A West Papuan international student in Aotearoa New Zealand has devoted hundreds of hours to a non-profit organisation and opened a door to a new career.

Arnold Yoman, 19, came to New Zealand in 2019 from the Papuan provincial capital Jayapura on an Indonesian government scholarship and has been studying at Awatapu College in Palmerston North.

The school’s international department had a programme in Manawatū to get students involved in business during their first summer separated from overseas friends and family.

• READ MORE: Papuan scholarship students in New Zealand

Yoman — a younger son of Reverend Socratez Yoman, president of the Fellowship of Baptist Churches in West Papua, who visited New Zealand in 2016 — started volunteering at Wholegrain Organics when he could not go home because of covid-19 border closures.

“I was welcomed to volunteer by the Wholegrain Organics farm and cafe and liked it so much that I asked to stay on after the holidays were over,” he said.

He volunteered at Wholegrain Organics’ farm during the school holidays and once it became obvious he had a passion and a knack for horticulture, the school started working with Wholegrain Organics so he could continue his work and get National Certificate of Educational Achievement (NCEA) credits.

Yoman’s work is through Wholegrain Organics’ hands-on food programme, where he plants, maintains and harvests organic produce for the community.

500 hours by the end
He will have completed more than 500 hours by the end of his voluntary work.

He is in his final year of school and wants to stay in New Zealand to study horticulture at Lincoln University in Canterbury next year.

Wholegrain Organics’ hands-on food programme has been running since 2015, a non-profit scheme working with young people in community programmes like a regenerative vegetable farm and a training kitchen and deli.

The programme’s food technology, nutrition and horticulture educator Gosia Wiatr said they loved having young people involved because it gave them access to quality and inclusive learning opportunities.

“Arnold’s work ethic has been an encouragement for other young people in the programme.

“International students have always been a great part of our programme, so we wanted to support the students who were separated from their families over the holidays.

“We’ve been happy about their success stories, with students finding new career paths, improving their English and enriching their time in New Zealand as a result.”

Republished with permission from Stuff.

Screams erupted as the sound of gunshots ricocheted around the open-air market. People ran.

It was bloody.

“I saw from my own eyes the gun violence,” says Laurens Ikinia.

• READ MORE:  Indonesian policy switch cuts off funding for Papuan students in NZ – Matthew Scott
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• Papuan students succeed in NZ – ‘the golden generation from Papua’
• Mahasiswa Papua di luar negeri deklarasikan IAPSO – Tabloid Jubi [Bahasa Indonesian]
• Papuan students succeed in NZ – ‘the golden generation from Papua’
• Other West Papua education reports

“It was just crazy.”

Ikinia was still a child when he witnessed Indonesian security forces open fire at a market in Wamena, the largest highland town in West Papua’s Baliem Valley.

He says it was a massacre. It was later recognised as the 2003 Wamena Incident (or Peristiwa Wamena 2003 in Bahasa Indonesian).

What began as a raid on an armoury led to a two-month operation by the Indonesian Army and National Police. Thousands of villagers were displaced, civilians killed.

It was a response to increasing cries for West Papuan independence.

Some healing in NZ
The trauma of that day lasts, says Ikinia, but in the recent years, studying in New Zealand he has experienced some healing.

Ikinia is one of 125 West Papuan students in Aotearoa, arriving in 2015 and 2016 on a scholarship to study abroad.

He aspires to write Pasifika stories, about the people and places largely ignored by the international media.

He is close to completing a Master of Communications at Auckland University of Technology.

However, the domino effect of legislative changes in Jakarta means the 27-year-old stands to lose it all.

A couple of years before the violence in Wamena, Papua Provincial Governor Lukas Enembe established a scholarship programme for Papuans to study abroad.

The investment in indigenous human resources drew on Special Autonomy funds granted by Jakarta, but employed at the governor’s discretion.

‘Inspired thinking’
“It was inspired thinking on his part,” says Professor David Robie, retired director of the Pacific Media Centre and editor of Asia Pacific Report (APR).

