The Palestinian Authority has called the opening of Papua New Guinea’s Israeli embassy in Jerusalem an “aggression” and a “violation” of international law.
In a statement, Palestine’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Expatriates termed the embassy opening as “an aggression against the Palestinian people and their rights” and “a blatant violation of international law and United Nations resolutions”.
On Tuesday, PNG Prime Minister James Marape inaugurated the embassy in West Jerusalem, becoming only the fifth country to set up a diplomatic mission in the city.
In 2018, the US moved its embassy from Tel Aviv to Jerusalem in a move that was followed by Honduras, Guatemala and Kosovo.
The Palestinian ministry said it would use all political, diplomatic and legal means to “pursue these countries over their unjustified aggression against the Palestinian people and their rights.”
The Organisation of Islamic Cooperation and Jordan have also condemned the move.
Religion behind the move According to the Times of Israel, Marape was explicit that the opening of the embassy was down to religious motivations.
The country opened its embassy “because of our shared heritage, acknowledging the creator God, the Yahweh God of Israel, the Yahweh God of Isaac and Abraham,” the newspaper quoted Marape as saying.
“You have been the great custodian of the moral values that were passed for humanity,” Marape told Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, who attended the ceremony opening.
“Many nations choose not to open their embassies in Jerusalem but we made the conscious choice. This has been the universal capital of the nation and people of Israel.
For us to call ourselves Christians, paying respect to God will not be complete without recognising that Jerusalem is the universal capital of the people and nation of Israel.”
Marape also asked Israel to open an embassy in Port Moresby, and offered to provide the land for the mission.
Papua New Guinea dedicates its Embassy in Jerusalem. . . . Prime Minister James Marape (left) and Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. Image: Facebook.com/Israeli Prime Minister/RNZ Pacific
Opposition National Party deputy leader Nicola Willis was among three political leaders who made a surprising commitment at a debate last night to build 1000 state houses in Auckland each year.
Labour Party leader and caretaker prime minister Chris Hipkins and Green Party co-leader Marama Davidson also agreed to do so, with resounding “yes” responses to the direct question from co-convenors Sister Margaret Martin of the Sisters of Mercy Wiri and Nik Naidu of the Whānau Community Centre and Hub.
All three political leaders also pledged to have quarterly consultations with a new community alliance formed to address Auckland’s housing and homeless crisis and other social issues.
The “non-political partisan” public rally at the Lesieli Tonga Auditorium in Favona — which included more than 500 attendees representing 45 community and social issues groups — was hosted by the new alliance Te Ohu Whakawhanaunga.
Filipina lawyer and co-chair of the meeting Nina Santos, of the YWCA, declared: “If we don’t have a seat at the table, it’s because we’re on the menu.”
Later, in an interview with RNZ Morning Report today, Santos said: “It was so great to see [the launch of Te Ohu] after four years in the making”.
‘People power’
“It was so good to see our allies, our villages and our communities — our 45 organisations — show up last night to demonstrate people power
“Te Ohu Whakawhanaunga is a broad-based alliance, the first of its kind in Tāmaki Makauarau. The members include Māori groups, women’s groups, unions and faith-based organisations.
“They have all came together to address issues that the city is facing — housing is a basic human right.”
She chaired the evening with Father Henry Rogo from Fiji, of the Diocese of Polynesia in NZ.
Political leaders put on the spot over housing at Te Ohu . . . Prime Minister Chris Hipkins (Labour, from left), Marama Davidson (Green co-leader) and Nicola Willis (National deputy leader). Image: David Robie/APR
Speakers telling heart-rending stories included Dinah Timu, of E Tū union, about “decent work”, and Tayyaba Khan, Darwit Arshak and Eugene Velasco, who relating their experiences as migrants, former refugees and asylum seekers.
The crowd was also treated to performances by Burundian drummers, Colombian dancers and Te Whānau O Pātiki Kapahaka at Te Kura O Pātiki Rosebank School, all members of the new Te Ohu collective.
“Hipkins told the crowd of about 500 . . . that he grew up in a state house built by the Labour government in the 1950s. ‘And I’m very proud that we are building more state houses today than at any time since the 1950s,’ he said.
