Vanuatu Respects Indonesia’s sovereignty

Indonesia and Vanuatu signed an agreement on cooperation in the political and economic fields for mutual benefit.

The agreement was signed by Indonesian Foreign Affairs Minister Marty Natalegawa and his Vanuatu counterpart, Alfred Carlot, at the Indonesian Foreign Affairs Ministry.

After the agreement`s signing, Marty told the press he and Alfred Carlot discussed many possibilities for the enhancement of Indonesia-Vanuatu cooperation in many sectors.

The agreement they had signed also provided a legal framework for the two countries to respect each other`s sovereignty, unity and territorial integrity and principles of non-interference in each other`s internal affairs.

“Therefore the Development Cooperation Agreement is considered to be very positive, and to provide a bilateral framework,” Marty said.

The agreement also identified potential sectors for the bilateral relationship such as development of fisheries, environment, forestry and other areas.

It would serve as an umbrella for cooperation and partnerships in many other fields including agriculture, marine affairs and fisheries, forestry, education, trade and investment technical cooperation, tourism, transportation, police, cooperation in international organizations related to development issues as well as people-to-people contacts.

Besides, the agreement was considered as the main foundation for a more stable partnership based on mutual benefit and mutual respect between the two countries.

Therefore, the signing of the Indonesia – Vanuatu Development Cooperation Agreement was considered as a very positive step that would serve as a framework for bilateral cooperation, Marty said.

Both government of Indonesia and Vanuatu were ready to cooperate with each other in a variety of partnership programs that were sustainable and whose results would be felt directly by the people of both countries.

Alfred Carlot meanwhile said, “The objective of this agreement is to provide a framework to deepen and expand our bilateral relations and cooperation in areas of mutual interest and for common objectives.”

Source: ANTARA News

Separatist group attack chopper near Freeport mine

Free Papua Separatist group (OPM) attacked a helicopter carrying 29 workers and family members from Freeport-McMoRan’s trouble-plagued gold and copper mine in eastern Indonesian on Saturday (17/12), wounding one person.

“The helicopter was carrying workers and logistics. One passenger was injured by shattered glass,” said Freeport spokesman Ramdani Sirait.

He said the helicopter, which is owned by copper and gold miner PT Freeport Indonesia, was flying from Timika to Tembaga Pura.

The attack came as thousands of unionized employees were preparing to return to the Grasberg mine in the mountains of Papua province following a three-month strike that has crippled production at the sprawling operation.

Saturday is the first day striking workers were returning to their stations after both management and workers agreed on a wage increase.(*wpnn)

TNI to focus on civic missions in Papua

Commander of the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI) Admiral Agus Suhartono said TNI will focus on the implementation of civic mission activities by launching a “Military Enters Village” (TMMD) program in Papua and West Papua next year.

“We focus on continuing TMMD in rural villages located in border areas which are isolated, remote, and affected by disasters, and the development of large-scale TMMD targets in Papua and West Papua,” Suhartono said at the 32nd plenary meeting on TMMD here on Friday.

The regular TMMD target increase in Papua and West Papua as well as in border areas is carried out by reducing the TMMD targets in Java, he said.

Based on Presidential Regulation No. 41/2010 on the General Policy on State Defense 2010-2014, TMMD is aimed at empowering defense regions by prioritizing security or disaster-prone regions, border areas, conflict-prone areas and the outer most islands.

“The national situation development lately is still marked with various security and public order disturbances such as terrorism, separatism, physical clashes or horizontal violence in several places in the country,” he said.

Army Chief of Staff General Pramono Edhie Wibowo said the 86th and 87th TMMD implementation in 2011 had been carried out smoothly and promptly.

The TNI personnel during the TMMD program in 2011 managed to construct 309.4-km long roads, reconstruct/build 111 bridges, 601 public facilities, 737 social facilities, 237 places of worship, 11 elementary school buildings, and renovated 688 houses.

“And for non-physical targets, there had been lectures or counseling on sate defense, national insight, security, public order, health, medical treatment, agriculture and animal husbandry,” he said.

Source: ANTARA News

Government: No Political Prisoners in Papua

Coordinating minister for political, legal and security affairs Djoko Suyanto on Monday (12/12) said that there are political prisoners detained in Papua as alleged by human rights organizations.

“No political prisoners in Papua,” Djoko said. “I told Amnesty International that there are only criminals. In a seminar or demonstration, no one was detained unless there was also violence and destruction at the event.”

Djoko said he met Amnesty International’s Asia-Pacific Programme director Sam Zarifi last week. He said it was up to Amnesty International to believe the government’s statement.

Djoko said that the Indonesian government will not endorse a human rights violation.

“If military or police officers violate the law, they will be taken to military trial,” he said. “And if ordinary people breach [the law] and police hunt them, it is for the sake of legal enforcement and not a human rights violation.”

Source: The Jakarta Globe

The Unit to resolve Papua crisis

AFTER months of delay, the Yudhoyono administration’s is finally about to launch the unit for resolving Papua crisis.

The Unit to Accelerate Development in Papua and West Papua (UP4B) has a task to peacefully resolve Papua’s political future within the unitary state of Indonesia.

UP4B, under retired Lieutenant General Bambang Darmono, is establishing offices and staff in the two Papuan provinces and will begin working on the ground early next year.