“Get them educated outside West Papua, outside Indonesia, and come back with fresh ideas.”

But in 2021, the money dried up.

In a 20-year legislative review, the central Indonesian government passed a bill ratifying sweeping amendments to the Special Autonomy Law, effectively diverting money and authority away from the provinces.

Despite widespread opposition by West Papuans and calls for an independence referendum instead, the funds propping up several provincial programmes, including the scholarships were allocated elsewhere.

The fallout for the students abroad arrived in December.

A letter to the Indonesian embassy with a list of names — 39 students in New Zealand, and dozens of others overseas, were to be sent home.

‘Underperforming’ students
A translation of the letter says underperforming students and those who had not completed their study in the allocated timeframe would be repatriated by December 31, 2021.

Ikinia’s name is on the list.

“It doesn’t make sense at all,” he says.

“Based on my track record, I was one of the ones that completed the programme the fastest.”

He says all postgraduate students were given a three-month thesis extension due to covid interruptions.

“I am just about to finish.”

He says the decision to recall students is based on incorrect data held by the Provincial Government’s Human Resources Department Bureau (HRDB).

Many phone calls
“We have had a number of phone calls. It seems like people in the department don’t hold the data according to the latest results.

“It’s totally wrong. I did not start my masters in 2016.”

It’s politics, says Yan Wenda, president of the Papuan Student Association in Oceania, and a postgraduate student at the University of Otago.

“The central government in Jakarta changed the law without any input from the provincial government.

“They did the review, and in some areas changed how they managed the money between the provinces and the districts.

“It affects the students studying abroad.”

He says calls to the bureau confirmed this.

‘The money is not here’
“[They said] ‘the money is not here. It’s just not happening for you guys, you’ll have to come back home.’”

He says not only have successful students been recalled, but also the allowance for others has stopped.

“As students we are desperate to pay our rent. We haven’t had any allowance in two months.

“This is why we need to speak up about this.

“We have been victims of this change.”

A public statement issued by the newly formed International Alliance of Papuan Student Associations Overseas (IAPSAO) on January 27 urged the Indonesian government to consider the rights of Papuans to obtain a quality education.

Wenda and student presidents from the United States and Canada — where 81 students were recalled, Russia, Germany, and Japan signed it.

Sustainability of the governor’s policy
They requested the 10 per cent fund allocation for the education sector return to the Papua Provincial Government “for the continuity and sustainability of the governor’s policy to develop Papuan human resources”.

“Don’t kill Papuan human resources anymore with political policy.”

The students have since demanded that the Indonesian Embassy facilitate a dialogue with Indonesian President Joko Widodo.

“It is a really sad development,” says Professor Robie.

“It’s all political by Jakarta. It’s all about self-determination, all about denying the rights of Melanesians in the two provinces of Papua to define their own future.”

He says the Jakarta government is uncomfortable with the student scholarships, and says the premise for repatriation was baseless.

“They are trying to curb the rights of Papuan students to get an education overseas.

‘Fundamentally changed’
“What has fundamentally changed is that (provincial) autonomy, that right to send those students to where they want to go.

“Those decisions are no longer in their hands.”

After APR reported on the issue, Dr Robie received a letter from the Indonesian Embassy, stating it was “appalled at the unfounded claims” made in the regional website.

The letter said the Indonesian government was committed to ensuring the right to education for all Indonesian citizens.

In response to questions from the Times-Age the embassy refuted claims that repatriation of students was politically motivated and said the HRDB did not recall students based on academic performance alone.

Length of study and the students’ disciplinary records were also taken into account.

A spokesperson said they could not speak to the accuracy of the information used recall students. However, they said the decision was the result of a thorough assessment by the bureau.

Conceded adjustments made
They denied budget cuts to the Papuan Special Autonomy Fund were responsible, but conceded adjustments were made to the “budgetary system”.

