The Pacific Conference of Churches (PCC) continues to pledge its commitment to advocate for the United Liberation Movement of West Papua (ULMWP) to become a full member the of Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG).

Last week, the PCC and other civil society partners hosted the leader of the ULMWP, Benny Wenda, at a prayer vigil in Suva where the Morning Star flag — banned by Indonesia — was raised, ahead of the 8th MSG Ministers of Arts and Culture Meeting (MACM) in Vanuatu this week.

PCC general secretary Reverend James Bhagwan said the people of the Pacific had recognised the ULMWP as the political representative of the people of West Papua.

• READ MORE: Other West Papua reports

“PCC have been flying the Morning Star flag even though it was in tatters to remind us that while our family/vuvale in Papua are oppressed, displaced, repressed and face constant attacks on their dignity and human rights, they remain hopeful for their right to be self-determining,” Revered Bhagwan said.

“You do not go alone to that MSG meeting,” he said.

“You go with God and with us in your heart, knowing that while you await formal recognition of ULMWP as a full member of the Melanesian Spearhead Group, your Pacific churches and civil society, the people of the Pacific have recognised the ULMWP as the political representative of the people of Tanah Papua”.

Papua election ‘hotspots’
Meanwhile, the Papua police say 12 out of 29 regencies and cities in Papua are at “risk of conflict” during the next year’s elections in February 2024.

According to Jubi, this is the forecast of a vulnerability index for the general election.

Papua police Chief Inspector-General Mathius Fakhiri expressed concerns about the noken system, also known as the tie system.

General Fakhiri said the system often led to conflicts because political actors could manipulate the remaining votes.

This system was commonly used in Central Papua and Mountainous Papua provinces, and the general proposed reducing its use in the next election.

He also suggested better control of the permanent voters’ list, and implementing the “one person, one vote” principle for the election.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Seven West Papuan makar — “treason” — convicts who were found guilty of raising the Morning Star flag were released on September 27 this year after completing their prison term of 10 months.

Until today, Papua activist and treason convict Melvin Yobe still does not know the result of his medical check-up at Dian Harapan Hospital earlier this year on February 16.

Maksimus Simon Petrus You also doesn’t know what punishment was given to the prison guard who brutally beat him.

• READ MORE: The full five-part article series at Tabloid Jubi [English-language version]
• Part One
• Part Two
• Part Three
• Part Four
• Part Five

Even more disturbing, however, is the fate of Zode Hilapok. He was unable to stand trial as his health continued to deteriorate due to tuberculosis. Zode Hilapok died while undergoing treatment at Yowari Regional General Hospital in Jayapura Regency on October 22.

Since detaining Zode Hilapok on December 2, 2021, law enforcement officials at all levels failed to provide adequate health services for his recovery and he was never put on trial.

Violating human rights
A law faculty lecturer at Cenderawasih University, Melkias Hetharia, says treason charges against Papuan activists violated human rights — namely the right to freedom of speech and expression. He argues the treason law enforced against Melvin Yobe and his seven friends was enacted by the Dutch colonial government to punish coups and revolutions and was based on the experience of the Russian revolution.

Hetharia told Jubi that the enforcement of the Dutch East Indies’ Criminal Code did not consider the social, cultural and philosophical aspects of the Indonesian nation.

“The formation of treason articles in the Criminal Code did not consider aspects of human rights, therefore it is oppressive and injures a sense of justice,” Hetharia said.

He said the term “treason” as regulated in articles 104, 106, 107, 108 and 110 of the Criminal Code had been interpreted very broadly and was not in line with the meaning of aanslag as intended in Dutch, which means “attack”. An attack in that sense was using full force in an attempt to seize power.

“If the term treason in the articles is interpreted not as aanslag or attack, then the articles on treason are indeed contrary to human rights guaranteed and protected in the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia,” he said.

In fact, Melvin Yobe, Zode Hilapok, and their six friends are not the only Papuan activists who peacefully protested but have been charged with treason.

From 2013 to 2022, at least 44 Papuan activists have been charged with treason. Among them — from Jayapura District Court data — from 2013 to 2022 there were 31 people, while in Balikpapan District Court in 2020 seven people and in the Central Jakarta Court in 2019 six people.

