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Human rights lawyer Jennifer Robinson
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A
prominent Australian human rights lawyer has welcomed a statement of support
for West Papuans by Papua New Guinea prime minister Peter O'Neill, saying it
has "been a long time coming".
Mr
O'Neill said he would speak out on behalf of Melanesians in Indonesian West
Papua, saying it was "time for PNG to speak about the oppression of our
people there".
Jennifer
Robinson, a long-time advocate for the independence movement in the Indonesian
province, said Mr O'Neill's change of heart on the human rights abuses in the
province was a huge development.
"This
is a very big turnaround - to go from trying to shut down the raising of the
West Papuan flag (in 2013) to speak openly about supporting West Papuan's
oppression and the oppression of Melanesians in West Papua," she said.
"This
is a really big development and I think it's a testament to the ongoing
campaign and a testament to the strength of the movement and the support on the
ground within the population of Papua New Guinea."
She said
relations with Indonesia had previously meant the government in PNG remained
silent on human rights issues in West Papua, despite vocal support from other
Melanesian leaders including in Vanuatu.
"As
we saw in Vanuatu, there's been vocal criticism by local voters in response to
government's failure to raise West Papua within the Melanesian region and I
think Papua New Guinea and the prime minister is perhaps starting to feel that
democratic pressure as we see the greater penetration of social media and more
people talking about this issue," Ms Robinson said.
"It's
a very welcome development and one that's been a long time coming."
The
United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP), headed by exiled
independence activist Benny Wenda, applied for membership of the Melanesian
Spearhead Group earlier this week.
The group
consists of the Melanesian countries of Fiji, PNG, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu and
a group representing the indigenous Kanak people in New Caledonia.
Ms
Robinson said there had been reports Indonesia had set up a task force to
investigate membership application.
"I
think they'll be very concerned and they ought to be: this shows that Indonesia
cannot keep a lid on the West Papuan movement for independence and their claim
for self-determination," Ms Robinson said.
"(Indonesian
president Joko Widodo) has come into power and promised a change for West Papua
but what we're seeing is status quo.
"Melanesian
leadership is starting to see that there isn't going to be a change and are
standing up. It's time Indonesia actually puts this on the table and starts
talking about how to find a dignified response to this problem," she said.
The head
of Indonesia's National Commission of Human Rights, Hafid Abbas, said Indonesia
did not want to create a diplomatic problem with its neighbour, but said he
hoped Indonesia's leaders would ask PNG for clarification on Mr O'Neill's
comments.
"PNG
is our neighbour, we should... cooperate in all aspects of our development. I
hope that president Joko Widodo and vice president (Jusuf) Kalla and foreign
minister Retno (Marsudi) will visit Papua New Guinea to make clarification
because as a neighbour we have to feel a much stronger confidence to intervene
in our internal issue," he said.
He said Indonesia was only a new democracy, having ousted an
authoritarian regime just 16 years ago, and said it had a "great
commitment to promote.
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