“’Labour has exceeded the 1000 commitment. We’ve built 12,000 social house units since 2017, and 7000 of them have been in Tāmaki Makaurau. But there is more work to be done.’
“He reminded the audience that the last National government had sold state houses, not built them.
“Davidson said that housing was ‘a human right and a core public good’. The Greens’ commitment was greater than that of the other parties: it wanted to build 35,000 more public houses in the next five years, and resource the construction sector and the government’s state housing provider Kāinga Ora to get it done.
“’We will also put a cap on rent increases and introduce a minimum income guarantee, to lift people out of poverty.’
“Willis told the audience there were 2468 people on the state house waiting list in Auckland when Labour took office in 2017, and now there are 8175.
“’Here’s the thing. If you don’t like the result you’re getting, you don’t keep doing the same thing. We don’t think social housing should just be provided by Kāinga Ora. We want the Salvation Army, and Habitat for Humanity and other community housing providers to be much more involved.’
“Members of that sector were at the meeting and one confirmed the community housing sector is already building a substantial proportion of new social housing.”
The United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) has declared it will now base itself in the Pacific region after years of partial exile.
At a conference in Port Vila late last month — coinciding with the Melanesian Spearhead Group Leaders’ Summit — UK-based Benny Wenda stood down as interim president.
More than 50 representatives from West Papua and across the world attended the summit in Vanuatu. It was only the second summit since ULMWP was formed in 2014.
The movement has an office in Vanuatu, a representative to the EU and some senior officials based in West Papua.
Tabuni will now lead the ULMWP from within West Papua, thereby, it said, maintaining its presence and solidarity with the Papuan people on the ground.
“I am honoured to be appointed as the new ULMWP president and I will do everything I can to continue our legitimate struggle for independence, Tabuni told Jubi News.
Working ‘from within West Papua’
“We must do this from within West Papua as well as campaigning in the international community.
“I will remain in Papua with the people while continuing to fight for human rights and my own determination.”
Octovianus Mote is the new vice-president, Markus Haluk its secretary, Benny Wenda its foreign affairs spokesperson, Buchtar Tabuni is chair of the Legislative Council and Apollos Sroyer as chair of the Judicial Council.
The ULMWP is the umbrella organisation representing the main pro-independence organisations in West Papua, including the West Papua National Coalition for Liberation (WPNCL), the Federal Republic of West Papua (NFRPB) and the West Papua National Parliament (PNWP).
“ULMWP also wants to clarify that there is no ‘interim government’ and ULMWP is a representative body for all Papuans,” Tabuni said.
The ULMWP, he said, continues to demand access for international media to be able to visit West Papua and report freely.
Indonesia ‘hiding’ its largest province
“Indonesia cannot call itself a democratic country if Indonesia continues to hide its largest province from the world,” Tabuni said.
ULMWP also expressed its “deepest gratitude” to the Vanuatu government for hosting the MSG Summit and the ULMWP group, and also to the people of Vanuatu for their continued support.
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
The West Papua delegation flying the Morning Star flag at the opening of the 7th Melanesian Arts & Culture Festival in Port Vila in July. Image: Twitter.com/@MSG Secretariat
A Radio New Zealand journalist says an Indonesian government official attempted to bribe and intimidate him at last month’s 22nd Melanesian Spearhead Group leaders’ summit in Port Vila.
The Indonesian government has responded yesterday saying it would “surely look” into the claims.
RNZ journalist Kelvin Anthony was in Port Vila to cover the MSG Leaders’ Summit two weeks ago when he was offered “a gift” after an exclusive interview with Indonesia’s Ambassador to Australia, Dr Siswo Pramono.
The alleged bribe was offered between 1pm-1.10pm on Wednesday, August 23, in the carpark of the Holiday Inn Resort in Port Vila by Indonesian government representative Ardi Nuswantoro, Anthony said.
“I was offered an exclusive interview with the Indonesia’s Ambassador to Australia at the MSG meeting after being told earlier in the week by Ardi Nuswantoro that his government did not like what RNZ had published on West Papua and that it was not balanced,” he said.
“I advised the delegate that RNZ makes every effort to be balanced and fair and we want to get Indonesia’s side too, but we need the chance to speak on the record.”