Treason ‘structural criminalisation’
Emanuel Gobay, director of the Papua Legal Aid Institute (LBH Papua), who is also the legal counsel for Melvin Yobe and his friends, believes the treason charges against Papuan activists are part of a systematic and structural criminalisation.

“The majority of those accused of treason are human rights activists and political activists,” Gobay told Jubi.

Gobay said the Morning Star flag was a cultural symbol of the Papuan people. According to Gobay, these cultural symbols are guaranteed under Papua Special Autonomy Law No, 21/2001.

Gobay said the raising of the Morning Star by Melvin Yobe and other Papuan activists was part of the demand for the government to resolve Papua’s political problems.

“They are asking the state to immediately implement the Special Autonomy Law,” said Gobay.

On that basis, Gobay considered the use of the treason article against Papuan activists as a form of criminalisation. He also emphasised that the raising of the Morning Star flag did not automatically make Papua independent from Indonesia, therefore the element of treason was not fulfilled.

Apart from the controversy on the use of treason legal articles for Papuan activists, the discriminative treatment received by prisoners of treason cases is also inappropriate, argues Gobay.

Prisoners treated badly
Gobay, who often provides legal assistance to Papuan activists suspected or charged with treason, said his clients were often treated badly.

Zode Hilapok’s health condition was the worst of all, said Gobay. During his detention in Abepura Prison, Hilapok’s health condition deteriorated and he lost weight rapidly.

Gobay said Abepura Prison was not suitable for detainees with a history of tuberculosis, such as Melvin Yobe and Zode Hilapok.

“After we surveyed and compared the condition of the prison with the guidelines on handling tuberculosis patients, the prison is not suitable for accommodating prisoners with tuberculosis,” he said.

Minister of Health Regulation No. 67/2016 on Tuberculosis Patient Treatment Guideline states that the treatment centre for tuberculosis patients must be open and have good air circulation and sunlight.

Gobay said the regulation also stipulated that local health offices and hospitals provide special units to treat tuberculosis patients.

“We hope that judges, prosecutors, and hospitals can implement the regulation,” he said.

This report is supported by Transparency International Indonesia (TII), The European Union and the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) in the Anticorruption Residency programme “Reporting Legal Journalism”. It is the final article in a five-part series in Tabloid Jubi and is republished by Asia Pacific Report with permission.

The tears came freely as the birth of the new nation of Papua New Guinea was heralded by a new flag — the Glorious Red, Black and Gold.

Tears of joy, tears of freedom, tears of sadness, all rolled into one on the momentous occasion of the end of an era of colonialism.

Julius Chan, then a raw young politician and a prolific crusader for the cause of independence, remembers the occasion like it was yesterday.

• READ MORE: Auckland’s PNG community celebrates Independence Day

And his tears overwhelmed the man from New Ireland, which implored an euphoric realisation of freedom after years of political bickering against Australia.

On the morning of 16 September 1975, the flag of Australia was lowered at the Sir Hubert Murray Stadium in Port Moresby.

With pomp and ceremony, the flag of the new nation of Papua New Guinea — the Kumul soaring over the Southern Cross constellation — was raised to signify the birth of our country.

These are solemn moments.

Flag raising touched hearts
The flag raising touched the hearts and lives of the people who were there, who were witnesses of a dramatic shift in colonization and democracy.

Many people cried, many in sadness and many more in joy. It is a moment etched in time, a proud moment of nationhood.

One man who was there, and who has carried the country through thick and thin is PNG’s longest serving parliamentarian and the Last Knight Standing, Sir Julius Chan.

In an exclusive interview with the Post-Courier’s senior reporter Gorethy Kenneth, Sir Julius remembers the solemnity of the moment.

“I shed tears of joy and sadness, the old had ended, and a new was beginning,” Sir Julius reminisced.

“I do remember very clearly the Australian flag being lowered, folded and presented by John Guise to Prince Charles — now our King Charles III — who then presented it to the Australian Governor-General Sir John Kerr.

“And when the Papua New Guinea flag was hoisted, at that very moment, how I felt? …well, very sensational, I was proud, a sensation of final achievement of a goal in life, I had my head down, first, I tilted my head up watching the flag being raised, and each time the PNG flag was raised by the bearers, there was feeling of pride, sensation,” he said.