In response to the demands for dialogue with the president:

“[We] have duly engaged and in coordination with concerned students, Students’ Coordinator, student organisations, and the Provincial Government of Papua to further discuss the issue at hand.”

Wenda and Ikinia say scholarship students around the world are united in their stance, they will not return home.

“We are demanding our rights to education. We have no political agenda at all,”  Ikinia says.

“The government claims that we have a hidden political agenda, this is totally incorrect and unacceptable. We have been always participating in the events that the Indonesian Embassy has been hosting.”

When Indonesia staged a Pacific Exposition in Auckland in 2019, Papuan students actively participated in the event. Most of the Papuan students participated as local ambassadors to accompany the diplomats and delegations who came from the Pacific.

“I myself have also been the president of the Indonesian Students Association in Palmerston North and at the same time vice-president of Indonesian Students in New Zealand in 2018-19.”

‘Trauma healing’
Ikinia says West Papuans have become a minority in their own land, and suffering is not an anomaly.

“In New Zealand I realised how other people could treat us, like family,” he says.

“This is the treatment we should receive from the Indonesian government.”

He believes coming to New Zealand goes beyond academic achievement.

“It is part of the journey to find the potential in my life. And it’s part of the trauma healing.”

He says the New Zealand government is in a position to help the students, by acknowledging their Pasifika status.

“We are not Asians, we are Melanesians.

“We know NZ is a generous country that helps minority groups. We hope in this difficult time the New Zealand government will open its arms and have us as part of their Pacific family.”

Mary Argue is a Wairarapa Times-Age reporter. Republished with permission.

International students in New Zealand are appealing to the Indonesian government in response to funding being pulled for the autonomous Melanesian provinces to send students abroad.

Students from West Papua study all over the world — but with recent funding policy changes to autonomous West Papuan scholarship funds by the Indonesian government, 125 may soon be packing their bags for home.

Following the announced removal of the 10 percent of education funds previously allocated to provincial governments in Indonesian Melanesia, 42 students in New Zealand and 84 students in the United States have been ordered home — with things still up in the air for others studying in Australia, Canada, Germany, Japan and Russia.

• READ MORE: Papuan students form global umbrella body, reaffirm campaign for education rights
• Papuan students succeed in NZ – ‘the golden generation from Papua’
• Mahasiswa Papua di luar negeri deklarasikan IAPSO – Tabloid Jubi [Bahasa Indonesian]
• Other reports on the Papuan education controversy

In a public statement, the International Alliance of Papuan Student Associations Overseas (IAPSAO) slammed the move, claiming it fails to honour the human right to education and incapacitates the development of indigenous human resources for the conflicted region of Indonesia.

“We view that the termination and diversion of 10 percent of the education fund managed by the Papua provincial government is an assassination of human resource investment for the future of Papua through education,” said student association Oceania chapter President Yan Piterson Wenda.

Now the association is calling for a meeting with Indonesian President Joko Widodo to discuss the change.

Laurens Ikinia, a postgraduate communications student at Auckland University of Technology, is originally from the central highlands of Papua province — an area gripped by conflict between the West Papua Liberation Army and the security forces of the central Indonesian government.

Thousands displaced
The armed conflict, exacerbated by increased activity by Indonesia’s military last year, has displaced tens of thousands of people.

The Melanesian provinces of Indonesia, Papua and West Papua, have long had deep grievances with Indonesian rule — grievances stemming not just from claims of human rights abuses and military control, but also frustrations around self-determination.

Papua Governor Lukas Enembe has been credited with pushing forward the scholarship funds for students in Papua and West Papua to go abroad and study, partly in an attempt to invest in the human capital of the disputed regions.

So after studying in New Zealand for six years under this scholarship system, Ikinia was shocked to see his name on a list.

The education fund will no longer support Ikinia — putting his progress towards a Masters of Communication in doubt, along with the academic futures of 125 others.

And to add insult to injury, the government is claiming that the students on the list are being cut off due to poor progress — an assertion Ikinia refutes.