After communicating face-to-face and online via WhatsApp — texts and call records seen by RNZ — Nuswantoro asked Anthony to visit the Holiday Inn Resort at 12pm for the interview on Wednesday, August 23.
Broad set of questions
“I interviewed Dr Pramono covering a broad set of questions including human rights issues in West Papua, the MSG meeting, and Jakarta’s intentions in the Pacific, which lasted over 40 minutes,” Anthony said.
“I thought I had an exclusive interview that went well for a strong story out of the meeting that touched sensitive but pertinent issues involving Indonesia, the West Papua issue, and the Pacific.”
Anthony said he was escorted out of the reception area at the end of the interview and accompanied by at least three Indonesian officials.
He said Nuswantoro, who he was liaising with to set up the interview, “asked me several times if I had a car and how I was going to get back”.
“I told them that my colleague from a local media who was with me was driving me back to town. As we walked to the car park, the same official continued to walk with me and just as we were about to approach the car, he said, ‘The Indonesian delegation would like to offer you token of appreciation’.”
“I asked him, ‘What’s that?’ He replied, ‘A small gift’.
“I asked him again, ‘But what is it?’ And he replied: ‘Money’.
‘I was shell-shocked’
“At that point I was shell-shocked because I had never experienced something like that in my career.
“I declined to accept the money and told him, ‘I cannot take money because it compromises the story and my credibility and integrity as a journalist’.”
Anthony said the Indonesian official looked visibly withdrawn at the rejection and apologised for offering money.
Due to the incident, RNZ chose at the time not to air the interview with Dr Pramono.
RNZ put the claims of bribery and intimidation to the Indonesian government.
In an email response, Jakarta’s Ministry of Foreign Affairs, Asia Pacific and African Affairs director general Abdul Kadir Jailani neither confirmed nor denied the claims.
“Bribery has never been our policy nor approach to journalists,” Jailani said.
“We will surely look into it,” he said.
Melanesian Spearhead Group flags . . . a packed agenda and the issue of full membership of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) was a big-ticket item. Image: RNZ Pacific/Kelvin Anthony
‘I felt intimidated’ The offering of money happened while a local fixer was about five metres away “seeing everything unfold” waiting at the car, Anthony said.
“My local fixer saw and heard everything and as we drove off he said I should report on it but only when I am out of Vanuatu. I immediately communicated the incident to my superiors back in Wellington to put everything on record,” Anthony said.
The local ni-Vanuatu journalist, who was present when the alleged incident occurred, said: “I saw what was happening and knew exactly what the Indonesian guy was trying to do”.
“My advice to the RNZ journalist was to hold the story until he was out of the country because I was worried about his safety.”
RNZ has seen communications sent by the Indonesian official to the journalist, asking him when RNZ was going to publish the interview.
“I did not respond to the messages or calls. I did, however, encounter the Indonesia delegation representatives and the official who offered me the money on Thursday, August 24, at the closing reception of the MSG leaders’ meeting at the Warwick Resort Convention Centre,” Anthony said.
Official kept following him
He said the same official kept following him around and messaged him a video clip showing indigenous Papuans carrying out violent acts.
“I felt a little intimidated but I tried to stick around with the local journalists as much as I could so I could avoid the Indonesian officials coming up to me,” he said.
Another local media representative who was at the farewell function on Thursday, August 24, said they could “see the Indonesian delegate moving around the RNZ journalist continuously and following him everywhere he went”.
“It seemed obvious that one particular Indonesian delegate was pestering Kelvin and following him around,” they said.
In Indonesia’s official response to the allegations, Abdul Kadir Jailani said “we have no interest in following nor intimidating any journalists covering the Summit”.
MSG meeting coverage RNZ was the only international media which had a journalist on the ground to cover the MSG meeting for its Pacific audience.
Indonesia’s Ambassador to Australia Dr Siswo Pramono . . . walked out of the MSG leaders’ summit when West Papuans spoke. Image: RNZ Pacific/Kelvin Anthony
The MSG is an important sub-regional bloc that includes Fiji, FLNKS — the Kanak and Socialist Liberation Front, an umbrella group for pro-independence political parties in New Caledonia — Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.
The meeting had a packed agenda and the issue of full membership of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) was a big-ticket item.