Finally ‘broken free’
“I had a few tears, I felt, in my gut, for the first time that I had finally broken free of the colonial yoke, that is when I knew we were free. That was probably the most memorable moment.

“It is 47 years now and my greatest wish is that we make the best of what we have, never give up and don’t expect anything from nothing and everything.

“Life is not meant to be easy and to achieve anything in life; we got to work for it.

“And also probably we really have to reiterate corruption — corruption is so bad and it’s not paid for by the ordinary people that they playing with little games, corruption is wild at the top, that’s what I really think and that the three arms of government must act in accordance with the constitutional spirit of the constitution.

“They must not fear to intervene in the area in which the Constitution requires them to.

“It’s all about justice delayed is the cause and the root of all the evils happening today.”

Sir Julius said that at the stroke of midnight on September 1975 a fireworks display lit up the Port Moresby sky to signal the beginning of independence for Papua New Guinea.

The Australian flag, which had been flown since 1906, was lowered for the last time at dusk on 16 September 1975 and handed to Prince Charles, the heir to the British throne, who passed it on to Australia’s Governor General, Sir John Kerr.

Drums beat all night
All through the day and night, the beat of drums could be heard as members of tribes from all over the new nation of jungles and mountainous islands danced in celebration of their new identity.

Papua New Guinea, a nation of 2.6 million inhabitants most of whom lived in very rural settings, had to deal with a situation. Fifteen days before the independence, a declaration of independence was made on September 1 by a secessionist movement on Bougainville.

This declaration which posed a direct threat to the new central government’s authority was dispelled.

“We were still united,” Sir Julius said.

“Our Independence Day celebrations were massive and probably organised on a scale far superior to any other form of gathering in the country before or since.

“You ask anybody why 16 September 1975 was chosen as the official date, I do not think they could tell you.

“Perhaps it was nominated because it was convenient for the Australian Governor-General Sir John Kerr, or for Prince Charles, who came as the Queen’s special representative.

“Gough Whitlam as Prime Minister of Australia came, as well as Malcolm Fraser, who was then opposition leader.”

Good job governing
Australia had governed the enormous, rugged land, and had done a good job.

“I believe what they did was quite appropriate for a country at that stage of development,” he said.

“Any other colonial power such as Britain or Germany would run PNG in a completely different way. Australia was a very young country as they had only come into a Federation in 1901 and they were not entrenched in colonial rule, they themselves were treading on new ground.”

The flag lowering ceremony and fireworks display marked the end of efforts by the Australian Government of Prime Minister Gough Whitlam to thrust Papua New Guinea into independence and thus rid itself of the stigma of colonial rule.

Speaking at the ceremony, Sir John Guise, the first Governor-General of Papua New Guinea, said it was important that people realised the spirit in which the flag was being lowered.

“We are lowering it,” he said, “not tearing it down.”

Sir John Kerr said the ceremony did not mark the end of Australia’s interest in Papua New Guinea or involvement with it.

Australia, he said, “remains deeply and irrevocably committed to Papua New Guinea.”

But for 39-year-old Michael Somare, the last chief minister during colonial rule and now the nation’s first prime minister, and for other members of his government, Australia’s concern and involvement could be greater than it is.

Republished with permission.

Seven people have been found guilty of “treason” after raising the banned Morning Star flag in West Papua, a Melanesian region of Indonesia.

In the Jayapura District Court this week, the seven were each jailed for 10 months and fined.

The flag is considered a symbol of the West Papua struggle for independence and has been strictly barred by the Indonesian authorities.

• READ MORE: Other West Papua independence reports

The group, one aged 19 and the others in their 20s, had raised the flag at the Cenderawasih Sports Centre, and although they were not carrying weapons they were convicted of treason.

The Jubi website reported the judge said raising the Morning Star flag and marching while shouting “Free Papua” and “We are not Red and White, we are the Morning Star“, amounted to treason.

And the act of unfurling banners with the words “Self Determination For West Papua, Stop West Papua Militarism” and “Indonesia Immediately Open Access for the UN Human Rights Commission Investigation Team to West Papua” was also considered treason.

‘Intention of separating’
The verdict read “the defendants already have the intention of separating Papua and West Papua from the territory of Indonesia. The defendants have committed the beginning of treason as stipulated in Article 87 of the Criminal Code”.