“The reason the government is using to repatriate us is baseless,” he said. “Most of the students on the list are in the second and third years of their respective programmes.”

No proof of a lack of performance
A further statement by the student association said it found no proof of a lack of performance after investigating each student mentioned.

Ikinia said all of the other Papuan students shared his dismay, and wondered what their forced return means for the autonomy of their homeland.

“If we are to return it means that the special autonomy means nothing to us,” he said.

“The central government of Indonesia just transfers funds to the provincial government without giving the authority to manage the budget.”

This news came after chief executive of Education New Zealand Grant McPherson had issued a statement doubling down on the importance of international students to New Zealand, after filing a submission to the Productivity Commission to take this into account when changing immigration policy settings.

“International students coming to New Zealand support the achievement of the government’s broader goals and objectives, as well as contributing to New Zealand’s economic development,” McPherson said.

The submission also outlined benefits international students deliver for New Zealand, such as regional development, research output and helping relationships with other countries.

A human rights issue for students
But at 55 times the size of New Zealand, Indonesia will likely not be considering this as they cut the lifeline to these students. And for the students themselves, it could go so far as to be an issue of human rights.

The association’s first statement called out the move as overstepping on the students’ right to education, claiming international law accepted by the Indonesian government legally obligates it to respect, protect and promote the right to education.

The association questioned calling these students back based on a lack of academic progress, and wondered what motive lies behind the use of incorrect data.

Ikinia certainly does not seem to fit the category of a student who is not making progress.

Since his arrival in New Zealand he has completed an English language certification, graduated with a Bachelor’s in Contemporary International Studies and is close to completing his Master’s at AUT.

Now it seems graduation may be ripped away from him due to the seemingly arbitrary workings of the bureaucratic machine in Jakarta.

Matthew Scott is a Newsroom journalist. This article was first published by Newsroom and is republished with permission.

A global Papuan students abroad umbrella organisation has appealed for a meeting with President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo to air their grievances over changes to the scholarship system which they say are unfairly impacting on their studies.

In a statement today responding to a letter by the Indonesian Ambassador to New Zealand and the Pacific to Asia Pacific Report yesterday, the International Alliance of Papuan Students Association Overseas (IAPSAO) said: “Our demands are clear. So, the Indonesian Embassy should not obscure our demands.

“When the Indonesian Embassy does not fight to save 42 students in New Zealand and 84 students in the USA, we suspect that the Indonesian Embassy is also involved in the attempt to kill Papuan human resources.”

• READ MORE: Papuan students abroad ask the Indonesian government to ‘be responsible’ – Tabloid Jubi
• Global Papuan student body condemns Jakarta’s disruption of study funds
• Indonesia denies claims by Papuan students over education setback

The student alliance which represents Papuan affiliates in Canada, Germany, Oceania (including Australia and New Zealand), Japan and Russia, challenged statements made by Ambassador Fientje Maritje Suebu published in Asia Pacific Report yesterday.

The embassy’s claim that students were being repatriated because of no progress “is not true and baseless”, according to the data issued by the Papua Province Human Resources Development Agency.

“Currently, all the students whose names are listed in the letter, are all studying in their respective programmes. Some are already in their second year, third year and some are finishing their final project or thesis,” said the IAPSAO statement signed by Oceania president Yan Piterson Wenda and four other student presidents.

The statement said that IAPSAO and the coordinator of the Papua province scholarship in New Zealand, “have investigated this … Some of the names listed on the list have completed their studies.

‘What is the motive?’
“We cannot find any reason why students who are making good progress are also listed. Therefore, we question what is the motive for this incorrect data?”

The statement cited a letter issued by the Papua Province Human Resources Development Agency dated 17 December 2021 regarding the termination of overseas scholarships — 42 students in New Zealand and 84 students in the USA.

“So, the numbers issued by the Indonesian Embassy — 39 students in New Zealand and 51 students in the United States — are incorrect.”

While IAPSAO conceded there were no actual education budget cuts, it said the Jakarta central government had revoked the authority held by the governor as a regional head.

