The Special Autonomy (Otsus) for Papua: an opportunity or a threat?

By: Yan Christian Warinussy, SH^*

The Indonesian government granted the Special Autonomy law in Papua, which aims to be a political solution to address the social problem, the lack of law enforcement and human rights abuses in Papua. Meanwhile the implementation of Otsus in eight year has not brought any fundamental changes to the political situation (no real political freedom), law enforcement, human rights and the respect for Papuan cultural identity (the Papuan social culture has been marginalized in their own land).

Why these conditions above happened? The reasons are:

1.      There is no political WILL of Indonesian government in regards with creating operational regulations or by-laws to implement OTSUS. Instead, Jakarta remains suspicious and fearful towards the implementation of OTSUS, especially Article 2 about Papuan identity which regulates that the Papuan flag (Morning Star) and Papuan song are cultural identity of Papuans. As result, the government created another regulation, PP No.77 year of 2007 that contradicts the spirit of Otsus. This regulation can criminalize anybody who uses the Morning Star as a flag, banner or any other display. Therefore, this cultural symbol for the Papuans cannot exist anymore.

2.      The militarisation in Papua both in terms of infrastructure and personnel has been increased. The purpose of creating a new military command in West Papua province and deploying more infantry battalions in Bintuni Bay are closely related to the area of LNG Tangguh Project.

3.      The political violence and terror towards community have increased. Meanwhile, the administration of justice remains inadequate to prosecute and to enforce the law and to deliver justice to the people. There are some examples: the shootings of Freeport employers in Timika, the assassination of Theys Eluay (2001), the killing of Opinus Tabuni (2008), and Kelly Kwalik (2009). These cases remains unresolved.

4.      The closing of some key international organizations in Papua and restrictions to foreign independent observers and journalists to visit Papua have created some difficulty for human rights defenders work in Papua. There are examples:

The Red Cross office in Jayapura was closed in 2009 and the permission to work for Peace Brigades International (PBI) offices in Wamena and Jayapura was denied since 2009.

5.   Addressing human rights abuses during the implementation of Act Free Choice in 1969. The different interpretations between the Papuans and Indonesian government on the political status of Papua have not been adequately addressed, even though these have been already explicitly mentioned on OTSUS as part of the fundamental problem of Papua.

Based on the analysis above, it poses a serious question whether OTSUS is an opportunity or a threat to Papua?

It is important for human rights defenders in Papua to take major steps and constructive approaches to encourage and persuade the Indonesian government to improve or change its policy to address those problems in Papua.

The legal approach is still considered to be an alternative to create a democratic space by taking action through the judicial review of Otsus to the Indonesian Supreme Court or the Constitutional Court.

Meanwhile in the terms of social political aspect, creating a dialogue between Papua and Jakarta becomes an alternative. Recently, this initiative gains serious attention among Papuan community. In responding to the idea of a Jakarta and Papua dialogue, a number of public consultations were held in several districts to create discussions among different components of the Papuan community. These dialogues have become an alternative to formulate political strategies to address on-going conflict in Papua according to the Indonesian Constitution and to meet the standards of international law.

Finally, it is important to have strong international supports from the Australian government, the Parliament, civil society and the Australian academics for the Papuan cause. Such an international attention and support might become a public education for the Papuan public in the context of implementing human rights and addressing conflict. An international attention will also endorse an independent and transparent investigation of human rights abuses and political violence in Papua.

*The author is the Director of LP3BH, a human rights NGO, based in Manokwari, Papua, Indonesia. This paper was presented during a seminar at Regulatory Institutions Network, Australian National University, Canberra, 24 February 2010.

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