After the trial, the defendant’s lawyer Emanuel Gobay told Jubi “we firmly reject” the court’s verdict of treason.

During the trial Gobay said no expert witnesses had been presented to explain their perspectives on the charges.

According to Gobay, the conclusions drawn by the panel of judges seemed subjective because there was no information from expert witnesses.

“We question the basis on which the panel of judges concluded the treason. It is as if the panel of judges acted as experts, interpreting and concluding themselves without relying on expert testimony,” Gobay said.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Church bells and police sirens rang out across Samoa at midnight to herald the start of 12 months of nationwide celebrations for the 60th year of independence from New Zealand.

Prime Minister Fiame Naomi Mata’afa, who is the chair of the Independence Committee, raised the flag of freedom at a ceremony this morning, along with a 21-gun salute by police.

Fiame announced earlier that only local dignitaries were invited to this morning’s event.

• READ MORE: Other Samoan independence reports

Chief Executive Officer of the Ministry of Prime Minister and Cabinet, Agafili Shem Leo, told media that foreign dignitaries and overseas guests were expected at the main celebrations in September, after international borders open in August.

At the same time, the annual Teuila Festival will be revived after being on hold for the last three years because of the measles outbreak and then the coronavirus pandemic.

The organising committee had asked all villages and districts to plan and hold their celebrations during the 12 months of celebrations.

This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.

Indonesian police have made an arbitrary arrest of ffve students holding a peaceful action in front of the Jayapura University of Science and Technology, according to Papuan news sources.

The students were detained yesterday by the police because they took peaceful action demanding that the Indonesian government grant permission to allow the UN Human Rights High Commissioner to visit West Papua.

A media release received by Asia Pacific Report named four students detained by the police as Ernesto Matuan, Malvin Yobe, Apedo Doo, Devio Tekege and Dese Dumupa. However, some news reports said five students were detained.

• READ MORE: Other West Papuan self-determination reports

The release said the university was a higher education provider that guaranteed freedom of speech.

It said the police or military had no right to intervene in university students’ activities.

Before the action took place, the release said, the police had been monitoring the scene and when the demonstration began, the police entered the campus and brutally carried out the arrests.

“The students took action, while the police had rushed and left the campus before the students took action.

“While the students were taking action, within a few minutes the police had arrived using a Sabhara car(registration XIVII 2406-28) and a white Avansa car (DS 5032 KN).

“Upon arrival, the police went straight to the scene of the action on campus and dispersed the crowd while forcibly seizing some tools and equipment for the action,” said the report.

Illegal flag-raising
One of the images shared with APR showed a Morning Star flag of independence being held by one of the demonstrators.

In Indonesia, when someone raises the Morning Star flag, risk being jailed for 15 years for “treason”.

The assistant rector three in charge of student affairs Isak Rumbarar told APR that his party was surprised by the messages circulating on social media. He said the public had asked him many questions about the demonstration and the arrests.

But he said he was not in Jayapura – he is in Biak.

“I was so shocked when I received a lot of messages from my colleagues and messages circulated on social media that there was a demonstration and the Morning Star flag was raised at the campus yard. Another thing that makes me shocked is because there is no initial notification to us,” said Rumbarar.

He said his party had reminded students several times about the risks of demonstrations during the covid-19 period.

“During this covid-19 period it would be better if demonstration activities involving many people should not be conducted because law enforcement officials could use this excuse to disperse and arrest demonstrators,” Rumbarar said.

Alert campus authorities plea
Rubarar said that if the students would like to demonstrate to the government, either the central government in Jakarta or provincial government in Papua, and the demonstration was planned to take place in the university, then the organisers should let the campus know first.

“When the Morning Star is raised and when the police officers or law enforcement officials have taken over, we as university cannot do much,” said Rumbarar.

The tabloid Jubi reports that the director of the Papua Legal Aid Institute, Emanuel Gobay, said that his party had confirmed the news of the arrest of five students to the Jayapura City Police (Polresta).

“Earlier I confirmed [this with the] police, but the police said there was no arrest warrant, and they were detaining [them] just for clarification. That’s why I asked us to assist with clarification,” said Gobay.

