Wiranto: Indonesia, including Papua and West Papua, Undisputed

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Coordinating Minister for Politics, Legal, and Security Affairs, Wiranto, considered demands on referendum voiced by some people of Papua and West Papua are inappropriate. He reasoned that West Papua is part of the Unitary States of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI) as stated in the 1962 New York Agreement and the 1969 Act of Free Choice.

“I think the referendum request should not be no longer proposed, because of what? NKRI is final, at all cost, including Papua and West Papua,” he said in the Parliament Complex, Senayan, Jakarta, Thursday, August 29.

According to the minister, demands on the referendum are commonly pressed by colonized country, while Papua and West Papua are the legal territory of Indonesia. “So the referendum is not needed to be presented again,” he remarked.

People of Papua and West Papua are again demanding the Indonesian government to hold a referendum following the racist acts against Papuan students in Surabaya and Malang this month. A series of the rally to condemn the incident is held in several regions, including in Papua.

During the demonstration, they not only denounce the acts but also urge the government to establish a referendum and demand independence of West Papua. The mass also raised Bintang Kejora (Morning Star) flag, the symbol of the Free Papua Movement.

Wiranto reiterated that law enforcers have taken actions to examine the instigator of the racist acts and called for Papuan to refrain themselves from being used by a third party.

“We are worried that other rallies established up to date are being infiltrated by others who tend to cause harm to the public,” he underlined.

AHMAD FAIZ IBNU SANI