“The problem is not about the budget, but about the authority to set the budget and other important things,” the statement said.

“The sending and financing of Papuan students abroad are based on the ‘policy of the Governor’ Lukas Enembe, not from the central government.

“Once the Special Autonomy Law volume two was passed, the governor’s authority was also limited, and automatically it is affecting students, the recipients of Papua province Foreign Scholarship.”

The students added: “We have no political agenda in issuing public statements. We demand our right to study in peace and quiet.”

Four fresh indigenous Papuan students have graduated with degrees from Aotearoa New Zealand universities in the past few weeks to fulfil the dreams of Papuan provincial government leaders Lukas Enembe and Dominggus Mandacan.

The two governors of both Indonesian-Melanesian provinces, Enembe (Papua) province and Mandacan (West Papua) made a bold and enterprising decision to send Papuan students to pursue their higher education overseas, especially to English-speaking countries.

The four Papuan students, recipients of scholarships from the provincial governments, have graduated with masters and bachelor degrees in a variety of disciplines.

• READ MORE: Other West Papua education articles

This article uses the term Papuans to refer to the indigenous people of both provinces which are generally collectively known in Australia and New Zealand as West Papua. Indigenous Papuans are of Melanesian ethnic background and non-Papuans are of other ethnic backgrounds who are living in the Melanesian land of Papua.

Nathan Sonyap (a scholarship recipient of Papua province) has graduated with a Master of International Tourism Management Studies from Waikato University and Yan Wenda (also  Papua) has gained a Bachelor of Commerce in Management degree from Otago University.

Gebriella Thenau (a West Papua provincial scholarship recipient) has graduated with a Bachelor of Environmental Management from Lincoln University and Yuliktus Korain (also West Papua) with a Bachelor of Commerce in Marketing also at Lincoln.

All four told Asia Pacific Report they were grateful to study and graduate from universities in New Zealand. They dedicated their achievement to their families and the indigenous people of Papua.

Facing cultural barriers
Coming from the Melanesian and Pacific region, they said Papuans sometimes faced a lot of cultural barriers and even racial attacks. This put Papuan students under considerable pressure while studying.

However, in New Zealand they found that the “kindness and generosity of Kiwis” at the universities or in the social environment made them feel “safer and peaceful”. They expressed gratitude towards everyone who had helped them on their life and study journey.

The four graduates said that some of the challenges that they encountered included  language — as English was a second or even third language for them — weather, the academic system, and culture, and other things.

Gebriella Thenau — “Gebi” as she is known — said that having an opportunity to study in New Zealand had not been even in her dreams, given that it was very expensive. She was so grateful to the government of West Papua province for awarding her the scholarship.

She said her parents always reminded her to study seriously because the government used Papuan people’s money, which her parents called “Blood Money”. She said when she received inquiries from them about when she was going to finish study, she always felt under pressure.

“My parents always reminded me to study seriously. My dad always says remember that you are using indigenous Papuan’s money,” she said.

“Despite having pressure from my family and study, I always believe that having a qualification from one of the top universities in NZ will pay off … And finally, I made it and my parents and family are proud of that,” said Thenau.

Crying for better education
Thenau, who completed her elementary to high school studies in Sorong, one of the cities that predominantly hosts non-Papuans from other parts of Indonesia, said that having supportive parents on her journey was very important.

“This is a great opportunity as our parents didn’t have an opportunity like us to study overseas — our mothers are sweating and crying on the street for their kids to get a better education, and women don’t have many opportunities in the public space,” said Thenau.

“So, I hope our success stories will wipe away their tears and sweat.”

Nathan Sonyap, the first student from his tribe and church, said he was extremely grateful to Governor Enembe and the late Vice-Governor Klemen Tinal for the opportunity to study in New Zealand.

“It is truly an honour and privilege for me to study here,” he said.

Sonyap, who did his elementary to high school in Papua and bachelor’s degree in the city of Makasar-Indonesia, said he had learned so many things during his stay in New Zealand.