Gobay said that initially the five students were taken to the Abepura City Sector Police Headquarters. They were then taken to the Jayapura Police Headquarters to undergo a medical examination, and have their fingerprints and photographs taken.

The head of Jayapura Police, Adjunct Senior Commissioner Gustav Urbinas, said that the arrested students had not been “restrained”.

According to him, the five students were only transported to the Jayapura Police to be asked for information.

Filed for Asia Pacific Report by a West Papuan correspondent who cannot be named.

December 1 flag day protests have taken place in several cities around Indonesia including the capital Jakarta, Yogyakarta (Central Java), Ternate (North Maluku) and Sinjai (South Sulawesi), reports Arah Juang.

The actions were launched to commemorate West Papua Independence Day.

But even before the actions were launched, security forces attempted to  thwart them by blocking protesters, breaking up rallies and arresting demonstrators.

• READ MORE: West Papua protest actions

The following are reports on the actions in Jakarta and Yogyakarta:

Jakarta
In Jakarta, protesters from the Papuan Students Alliance (AMP), the Indonesian People’s Front for West Papua (FRI-WP) and the Papuan Central Highlands Indonesian Student Association (AMPTPI) had began preparing to launch actions since 5.30am.

The protesters gathered at the Jakarta Legal Aid Foundation (LBH Jakarta) in Central Jakarta holding banners reading “Reject Special Autonomy and Give the Right of Self-Determination to the West Papuan Nation” along with posters with similar demands.

The women demonstrators wore sali (traditional Papuan women’s clothing)  while others painted pictures of the Morning Star independence flag on their faces and bodies.

The protesters then moved off in an orderly manner to the intersection near the Indonesian Alkitab Foundation before taking vehicles to the United States Embassy in Central Jakarta.

At 6am the demonstrators had gathered in front of the US Embassy and were giving speeches. AMP member Roland Levy said in a speech that Special Autonomy (Otsus) had failed to protect the Papuan people.

“Many Papuan people have been killed, evicted, discriminated against and labeled as separatists. Because of this the solution is independence for the West Papuan nation as a democratic solution”, he said while shouting “Referendum? Yes!”

Following this, the protesters moved off to the nearby Presidential Palace but were blocked by police from entering the National Monument from the west near the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle.

The demonstrators then gave speeches, made up games, performed the Wisisi dance (a traditional Papuan dance) and prayed together to commemorate the declaration of West Papuan independence on 1 December 1961.

One of the participants read out a poem about the Papuan people’s spirit of nationalism for December 1. One of the women then related how independence was the right of all nations.

A statement was read out at 9.30am and the action closed with a prayer.

At the end of the action as the protesters were to return to the starting point, they were provoked by a small group of unknown individuals. The demonstrators restrained themselves and did not respond, referring to the group as “1000 or so people”, meaning a group hired by the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI).

Yogyakarta
In Yogyakarta, thousands of students from the Free Papua December 1 Movement Alliance launched an action commemorating the declaration of independence in Papua.

The action, which started at 9am, involved a long-march from the Papuan student dormitory to the nearby Zero Kilometer point in front of the Central Post Office. During the march the protesters shouted slogans such as “Free West Papua”, “NKRI no” and “Referendum yes”.

They also took turns in giving speeches with Momiake Gresya saying, “We Papuan people constantly live under the shadow of death, being killed, tortured like animals, and all of this is perpetrated by the TNI [Indonesian military] and Polri [Indonesian police]”.

“An example of this is in Nduga [regency] today. For two years more than 40,000 people have fled seeking shelter and 240 have died as a result of Indonesian military operations,” said Gresya.

In another speech, FRI-WP representative Muhamad Iis explained about the ordinary Indonesian people’s support for the Papuan struggle for independence.

“Today we declare our full support for Papuan independence”, he said.

Iis said that colonialism in Papua was not supported by all the Indonesian people.

“Colonialism is not the position of the majority of Indonesian people, just a greedy handful of people,” he said.

Accompanied by the song “Let the Coordination Post be Torn Down”, at 1pm the protesters danced around the command vehicle waving two Morning Star flags.

This managed to incite security personnel who tried to move into the crowd but demonstrators succeeded in blocking them and the situation returned to normal.