Indonesia, an associate member of the MSG, had the largest delegation at the meeting and has been on record saying it does not support or recognise the ULMWP as a representative body of the indigenous Papuans.
Dr Pramono said Jakarta views the ULMWP as a “secessionist movement” and walked out of the meeting when the movement’s representatives made interventions.
The MSG meeting concluded with leaders rejecting ULMWP’s application to become a full member of the sub-regional group.
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
Melanesian Spearhead Group leaders drink Vanuatu kava after signing two declarations at the 22nd MSG Leaders’ Summit in Port Vila. Image: RNZ Pacific/Kelvin Anthony
A young Samoan climate activist says the UN’s new guidance on children’s rights to a clean, healthy and sustainable environment is “the first step to global change”.
The UN Committee on the Rights of the Child have affirmed for the first time that climate change is affecting children’s rights to life, survival and development.
“General Comment No. 26” specifies that countries are responsible not only for protecting children’s rights from immediate harm, but also for foreseeable violations of their rights in the future.
It found the climate emergency, collapse of biodiversity and pervasive pollution “is an urgent and systemic threat to children’s rights globally”.
Children have been at the forefront of the fight against climate change, urging governments and corporations to take action to safeguard their lives and the future, said committee member Philip Jaffé.
Samoan-born Aniva Clarke, 17, is an environmental activist based in New Zealand. She has been a climate advocate since 10 years old.
Amplifying Pacific youth voices
Growing up in Samoa, she helped to amplify Pacific youth voices about climate change.
“Children and young people have been calling on action for so long and I think this is one of the many things and sort of products of that action working.”
Clarke was one of 12 global youth advisors on the inaugural Children’s Advisory Team, established to facilitate youth consultations on children’s rights, the environment and climate change.
She said the comments “create a framework” that hold 196 UN countries to account.
“They have recognised that there is a call and need for action,” she said.
Countries that have ratified the UN Child Rights Convention are urged to take immediate action including towards phasing out fossil fuels and shifting to renewable energy sources, improving air quality, ensuring access to clean water, and protecting biodiversity.
A lot to lose for Pacific nations Clarke said Pacific Island nations had a lot to lose and larger nations responsible for emitting the most carbon emissions must take a stand to preserve the environment for future generations.
“The climate crisis is a child rights crisis,” said Paloma Escudero, UNICEF Special Adviser on Advocacy for Child Rights and Climate Action.
Clarke is worried that future generations are at risk of not only losing their land but their “culture”.
“We lose our ancient traditions … we live off the land but we live for the land,” she said.
For island groups like Tokelau and Tuvalu, which are low lying atolls, if climate change continues, then “those communities risk losing their islands completely”.
The committee received more than 16,000 contributions from children in 121 nations, who shared the effects of environmental degradation and climate change on their lives and communities.
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
Vanuatu Daily Post civil society correspondents have written in unison condemning the failure of the Melanesian Spearhead Group to admit West Papua as full members of the organisation at last month’s leaders’ summit in Port Vila.
The Australia West Papua Association (AWPA) says that “it’s tragic that the MSG leaders did not respond” to the call of the Melanesian grassroots that took to the streets in support of West Papua memnbership.
“Many [West Papuans] were arrested, and beaten as they rallied peacefully,” wrote Joe Collins, spokesperson for AWPA, who was in Port Vila for the leaders’ summit.
“Free West Papua” criticised the “strategic move by Indonesia to sway opinion among Pacific island nations”.
“The fear is that this could be an attempt to showcase Indonesia in a positive light, downplaying the grave issues [of human rights violations] in West Papua.”
The letter also criticised a plan to open an Indonesian embassy in Vanuatu, cloaming such a move “could serve as a platform to exert influence and suppress the ongoing struggle for justice and freedom in West Papua”.
Some of the letters:
MSG has failed West Papua: Regenvanu “It’s not just [Climate Change Minister Ralph] Regenvanu, who believes that the MSG failed West Papua at their summit. It’s every West Papuan and their supporters who also feel let down by the MSG leaders.
“Over the past few months in West Papua, the grassroots took to the streets showing support for the United Liberation Movement For West Papua (ULPWP’s) application and calling on the MSG to grant full membership to West Papua. Many were arrested, and beaten as they rallied peacefully.
