also by various sectors such as © Biak Massacre Citizens Tribunal
 The Morning Star is raised during KNP II
© ULMWP

On the contrary, Team 100 returned to Papua and The Second Papuan People's Congress is the euphoria
encouraged the socialization of results and of independence and freedom; people throughout
consolidation of Papuans in the cities central to the the region raised the Morning Star flag on every yard
struggle such as Jayapura, Merauke, Sorong, Wamena, and on the streets as a form of their support. This
and Biak. Team 100 received the full support of the congress was very representative because it gathered
people who immediately consolidated more to bring the people and leaders from all over Papua and even
the aspirations of self-determination to the highest those who were abroad, to take part in the congress.
level. Finally, the congress gave birth to the Presidium
Dewan Papua (PDP or Presidium of the Papuan
In Jayapura City, in a meeting between traditional
Council) with the main agenda of rectifying the history
leaders in the Papua Province’s Lembaga Musyawah
to align with the Papuan struggle for independence.
Adat (Customary Consultative Institution) located at
The results of the congress were received by the
the 5th floor of Papua Bank, Theys Eluay volunteered
central government in Jakarta but were ignored.
to be head of the LMA, and asked Tom Baenal to be
his representative. All meeting participants agreed Proposed special autonomy, a betrayal?
with the proposal of Theys Eluay[5], a Papuan Freedom
Apart from the spirit of the KRP II, different groups,
Fighter who would eventually be killed by the regime.
namely, the Papua Provincial Government, with the
After that meeting, the re-consolidation was carried
academics, and the Forum kerja Sama Lembaga
out under the command of Theys Eluay. Theys
Swadaya Masyarakat Papua (Foker LSM or Papua Non-
gathered all the leaders with the people to agree on
Governmental Organization Cooperation Forum) were
their agenda. In a meeting held at the Sentani Indah
also working on a draft proposal of the Special
Hotel it was agreed that the Second Papuan People's
Autonomy Law. The Cenderawasih University and
Congress would be held. All the people agreed and
Foker LSM competed to give the best draft to the
the message was spread to all corners of Papua and
Provincial Governor of Papua, J.P Salosa. After the
received support. The congressional agreement was
provincial government received various inputs and
brought back to Jakarta to ask permission from the
recommendations, a lobby team was formed to fight
President of Indonesia, Gusdur. After agreeing on
for the Special Autonomy (Otonomi Khusus or Otsus)
several matters related to the congress, the team
of Papua to Jakarta under the leadership of the Rector
returned to Jayapura and prepared for the Second
of the Cenderawasih University (UNCEN) [6], Ottow
Papuan People's Congress (KRP II).
Wospakrik. The Otsus struggle began.
The euphoria and enthusiasm for the special
autonomy was depicted very differently from the
people's decision in KRP II which gained the people's
sympathy and support; this led to the rejection and
resistance of this Otsus group by the people of Papua.
But after a joint decision between the Papua special
autonomy team and the Jakarta government led by
then Coordinating Minister for Political Law and
Human Rights (MENKOPOLHUKAM) Soesilo Bambang
Yoedoyono (SBY), and with the blessing of Megawati
Soekarno Putri who had risen as President replacing
Gusdur, the Special Autonomy for Papua was then
ratified.
This event caused unrest and uncertainty for the
people of Papua, because indirectly, the people were
being forced to choose between freedom from the
Republic of Indonesia and at the same time,
acceptance of special autonomy. The choice given was
not by the Indonesian government but Papuan leaders
(political elites) who had different political views and
nationalism, which was the situation that pushed the
KRP II described above to accommodate the genuine
aspirations of the people of Papua.
Racism at the end of Special Autonomy?
The action to commemorate the 1962 New York
Agreement which is done annually by the Papuan
Student Alliance (AMP) was distinct this year when
students in one of the study cities in Surabaya,
Indonesia were responded to repressively by the
police and local mass organizations (Ormas). As if that
wasn’t enough, the Ormas and security forces returned
to the student dormitories in Surabaya to further
persecute the students and also shouted racist slurs
like "monkeys", dogs, pigs, and all other zoo animals.
The incident was recorded and then distributed by
students and the Surabaya community who were
present at the time.
This time, the response of the Papuan people is
different from the racial problem that is usually
experienced by Papuan students, as in 2018 in
Jogjakarta, when it happened to Abby Kogoya, or the
collective experience set forth by Filep Karma in his
book, "As If We Are Half-Animals” [7].
The response of the Papuan people to these acts of
racism was so great that there were protest actions in
almost all the areas of Papua. Seeing the strong
response of the Papuan people to the issue of racial
discrimination issues faced by Papuan students in
Surabaya, this was considered as a momentum to fight
for the right to self-determination which is substantially
the wishes of all the people of Papua.
A student
dormitory in
Surabaya is
stormed by
special operations
police last August
© AMP
But the problem is how to begin, as was the case at the
beginning of the reform, when Team 100 was formed
and the people, through KRP II, determined the desire
for independence. This becomes difficult with the
conditions of various political movements that are not
ready to organize themselves while the people who
are enthusiastic in fighting colonialism are being
agitated by the racial slurs.
The response of the movement is expected not to be
sporadic and without a target, that is, one that only
wants political turmoil with the intensity of a civil
resistance, but in the end only provides opportunities
for the political elite in the Dewan Perwakilan Rakyat
Papua (Papuan People's Representative Council), or for
various Ormas formed by the government to push for
special autonomy once again.
“ The movement is
expected not to be
The people who have been enthusiastic in the struggle for
self-determination are the same people who have aspired
for an independent Papua since the beginning.