The action ended at 2.30pm with the reading out of a statement and
shouts of “Free West Papua, Free West Papua, Free West Papua”.

Other demands
A number of other demands were also made during the demonstrations, including:

• putting the perpetrators of human rights violations in Papua on trial;
• the withdrawal of all organic and non-organic troops and an end to military operations;
• an end to the theft of land and natural resources,
• that the Indonesian government acknowledge that West Papua
  has been independent since 1961;
• the closure of PT Freeport and other mining operations; for the UN to take responsibility for and be active in an act of self-determination;
• the “straightening out” of history and resolving human rights violations in Papua;
• allowing access for national and international journalists to report in Papua; an end to racial discrimination against Papuans;
• the ratification of the Draft Law on the Elimination of Sexual Violence; and for
• the government to revoke the recently enacted Jobs Law.

Declaration of independence
Although it is widely held that West Papua declared independence from Indonesia on 1 December 1961, this actually marks the date when the Morning Star (Bintang Kejora) flag was first raised alongside the Dutch flag in an officially sanctioned ceremony in Jayapura, then called Hollandia.

The first declaration of independence actually took place on 1 July 1971 at the Victoria Headquarters in Jayapura where the OPM raised the Morning Star flag and unilaterally proclaimed West Papua as an independent democratic republic.

Slightly abridged translation by James Balowski for IndoLeft News. The original title of
the article was “Peringati 1 Desember di Jakarta dan Yogyakarta, Mahasiswa Menyatakan Tolak Otonomi Khusus dan Berikan Kemerdekaan Bagi Papua”.

The remarks of renowned American philosopher John Dewey, “If you want to establish some conception of a society, go find out who is in jail”, has been quoted many times to elaborate on the state of freedom in many parts of the world, including Indonesia.

Indeed, reports about people being imprisoned, tortured or executed because of their views or faith are rife in the country.

Looking closely at prisons in Indonesia today, at least 20 people have been locked up for peacefully expressing their views about religion and politics, according to Amnesty International.

Eleven of them were charged with “blasphemy or defamation of religion” and the rest were peaceful pro-independence political activists.

Papua would probably quickly pop up in our minds when talking about the province with the highest number of imprisoned peaceful political activists. Indeed the easternmost province is home to an active armed pro-independence movement.

In western Indonesia, such “insurgence” ended after the government secured a peace agreement with the Free Aceh Movement in 2005.

List of punishers
However, Amnesty International has also identified the underdeveloped province of Maluku, which currently has no record of an armed pro-independence movement, on top of the list of punishers of peaceful political activists.

Eight people from Maluku are serving prison sentences for what the government calls makar (treason). They are Johan Teterissa, Ruben Saiya, Johanis Saiya, Jordan Saiya, John Markus, Romanus Batseran, Jonathan Riry and Pieter Yohanes.

Their only offence is unfurling the Benang Raja flag, a symbol of the aspiration for Maluku’s independence, on June 29, 2007.

Johan Teterissa was leading a group of 22 activists who performed the traditional war dance cakalele in front of then-president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in the Maluku capital of Ambon, before they were all arrested for unfurling the flag.

If Indonesia respects rights to freedom of expression, they should not spend a single day in prison for such peaceful activity. Yet they were thrown behind bars for between 15 and 20 years. Johan was among those denied medical care while at least four of the activists have died in prison.

Amnesty International considers Johan and all those arrested like him prisoners of conscience, who are jailed for peacefully exercising their rights to freedom of expression and assembly. Their arrests highlight the police’s failure to respect these rights.

Adding insult to injury, in March 2009, Johan and dozens of prisoners of conscience were transferred to prisons in Java, more than 2,500 kilometers away from their home. The isolation meant family visits were almost impossible, which is unnecessary, costly and cruel on prisoners and their families.

Maximum security prison
On November 28, 2016, I had a chance to visit Johan Teterissa at a maximum security prison in Nusakambangan, Central Java, with the help of Amnesty International and the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute as part of a campaign to release all prisoners of conscience in Indonesia.

As a Maluku native, I have been enjoying the fruits of freedom in Indonesia after the fall of Suharto in 1998 through my work as an artist. I have been able to freely express my thoughts through songs peacefully, but many in Maluku like Johan and other activists still lack this basic right to freely express political aspiration.