With a mandate to co-ordinate all government development activities towards “improving people’s welfare” through “socio-economic” and “socio-political and cultural development”, UP4B also has responsibilities for improving conditions of security and justice.

General Darmono and Farid Husain, now the President’s special envoy for Papuan dialogue, were key players in the 2005 Aceh peace agreement and argued that economic development without political settlement was doomed to fail.

Source: The Australian

Indonesia mulls observers for Papua

Indonesia says it would consider allowing international observers into Papua province to see if a new development program is bringing peace.

The Indonesia’s vice-president Boediono told a gathering of journalists that Papua is an issue that the government can manage.

He says a new unit that has been established in Papua to improve people’s welfare, security and justice should be given time to work.

Tensions have been rising in the region, with separatists killing some police officers.

Police officers say they have been attacked, and there have been deaths.

The vice-president says the government would consider allowing independent scrutiny of the improvements it hopes to make.

“In general we would like to resolve Papua on our own and certainly we would invite, later on, observers to look at Papua at what we have done since the beginning, the start of this new approach to Papua,” he said.

The vice-president, who is known by a single name, says there is no need for the international community to step in to resolve the problems.

Source: ABC News

Indonesia to Evaluate Papua’s Special Autonomy Status

Indonesia Home Minister Gamawan Fauzi has said that the government will evaluate the special autonomy status of Papua. The evaluation team will consist of officials from different ministries and the evaluation result is expected to be completed by the end of December. “The result will be issued in early January 2012,” Gamawan said in Papua on Wednesday (07/12).

Gamawan explained that the feedback will be used as input for the government in improving the development acceleration process in Papua. “For instance, we can see what causes the development in Papua to continue sluggishly despite the massive amounts of money – Rp 6 trillion – allocated for the efforts.”

The evaluation will reveal what the government is lacking in. “Perhaps there is discrepancy between what is needed and what is provided. Such problems are handled through coordination between the Unit for Acceleration of Development in Papua and West Papua (UP4B) and the regional administration institutions,” Gamawan went on.

Source: Tempo Interactive

Police Chief: No more cops to Papua

The National Police will not send more officers to Papua, despite the province being plagued with security problems in recent days, a top official says.

National Police chief Gen. Timur Pradopo said on Wednesday (07/18) in Jayapura that the police would continue to secure Papua but added that this could not be carried out solely by the authorities, with public participation also required.

Three policemen were killed at two different events earlier this month. Jayapura police Second Brig. Ridwan Napitupulu was shot dead by separatist group on Dec.1. He died after suffering injuries when he was assaulted on his way to Nimbokran district, Jayapura.

On Dec. 3, the separatist group shot and killed Second Brig. Ferianto Kaluku and Second Brig. Eko Afriansyah, two members of a National Police Mobile Brigade special operations unit (Brimob) in Wondegobak village, Puncak Jaya.

Source: The Jakarta Post

VP Boediono: Investments in Papua safe

Vice President Boediono said investments in Papua remained safe and so investors need not worry.

“Papua is safe. Investors had better go there. Papua remains safe,” he said before members of the Jakarta Foreign Correspondents Club on Wednesday (07/12).

He made the statement in response to a foreign correspondent who asked about investment security in Papua.

Vice President Boediono said the government had set up a Papua and West Papua Development Acceleration Unit (UP4B) to coordinate development efforts there.

It is hoped with better coordination Papua could catch up with others in the development and attract investment, he said.

He said Papua has attractive and lucrative investment potentials for investors. “It is very attractive. But it all depends upon investors. It is very profitable there. I am not worried,” he said.

He said the government was optimistic through the UP4B problems that happened there could be settled.

He said focus has so far been put on infrastructure with regard to investment.

“In the next five to ten years infrastructure will remain to be focused,” he said.

Infrastructure is a bridge for development acceleration in Indonesia, he said. In view of that the government encouraged the private parties to participate in the infrastructure development.

The Chief of the UP4B, Bambang Darmono, had said besides security approach to assure sense of peace the institution also conducted socio-cultural approach.

He said the institution was now still making quick wins programs.

He said UP4B`s priorities are food resilience, poverty alleviation, development of grass roots` economy, improving education and health service, development of basic infrastructure and prioritizing indigenous Papuans.

Source: ANTARA News

Govt. discusses Papua with Amnesty International

Leaders of the London-based human rights nongovernmental organization (NGO) Amnesty International met with Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Djoko Suyanto on Tuesday (06/12) to discuss human rights issues in Papua.

Sam Zarifi, Amnesty’s Asia-Pacific Programme Director, said that Djoko expressed the government’s commitment to ensuring accountability for human rights violations allegedly committed by security forces.

The NGO had previously criticized the National Police for handing out light punishments to police officers involved in the bloody Papuan People’s Congress in Abepura, Papua, in October, calling it a “failure of human rights accountability”.

Tension has escalated in Papua since the incident, with numerous arms separatist shooting against civilians.

Dozens have been killed in the past two months, including four police officers.

The meeting was initiated by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, who had assigned Djoko to talk to Amnesty following reports of Papuans’ demands that the Indonesian government free all prisoners who were detained after violence broke out between police and participants of the Congress.

In the meeting, the NGO also urged the government to free all those who were detained in Papua and Maluku for peacefully expressing their views, including through raising pro-independence flags.(*wpnn)