TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) has unveiled a representative office in Manokwari, West Papua. Komnas HAM commissioner Natalius Piagi said that the commission agreed to representative office establishment in a plenary meeting on February 8.

According to Natalius, the Komnas HAM had earlier been exploring possibilities of establishing a representative office in West Papua since December 7 last year. Natalius and other commissioner had since conducted feasibility studies. They had also made contacts with the Papua People’s Council, the Regional Legislative Council, and West Papua Provincial Government.

“It’s not easy to establish an independent oversight agency like Komnas HAM in Papuan soil amid request from other provinces,” Natalius said.

According to him, the representative office has been established to meet the need of West Papua people. Moreover, he viewed that West Papua people had faced difficulty voicing their rights to the government. The representative office will actively accommodate Papuan people’s voice living in remote areas, such as the waters, islands, coastal areas, inland areas and mountainous regions.

Komnas HAM previously had six representative offices in Aceh, West Sumatra, West Kalimantan, Central Sulawesi, Maluku and Papua. West Papua representative office establishment reflects the commission’s commitment to uphold the human rights of eastern Indonesia people. “Two out of seven representative offices are located in Papua,” Natalius said.

FRISKI RIANA