This is why I am calling on the government to release Johan and his friends and grant them amnesty.

Johan and his friends posed no threats to the president when unfurling the “forbidden” flag, but the government at that time considered the act treason. Their arrests clearly tarnish Indonesia’s image as a free country.

The administration of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo must correct this mistake to restore Indonesia?s so-called freedoms.

Differences in political views must be clearly respected and expressing it peacefully in public never constitutes a crime. There was recent progress when all the prisoners from Maluku were transferred to a prison in the province, enabling easier access to visits for their families.

The transfer also means the administration is open enough to respect different political views.

Amnesty needed
However, relocating them to a Maluku prison is not enough. They must be granted amnesty. Through amnesty, the Jokowi administration could restore Indonesia’s image as a country where anyone can easily express their ideas freely through peaceful means without fearing criminal charges.

In early 2015, I had an opportunity to meet President Jokowi with other artists. I personally asked the President about the fate of political prisoners from Maluku and Papua. I was happy with his firm answer that he would free all political prisoners as soon as possible.

Shortly after, President Jokowi released and granted clemency to six Papuan political prisoners.

I am sure the transfer of the Maluku political activists is part of his plan to release and grant them amnesty. By doing so the President will rebuild trust and public confidence in the eastern part of Indonesia in the government.

I personally believe the peaceful call for independence derives from political frustration among activists in Maluku. One important fact is that Aboru, the village where Johan and other Maluku activists are from, is still very much underdeveloped and neglected by the central and local government.

The government must tackle the root causes instead of arresting them for peacefully expressing their political aspirations. The President must understand this background, so he would be convinced that granting amnesty is the right course of action to solve this case.

I am confident that President Jokowi will walk his talk to release and grant amnesty to all political prisoners in Papua and Maluku in the near future. So when he is asked “who is in jail?? he can confidently say Indonesia no longer has political prisoners there.

Glenn Fredly is a musician and campaigner for freedom of expression. This article was first published in The Jakarta Post.

About 20 academics, librarians, journalists, students and Pacific issues activists gathered at the Pacific Media Centre at noon today for a Morning Star flag-raising ceremony as part of global actions for West Papuan freedom.

Kevin McBride of Pax Christi Aotearoa and the Asia-Pacific Human Rights Coalition (APHRC) spoke of the important human rights concerns for West Papua and how “we’re all part of the oppression” with New Zealand’s “complicity” with Indonesian policies.

Pax Christi Aotearoa’s Kevin McBride speaking flag-raising at the Pacific Media Centre in Auckland today. Video: Del Abcede/PMC

PMC’s Dr David Robie talked of the “vision of hope” with mounting solidarity and support in Pacific Island nations, especially the Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.

But he criticised the “collaboration” of Fiji and Papua New Guinea governments with Jakarta and highlighted the emerging stand in support of self-determination being taken by an Indonesian human rights group, Front Rakyat Indonesia untuk West Papua.

Del Abcede praised the turnout and spoke of another “creative” flag-raising ceremony being planned by Māori and Pacific women from the Oceania Interrupted collective at Mangere Bridge later today.

Oceania Interrupted was formed on 1 December 2013 in response to the need to raise awareness about Indonesian colonisation and human rights abuses being committed against the indigenous people of West Papua.

• West Papua human rights violations ‘worse’
• The $100bn gold mine and the West Papuans who say they’re counting the cost

PMC’s Dr David Robie speaking at the flag-raising. Video: Del Abcede/PMC

• Global West Papuan flag-raising in images – slideshow

It is now 55 years since the Morning Star flag was flown officially in West Papua for the first time on the 1 December 1961.

The West Papuan people continue to raise their flag as an act of celebration but also in protest against the injustices they suffer under Indonesian rule. They can face up to 15 years jail for doing so.

Jakarta is becoming increasingly concerned at the internationalisation of the issue of West Papua which is why the security forces  have been cracking down on peacefully rallies organised by civil society organisations in West Papua.

The most recent crackdown was on the West Papua National Committee (KNPB) as they celebrated their eighth anniversary last week – 106 people were arrested in Sorong.