“Honestly, it wasn’t that easy,” he said.

Many challenges
Yuliktus Korain — “Yulko” as he is known — is an exceptional student. He was orphaned but plans to “bring light to his people”. Korain told Asia Pacific Report that in order for him to reach the level where he was now, he had gone through many challenges.

One of the challenges was because he and his younger brother lost their parents when they were still at a very young age.

“Man…it was extremely hard for me and my younger brother to face the reality when my mom passed away in 2003, just when I started my elementary school and later in 2008 my dad passed away when I was in grade 4.

“I completely lost hope. I decided to stop going to school because of financial difficulties and losing my parents. For one year, I just stayed at home and played with other kids in the village,” he said.

Korain said that he was lucky as his uncle — “an angel of the Lord” as he describes him — offered him study. He stayed with his uncle while completing his grade 4, and during grade 5 and 6, he stayed with an aunt.

Korain continued his middle school to high school while staying in a seminary. He said his groceries, stationery and other needs were looked after by the seminary.

Never celebrated birthdays
Yan Piterson Wenda, who is also the president of Papuan Student Association in Oceania, said that celebration of his graduation was something that he would always remember because he had never even celebrated his birthday previously.

“I pay my tribute firstly to my mom because I was raised by a single mother. She is a great person in my life.

“I wish my mom could have witnessed personally the results of her prayers and hard work of selling cassava, peanuts, and other garden products. But unfortunately, it wasn’t the reality.

“My parents and family couldn’t watch the live graduation on Facebook … because the internet is still blocked in Papua,” said Wenda.

While paying tribute to the Papua provincial government, Wenda said his presence in New Zealand was the result of an enlightened “crazy programme” based on social justice to give underprivileged students a chance to study.

“I am academically not so good, but as you can see, I am granted this opportunity because the government of Papua province wants to give us an equal chance for those who come from underprivileged families and affluent families,” said Wenda.

Wenda who is now preparing himself to continue his Masters in International Business at Otago University said he followed three guiding principles — believing in God, having a firm motivation for being in NZ, and having supportive people around him.

All four Papuan graduates said they hoped the programme would continue as it would help raise the dignity of indigenous Papuans who have struggled through painful moments.

Laurens Ikinia is a Papuan Masters in Communication Studies student at Auckland University of Technology who has been studying journalism. He contributes to Asia Pacific Report.

As late South African President Nelson Mandela said: “Education is the most powerful weapon which you can use to change the world.” Papuan Governor Lukas Enembe also believes this.

Enembe made a remarkable decision to provide scholarships to Papuan students to obtain education overseas such as in New Zealand, Australia, the UK, the US and other countries across the world.

He has realised that having West Papuan students in many world ranking universities will help raise the profile and dignity of Papuans on the global stage.

• READ MORE: Coronavirus threat to Pacific, Papuan students in NZ and a starfish scourge

This year, six Papuan provincial government scholarship recipients have graduated from several universities in New Zealand. About 160 Papuans are currently studying in New Zealand.

Marius Elabi graduated with Master of International Relationship and Security Studies from Waikato University on December 8, and Anggie Freesia Maritje Kapisa with a Bachelor of Science major in microbiology and Stephanie Verneytha Dike with a Bachelor of Science in Human Nutrition from Otago University on December 16.

Fredy Nawalyn with a Bachelor of International Business Management, Erli Enambere with a Bachelor of Contemporary International Studies and Prisilia Samori with a NZ Diploma in Tourism and Travel also graduated from the Institute of the Pacific United New Zealand on December 18.

Kapisa, who is the first child of her family to achieve education overseas said she was so humble and grateful to set an example for her younger sisters.

Even though Otago University did not hold its usual full graduation ceremony, a graduation ceremony was staged for Pacific students at the university campus.

Grateful for study opportunity
Kapisa said that she was so grateful to have a Pacific community at Otago University, so her West Papuan friends who were studying in New Zealand could come and celebrate the graduation together.