sporadic and The state of Papua’s civil society is a signal to all groups and
elements of the struggle whether it will remain in the status

without a target, quo of the organization or can it translate to a momentum of

unity and resistance under one banner of civil struggle at

that is, one that only the end of Otsus for independence. This is the most basic
thing that must be translated by the elements of struggle,
wants political political factions who are adamant with their respective
histories and egos. 
turmoil with the
The people who go out into the streets to fight racism are

intensity of a civil also the people who will give moral sanctions to the fighters
and their organizations if they misinterpret the political
resistance, but in the momentum these days. If this agenda can be consolidated
into a mature political struggle, perhaps the end of Otsus
end only provides will be recorded in history as a liberating political
movement, if not, then wait for another political momentum,
opportunities for the or wait for all organizations and elements of the struggle to
be ready to unite. #
political elite and
the ormas to push [1] Bloody Biak occurred on July 8, 1998

[2] The struggle to determine our own fate and become an independent

for Otsus once country

”
[3] The movement which rejects the disintegration of the nation or refuses

again. to give the right to self-determination to the people of Papua

[4] B.J. Habibie was the President who succeeded Soeharto and served as
the transition period in Indonesia after the end of the New Order Regime
and the beginning of the Reformation
The Morning
Star was
[5] Theys Eluay was assassinated while traveling in his car. His body was
waved during
dumped into a ravine in the middle of the main road in Jayapura City on
They Eluay’s
November 10, 2001.
funeral in 2001

© Darren [6] Cenderawasih University (UNCEN) was founded by Indonesia in 1962

Whiteside/Reuters before the Act of Free Choice.

[7] The book "As if We Are Half-Animals" was written by Filep Karma, one
of Papua's political prisoners.

This article was translated to English from Bahasa Indonesia. Read the original text here
ANNOUNCEMENTS

International Solidarity
Conference for West Papua

Coming soon in 2020

Bagaimana Tanahku Papua

Updates from the Ground (Webinar)

Tentatively on December 13 | 17:00 GMT +8

Global Flag Raising Day

Raise the Morning Star on December 1

Join the global celebration of West Papua’s

continuing struggle for independence by
holding a flag raising action in your area!
Free West Papua will also be holding its
annual photo contest for the flag raising.
On December 1, 1961, the people of
Western New Guinea (known as West
Papua) raised the Morning Star as their
national flag after being a Dutch colony
since the 1920s.

There are several interpretations on the

#GlobalFlagRaising Morning Star’s design; one of which
likens the star against the red banner to
a rising sun, and the coming of the
#FreeWestPapua Messiah. Another pertains to the blue
color as a symbol of Pacific identity.

What is common is that the flag

symbolizes the Papuans’ unity in the
struggle against occupation .