West Papua Committee to Stage Major Rally Tuesday

M

Group KNPB

SBP-JAYAPURA,  - The National Committee of West Papua (KNPB) plans to stage a big rally on Tuesday (Feb 28) related to the launch of the International Parliamentarians for West Papua (IPWP) for Pacific region in Australia’s Parliament House.

“Through this national rally we ask for support from international community. We also give support to the International Lawyers for West Papua (ILWP) and the International Parliamentarians for West Papua (IPWP), which always support West Papua,” Spokesperson of KNPB, Jeffry Tabuni, said as quoted by Bintang Papua.

Jeffry said that tomorrow KNPB will mobilize Papuan people in West Papua to join the national rally. The name ‘West Papua’ in KNPB’s term refers to the whole of the western half of New Guinea Island, which is now divided into two provinces (Papua province and West Papua province) by Indonesian Government.

Jeffry, however, reminded to all Papuan people that the targets of the national rally are not Non Papuan people live in West Papua, and also not to destroying public infrastructures such as retail networks and buildings, because anarchy will not resolve the problems.

According to Jeffry, the launch of IPWP for Pacific region in Australia tomorrow will be attended by Powes Parkop (Governor of Port Moresby and the National Capital District of Papua New Guinea), Ralph Regenvanu (Justice Minister of Vanuatu Republic), Chaterine Delahunty (member of New Zealand Parliament), and Senator Richard Di Natale (member of Green Party, Australia) as spokesperson of West Papua.

KNPB has previously on February 20, 2012 also staged a rally in front of Papuan People Council (MRP). KNPB rejects the existence of a special unit for the acceleration of development in Papua provinces (UP4B) established by President SBY to resolve the problems in the provinces. KNPB insisted that the right solution for West Papua is a referendum.

IPWP, meanwhile, in its official website, www.ipwp.org, confirmed the event. IPWP claims that Parliamentarians from Vanuatu, New Zealand, Papua New Guinea and Australia have been invited to join this new group of IPWP for Members of Parliament’s supporting West Papua. IPWP said that it will build relationships between parliamentarians in the Australia-Pacific region interested in regional approaches to the challenges faced by those in West Papua.

IPWP is international organization which recognizes the inalienable right of the indigenous people of West Papua to self-determination, which its believed was violated in the 1969 “Act of Free Choice”. IPWP members have actively call upon their governments through the United Nations to put in place arrangements for the free exercise of that West Papuan people’s right to decide democratically their own future in accordance with international standards of human rights, the principles of international law and the Charter of the United Nations.

Tens of Parliament members have joined IPWP. They came from United Kingdom (UK), New Zealand, Australia, Papua New Guinea, Sweden, Netherland, Czech Republic, Switzerland, Finland, and Scotland. (haryanto@theindonesiatoday.com)

Orinalnews Indonesia Today