“I am so grateful to have my Pacific community here and West Papuan friends because my family could not attend my graduation,” said Kapisa.

Kapisa always stayed close to her family said that during her study she had encountered a lot of challenges knowing that came from a non-English speaking country and a different education system.

But with her commitment and perseverance and with the support from the people around her, she completed her study.

“Off course, I was homesick, but I must keep my health. It is not only my physical health but also my mental health,” she said.

“As you don’t know what I am going through, so it is important for me to have someone to talk to.

“I know that if I could make it, other girls can also make it,” said Kapisa.

Governor Enembe’s scholarships
Stephanie Verneytha Dike, who also graduated from Otago University, said she was extremely grateful to all the lecturers and academic supports staff who had helped her during her study.

She said she was so grateful to the government of Papua province and particularly Governor Enembe for granting her the scholarship to study in Aotearoa New Zealand.

Being an international student and studying overseas in a new environment and social life was always challenging, Dike said.

Dike who is also the first born in her family said that she faced a number of challenges that she managed to overcome.

She said the language barrier was the first challenge she faced along with social life.

Another challenge was the study because students were very competitive in class, so she had to study really hard.

“The challenges came from various factors, from education, the life like socialisation, and living far away from family – but the biggest challenge was competition in class,” she said.

‘Motivation to study hard’
“We have to pass the paper because we have the scholarship from the government, and we don’t want to waste the chance that the [Papua provincial] government has provided for us.

“Even though it is a pressure, we need to take it as our motivation to study hard,” said Dike.

Marius Elabi, who graduated from Waikato University, said that getting an opportunity to obtain knowledge from one of the universities in New Zealand was a fulfillment of his dream.

He said students needed to be grateful for the current provincial government’s programme to send students to pursue education in developed countries like New Zealand.

Elabi left his wife and children in West Papua and said it is really hard to be a student when you have got a family. But he was grateful to have a supportive family.

“I am so fortunate to have such a great wife and beautiful children who always get my back.

“My wife is a civil servant, but she is a great woman like other Melanesian and Pacific women,” he said.

“We West Papuans are capable to compete with other students here in New Zealand and in other countries, but we don’t have much opportunity,” said Elabi.

Father of three
Elabi, who is the father of three children, said that studying in New Zealand was not like in Indonesia where he had completed his undergraduate studies.

He said the challenges were similar to what Kapisa and Dike experienced, but one other issue that challenged him throughout his study was “family burdens”.

In order to be able to provide needs for his family back in West Papua, he did part time work as a cleaner and fruit picker.

“Even though I have to study and complete my thesis, I spent a couple of hours to do cleaning,” he said.

“During school break, I work with other West Papuan students at the farm.

“When you are students, never be shy to do any kind of work,” said Elabi.

Kapisa, Dike and Elabi said that they hoped the government of Papua province would send more Papuan students to New Zealand so that they could have a chance to know their brothers and sisters in the Pacific from New Zealand.

Presented achievements to family
The graduates said they presented their achievements to their mother, father, brothers, sisters, wife, children, extended family and all West Papuans.

Marveys Ayomi, a scholarship coordinator for Papuan students in New Zealand, said he was extremely proud of all the West Papuan graduates from Waikato, Otago and IPU New Zealand.

“First of all it is a big achievement for the people of Papua and we also need to acknowledge such an important role of the government of Papua plays from the very beginning since the establishment of the programme, specially a big thanks to our Governor bapak Lukas Enembe for providing this opportunity to many of our Papuan students.

“This is once in a lifetime opportunity for many of them and some of them in fact never travel out of Papua. Most of the students are highly motivated and driven to succeed.

“Now over the last three or four years we are averaging over five sometimes 10 students graduating over the last few years,” said Ayomi.

“This is the example of how successful the programme has been.”

Ayomi, a Papuan who has been living in New Zealand for 20 years and is a lecturer at the IPU New Zealand, said that there were many challenges that every student faced.