“It’s tragic that the MSG Leaders did not respond to their call. Do the MSG leaders not read the reports of the ongoing human rights abuses in West Papua?
“If the MSG Leaders failed West Papua, the people of the Pacific and Vanuatu in particular do not. In the few days I spent in Port Vila, I saw support for West Papua everywhere.
“The West Papuan flag flying free and Free West Papuan stickers on walls. I was impressed with the support and kindness of the Vanuatu people and the Vanuatu Free West Papua Association who help keep the struggle alive.
“The West Papuan representatives, who had their own summit, showed a determined people committed to their freedom. Something the leaders of the region should note. The issue of West Papua is not going away.”
Joe Collins, Australia West Papua Association, Sydney, VDP, August 31, 2023
The ground-breaking ceremony for the Indonesian-funded ugrade of the VIP Lounge at Port Vila’s Bauerfield Airport last month. Image: Vanuatu Daily Post
“The funding Indonesia is providing Vanuatu (VDP, August 24), is that a case of chequebook diplomacy to blunt Vanuatu’s solidarity with West Papua’s struggle against Indonesian colonial occupation and oppression?”
Rajend Naidu, Sydney, VDP, August 25, 2023
Indonesian ‘trail of violence’
“The chairman of the Vanuatu Free West Papua Association (VFWPA) delivered a poignant statement that resonates with the deep concerns shared by the people of Vanuatu.
“For over five decades, the Indonesian military’s actions in West Papua have left a trail of violence and human rights abuses. The chairman’s statement underscores the lasting impact of these killings and highlights the passionate support of Vanuatu for the people of West Papua.
“The Melanesian Arts Festival, a cultural celebration of the region’s diversity, became a stage for diplomatic tension as Indonesia’s uninvited presence raised eyebrows. The chairman’s remarks revealed a resolute belief that this unexpected appearance was not merely coincidental, but a strategic move by Indonesia to sway opinion among Pacific island nations.
“The fear is that this could be an attempt to showcase Indonesia in a positive light, downplaying the grave issues in West Papua.
“Moreover, Indonesia’s reported plans to open an embassy in Vanuatu raise further suspicions about their intentions.
“Concerns are mounting that such a move could serve as a platform to exert influence and suppress the ongoing struggle for justice and freedom in West Papua.
“The people of Vanuatu, however, remain steadfast in their support for their brothers and sisters in West Papua. Despite potential political and financial pressures, they refuse to turn a blind eye to the human rights violations that have plagued the region for far too long.
“The chairman’s statement reflects the sentiments of a nation determined to stand united against injustice.
“This unwavering support from Vanuatu is a testament to the power of solidarity among Pacific island nations. It sends a strong message to the international community that human rights and justice cannot be compromised for political gains or financial interests.
“The situation in West Papua demands attention, and the people of Vanuatu have vowed to be a voice for those who have been silenced.
“As the saga unfolds, the eyes of the world are on Vanuatu, watching how the nation navigates this delicate diplomatic dance. Their commitment to supporting West Papua’s quest for justice and freedom remains resolute, and they must navigate this situation with tact and conviction.
“In times of adversity, the bonds of brotherhood are tested, and Vanuatu has proven that their ties with West Papua go beyond borders. Their stance is a reminder that human rights violations should never be brushed aside or obscured by political maneuvers.
“It is a call for action, urging the global community to stand alongside Vanuatu and West Papua in their pursuit of justice.
“As we continue to witness the developments in this complex situation, the world awaits with bated breath to see how Vanuatu’s unwavering support for West Papua will unfold. Will their resolute determination inspire others to join their cause, or will political pressures prevail?
“Only time will tell, but one thing remains clear: the voices of Vanuatu and West Papua will not be silenced, and their pursuit of justice and freedom will persist until it is achieved.”
An Australian academic has lit the fuse of diplomatic fury by publicly criticising Indonesia’s brutal response to the Papuan independence movement, a sensitive topic for governments of both countries. Duncan Graham reports from Indonesia on the silent war to the north.
ANALYSIS:By Duncan Graham
An Australian academic is risking an eruption of diplomatic fury by publicly criticising Indonesia’s brutal response to the Papuan independence movement, a hypersensitive topic for the governments of both countries.
