The International Community Recognizes Papua and West Papua as an Integral Part of the Republic of Indonesia
By: Sabby Kosay )*
Papua is an integral part of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia. All forms of secession carried out by separatist groups are certainly unconstitutional actions. The unity of Papua and the Unitary Republic of Indonesia needs to be continuously nurtured so that the sense of brotherhood among the children of the nation remains established.
Support for Papua also came from abroad, such as New Zealand for example. As a Sahabat country, New Zealand insisted that it provided support for the sovereignty of Indonesia including Papua in order to remain part of the Unitary Republic of Indonesia, New Zealand also explained that there were a handful of elements from the country which declared that Papuan independence support was called mere groundless opinion.
Indonesian Ambassador to New Zealand Tantowi Yahya said, New Zealand always supports Indonesian sovereignty, they always respect Indonesia’s territorial territory from Sabang to Merauke.
In line with this, Mahfud MD also said, that New Zealand is a Friend of Indonesia country which strongly supports the integration or integrity of Indonesia’s territory, including strongly supporting the question of Papua as part of Indonesia.
In addition to New Zealand, countries bordering Indonesia Papua New Guinea have also provided support to Papua and West Papua to remain part of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI). It is hoped that the events that occurred in Papua recently will not be enlarged and can be resolved peacefully and wisely by the government.
The support was conveyed by Papua New Guinea’s Foreign Minister Soroi Marreipo when the House of Representatives Commission I conducted a visit to Port Moresbby.
The Minister of Foreign Affairs of Papua New Guinea directly asserted his attitude, that his government always supported Papua and West Papua was part of the Unitary Republic of Indonesia. This was conveyed directly to the delegates of the Indonesian Parliament.
Soroi also did not dismiss the existence of several Papuan New Guinea people who expressed their support for the referendum for Papua and West Papua to separate from Indonesia. However, Soroi said that the demonstration was not the attitude of the Government of Papua New Guinea.
This is in line with the statement made by the Indonesian Minister of Foreign Affairs, Retno Marsudi who stated that he had established communication with the Papua New Guinea government regarding the support of a referendum on West Papua.
But Retno also ensured that the Papua New Guinea government still continued to provide support to Papua and West Papua to remain under the auspices of the Republic of Indonesia.
In addition to the two countries, Australia’s Sahabat countries also remain committed in supporting Papua as part of the Unitary Republic of Indonesia.
The Australian Ambassador to Indonesia, Gary Quinlan stated that his country remained consistent in supporting Indonesia’s national and territorial integrity, including in Papua. This support has been provided since the two countries entered the age of 70 years of diplomatic relations between Indonesia and Australia.
Quinlan explained that to a number of journalists, he said Yes when he got questions relating to the consistency of Australian support for Indonesia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity.
This support was included in what was expressed by Australian Prime Minister Scott Morisson when meeting with Indonesian President Joko Widodo on the sidelines of the ASEAN Summit in Bangkok in early November 2019.
The commitment came when a number of Australian lawmakers reportedly voiced concern over alleged human rights in Papua during the latest period of tension and conflict in mid-2019.
Scott even expressed his appreciation for the visit made by President Jokowi to Papua.
Meanwhile, the Indonesian people, especially Papua, have not lost their enthusiasm in expressing their loyalty to the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia. They consciously rejected the referendum and foreign intervention on the Papua problem which could divide Indonesian brotherhood and unity.
Until whenever Papua is part of the Homeland and can not be separated. All citizens must comply with the law and if there are people who are guilty, they must get a punishment in accordance with applicable law.
Of course we have to agree, that Papua and West Papua are part of the diversity that must be maintained and nurtured by the cultural noble values.
)* The writer is a Papuan student living in Yogyakarta