Restore Peace in Papua Immediately
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A number of shops on one of the roads in Jayapura city, Papua, on Friday (30/8/2019) are still closed. Residents have been unable to buy basic necessities.
Calls for peace have reemerged widely in Papua. Meanwhile, President Jokowi has ordered the authorities to restore and maintain peace in Papua.
JAKARTA, KOMPAS — President Joko Widodo has asked that security and order be restored in Papua in the wake of a series of protests. At the same time, many are also calling for peace in Papua.
The calls for peace were voiced by religious leaders and the Regional Leadership Communication Forum (Forkopimda) in Sorong, West Papua, on Friday (30/8/2019). Meanwhile, Papua’s Interfaith Communication Forum (FKUB) said that it was concerned about the protests that ended violently in Jayapura on Thursday.
Calls for peace were also spread on social media. Hashtags #WeLovePapua and #PapuaDamai became trending topics on Indonesian Twitter.
Indonesian Indicator data on 29-30 August 2019 found 29,082 tweets using the hashtag #WeLovePapua and 24,145 tweets with #PapuaDamai.
Indonesian Military commander Air Chief Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto was among those tweeting #WeLovePapua. “Our brothers in Papua have talked with me. They are all kind and friendly. They see me as part of their own family. Let’s continue to develop Papua towards progress without uprooting them from their traditional cultures,” Hadi tweeted.
Jayapura has slowly returned to normal following the protests on Thursday. On Friday, the city’s residents had resumed their activities. However, several shops and public services, including gas stations, remained closed. Consequently, many locals found it difficult to buy gasoline and staple goods.
Recovery
On Friday, after returning from a work visit in Central Java and Yogyakarta, President Jokowi held a limited cabinet meeting to discuss Papua at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta.
“I order that safety and public order in Papua be restored and safeguarded,” the President said in the limited cabinet meeting, which was attended by Vice President Jusuf Kalla.
The President said that all damaged public facilities should be repaired immediately. He also talked about the importance of protecting all citizens. “All citizens, without exception, must be protected and their dignity safeguarded,” he reaffirmed.
Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Wiranto said that the perpetrators of racist verbal assaults against Papuan students in Surabaya earlier this month had been processed legally. Five personnel of the Brawijaya regional military command in Surabaya have been suspended from service and two of them, including a district military commander, will be processed legally. Tri Susanti, the field coordinator of the protest in front of the Papuan Dorm in Surabaya, and S Saiful was being legally processed at the East Java Police.
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Remnant of a number of the burned shops in Jayapura, Papua, on Friday (30/8/2019). They were a part of dozens of shops that were set on fire during a demonstration on Thursday.
Papua Police deputy chief Brig. Gen. Yakobus Marjuki said that the police had questioned 30 people in relation to the violent protest in Jayapura on Thursday. “We questioned the 30 persons to find out the mastermind behind the anarchic incident,” he said.
Dialog
Wiranto said that the priority right now would be to calm things down. Afterwards, the government would correct several things deemed wrong or lacking. Therefore, in the future, development will be safer and more integrated.
Wiranto said that the government would open dialogue with Papuans. The President has also planned to visit Papua.
Representatives of the Papuan people conveyed the need for dialogue during a meeting with Deputy IV Eko Sulistyo at the Office of the Presidential Chief of Staff at Bina Graha Building in Jakarta on Friday.
One of the representatives, Irene Manibuy, said that the recent protests in several cities in Papua were the accumulation of many things, including disappointment.
Dialogue between all stakeholders in the framework of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia is important to solve these problems. “We have to sit down together and talk heart to heart. All elements in Papua must be involved, including public, customary, religious and youth figures as well as university students,” said Irene, who is a former West Papua deputy governor.
Another important thing is to fulfill the demand of Papuans and West Papuans of an extension of the special autonomy status. According to Law No. 21/2001, the special economy status will end on 2021.
Nduga youth figure Samuel Tabuni urged the government to embrace young Papuans. “We also ask that security forces in Nduga, Papua, be pulled out,” he said.
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President Joko Widodo (left, facing camera) accompanied by Vice President Jusuf Kalla (right) presides over a limited meeting related to conditions in Papua at the Merdeka Palace in Jakarta, Friday (30/08/2019). The President asked his staff to take strict action against anyone who violates the law.
Meanwhile, in a declaration held in a Forkopimda gathering in Sorong on Friday, there was hope that violence should not occur anymore in Papua. “Violence brings sorrow. The economy collapses and children cannot go to school,” said Rev. Isak Kwaktolo of the Sorong Indonesian Christian Church.
Abdul Manan Fakaubun, the chair of the Sorong chapter of the Indonesian Council of Ulema (MUI), said that everyone should maintain peace. (NTA/EDN/FRN/FLO/ESA/MTK/NIA/SAN)