However,  thousands of West Papuans have been arrested at rallies throughout the past year in West Papua. Although the majority of activists were eventually released, during the arrests activists were regularly beaten and in some cases faced torture.

In Sorong, police ordered a Papuan praying congregation to disperse, accusing them of separatism.

There has been a huge groundswell of support around the world and in the Asia-Pacific region on the issue of West Papua.

This support includes civil society organisations, churches and governments.

UN session support
Seven Pacific leaders raised the issue of West Papua at the 71st Session of the United Nations General Assembly in New York in September.

The Marshall Islands, Nauru, Palau, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu and Vanuatu all raised concerns about the human rights situation in West Papua.

From the Solomon Islands, Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare said in a statement:

“The Solomon Islands is gravely concerned about the human rights violations against Melanesians in West Papua.

“Human rights violations in West Papua and the pursuit for self-determination of West Papua are two sides of the same coin.

“Many reports on human rights violations in West Papua emphasize the inherent corroboration between the right to self-determination that results in direct violations of human rights by Indonesia in its attempts to smother any form of opposition.”

Recently a new “Pacific Coalition on West Papua” was formed.  The initial membership comprises the Solomon Islands government, Vanuatu government, Front de Liberation Nationale Kanak et Socialiste (FLNKS) and the United Liberation Movement of West Papua and the Pacific Islands Alliance of Non-Governmental Organisations (PIANGO).

Two new members are Tuvalu and Nauru.

Flag-raising ceremonies planned in Auckland on Thursday include:

• 12noon with the Asia Pacific Human Rights Coalition (APHRC) and Pax Christi at the Pacific Media Centre, Auckland University of Technology, WG1028.
• 5.30pm with Oceania Interrupted at the reserve off Waterfront Road and Coronation Road, Mangere Bridge, Auckland.

Police order praying congregation to disperse

Report by Pacific Media Watch

A group of postgraduate students and staff today raised the West Papuan flag on campus at Auckland University of Technology in solidarity for Papuan self-determination.

The Morning Star flag-raising at the Pacific Media Centre was held to mark the day the banner was first flown 54 years ago – 1 December 1961.

Del Abcede of the Asia-Pacific Human Rights Coalition (APHRC) spoke of the risks and 15-year penalty for raising the banned flag in the Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua.

She also hailed the freedom of political prisoner Filep Karma last month after he had been sentenced to 15 years over a peaceful flag-raising ceremony in 2004.

He served 11 years (with normal remission) but refused to be released early with conditions being imposed.

PMC director Professor David Robie highlighted the continual pressure from Indonesian politicians and authorities on Pacific nations to undercut West Papuan support.

“This is quite outrageous. But in spite of this West Papua has gained growing support Pacific nations and the people, expecially from the Solomon Islands, and now has observer status in the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG).

He also criticised lack of NZ media coverage of West Papua.

‘Long suffered’
In Sydney, the Australia West Papua Association congratulated the West Papuan people on the national flag day.

“It is now 54 years since the Morning Star flag was flown officially for the first time on the 1 December1961. We are all aware how much the West Papuan people have suffered under Indonesian rule,” Joe Collins said in a statement.

“However, in the past year the West Papuan people have had many victories in their struggle for self-determination.

“From the formation of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) in Vanuatu in December 2014 to ULMWP’s achievement of gaining observer status at the  Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG).

“Another victory is West Papua is back on the agenda at the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) and hopefully Jakarta will accept a request from the PIF leaders for a fact finding mission to West Papua.”

West Papua has been raised at the UN by various Pacific leaders and awareness throughout the Pacific has increased sharply through the lobbying of governments in the region by  West Papuan representatives, civil society organisations and church groups.

Civil society organisations in the Pacific have committed to take up the fight for the people of West Papua. The issue is also being raised around the world by solidarity groups and individuals.

On November 20, political prisoner Filep Karma was released from prison after serving his full sentence (minus standard remissions) for participating in the raising of the Morning Star flag on 1 December 2004.

Karma has always insisted that he acted peacefully and that raising the flag was a right and not a crime.

Despite his 15 year sentence, Karma refused all offers to be released on grounds of “clemency” because that would involve an admission of guilt and pledges not to “re-offend”.

Instead, he demanded unconditional release.

Papuans face jail terms for flag-raising

Flag-raising video clip at AUT