Adapting to new culture
Every student faced challenges like adapting to the new culture, academic system and other things.

Coming from Papua and culturally as a Melanesian and with a Pacific background, he said that New Zealand was a very unique and beautiful country for Papuans to be. He said in terms of the culture, there was a lot of similarity between Papuan culture and Māori culture.

“It is a different country, but I think culturally speaking we share a lot of commonalities and also similar cultural practices and traditions,” he said.

“The people of Papua have got a lot of hope for a bigger, better, brighter Papua in coming years. I call this day, the Golden Generation of Papua.”

He hopes everyone will succeed in their studies and enjoy their experience as much as possibly they can, take a lot of positive things that they can learn from New Zealand – “the beautiful nation and its people”.

Transfer some of those skills to your own people when you return home at some point,” said Ayomi.

“But if you still continue your studies, continue to do well and always put people in your land first before anything else.”

Laurens Ikinia is a Papuan Masters in Communication Studies student at Auckland University of Technology who has been studying journalism. He is on an internship with AUT’s Pacific Media Centre.

A remarkable 120 West Papuan students – all on scholarships – are studying in New Zealand, says Laurens Ikinia, a postgraduate student at Auckland University of Technology.

All-in-all, there are more than 600 Papuan students currently abroad in the US, UK, Australia and New Zealand, says Ikinia, a masters student in communication studies.

READ MORE: Papua Highlands emergency school roll grows

“All of us are supported by the Papuan provincial government and we are spread right across the country in New Zealand all the way from north to south,” Ikinia told Asia Pacific Report.

“The scholarship has never previously been in such large numbers of students to go study overseas and be supported by the government.”

The idea to get students into overseas academic institutions was the brainchild of Lukas Enembe, governor of the Indonesian-ruled province of Papua.

“We are lucky to have our current governor, Mr Lukas Enembe, he is such a great leader and a visionary who made the decision to send Papuan students overseas,” said the 25-year-old Ikinia.

Education ‘way out’
“In New Zealand, we have 120 students, and across the world there more than 600 students.”

Education is the way out for West Papuan students and Enembe could see that, Ikinia said.

“That is one of the priorities he has put, because he believes we [West Papuans] come last in terms of community development [by Indonesia],” he said.

Ikinia, the student representative with the Pacific Media Centre, acknowledged the initiative as critical development move for West Papua in the future.

“We are looked-down upon. We might be a rich region but that is the reality, so our governor made a decision to send students overseas.

“Marginalisation is happening everywhere in West Papua and a major problem is education.

“So, we gain more knowledge from developed countries such as New Zealand, Australia and the US,” Ikinia said.

More students coming
“I feel more students should be coming to New Zealand next year because we are made to feel welcome here.”

But the repression “back home” struck a sad chord with him, particularly with enforced relocation of the people in the troubled regency of Nduga as internal refugees.

“Media reports are saying as many as 40 to 45,000 people are being relocated in Nduga, they have been moved to nearby towns or regions,” he said.

“Media reports suggest there are different reasons and as far as I am concerned people are being relocated because they want to find security.

“I don’t know the motivation for it, but people in the villages are told this is a dangerous place so you have to go to find a safe place,” he said.

Some media reports blamed the West Papuan Liberation Army and other reports say it was because of the Indonesian troops fighting the Papuan rebels.

‘Verifying the truth’
“it is difficult to know the truth because you don’t have independent news sources to verify what is going on,” said Ikinia, a teacher who completed an international business undergraduate degree at the Institute of Pacific United NZ in Palmerston North.

He hopes fundamental human rights are given precedence and that will contribute to peace in Papua.

“I hope that after getting my knowledge here I can contribute to the people back home,” he said optimistically.

Speaking frankly, he said his desire was to see the Indonesia government enter a dialogue with the people of West Papua.

“I hope the government could open their hearts and approach the situation in West Papua with a good heart and pure mind to solve the actual problem,” Ikinia said.