Queensland historian Dr Greg Poulgrain last month told a Jakarta seminar that the Indonesian government’s approach “has long been top-heavy, bureaucratic, clumsy and self-serving.
“The military arrived in 1962 and 60 years later they’re still there in strength . . . more troops there now than ever before.
“The NGO Kontras declared that 734 Papuans were killed in 2022. That’s two-and-a-half times the number of Palestinians killed by the Israeli army last year. And from (the Highland province) Nduga there were 60,000 refugees.”
His comments were made just as the West Papua independence movement failed to get Pacific Islands’ backing at a stormy meeting of the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) in Vanuatu with an Indonesian delegation walk-out.
The bid was thwarted by an alleged “corrupt alliance” of member states apparently after pressure from Indonesia which is funding Vanuatu airport repairs (including the VIP lounge) worth A$1.47 million. More of this later.
A report of the Jakarta seminar, organised by the government research agency Baden Riset dan Inovasi Nasional (BRIN), was published in Indonesia’s leading newspaper Kompas. It ran to 830 words but never mentioned Dr Poulgrain or his comments, although he was the invited international guest speaker.
Australian government stays hush
An estimated 500,000 indigenous Papuans are alleged to have died in the past 50 years through Indonesian military action. But the Australian government stays hush.
Before she became Foreign Minister, Senator Penny Wong, wrote that Labor was distressed by “human rights violations” in West Papua. However, there is a “don’t touch” clause in a two-nation pact signed 17 years ago “to address security challenges”.
New England University academics Dr Xiang Gao and Professor Guy Charlton claim “non-interference” limits Australian responses “despite the domestic sympathy much of the Australian public has given to the West Papuan population”.
They quote a 2019 website post from Wong saying the treaty “remains the bedrock of security cooperation” between Australia and Indonesia.
Dr Poulgrain told his Jakarta audience that the military’s presence in Papua “has led to amazing problems.
“In the first 40 years, the Papuan death toll was horrendous. In 1983 the London-based Anti-Slavery Society sent me to check a report that Papuan under-fives in the Asmat district (South Papua) were dying like flies — six out of ten were dying. The report was correct.
Hardly any benefit at all
“We’re dealing with a people about whom very little effort to understand has been made. It has been claimed that the indigenous inhabitants of Papua should be grateful that so much money is spent . . . but the benefit they receive (as a percentage of the intended amount) is hardly any benefit at all.”
The Indonesian government says it has allocated more than Rp 1,036 trillion (A$106 million) in the past eight years for development (mainly roads) in a bid to appease self-government demands. That’s a tiny sum against the income.
The Grasberg mine in Central Papua has “proven and probable reserves of 15.1 million ounces of gold”. If correct that makes it the world’s biggest gold deposit.
It is run by PT Freeport Indonesia, a joint venture between the Indonesian government and the US company Freeport-McMoRan.
Dr Poulgrain claims gross revenue from the mine last year was about A$13 billion:
“We can be sure that the immense wealth of gold was a crucial influence on the sovereignty dispute in the 1950s and still influences the politics of Papua and Indonesia today.”
Despite the riches, Papua is reportedly one of the least developed regions in Indonesia, with poverty and inequality levels up to three times above the national average of 9.5 percent, as calculated by the Asian Development Bank.
In 1962 control of the Western half of the island of New Guinea, formerly part of the Dutch East Indies, was temporarily run by the UN. In 1969 it was ceded to Indonesia after a referendum when 1025 “leaders” hand-picked by the Indonesian military voted unanimously to join Jakarta.
‘Act of No Choice’
It was labelled an Act of Free Choice; cynics called it an “Act Free of Choice”, of “Act of No Choice”.
Historian Dr Emma Kluge wrote: “West Papuans were denied independence also because the UN system failed to heed their calls and instead placed appeasing Indonesia above its commitment to decolonisation and human rights.”
Pro-independence groups have since been fighting with words at the UN and at first with spears and arrows in the Highland jungles. Some now carry captured modern weapons and have been ambushing and killing Indonesian soldiers and road workers, and suffering casualties.
In February the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB), the armed section of the umbrella Organisasi Papua Merdeka (OPM, Papua Freedom Organisation), kidnapped NZ pilot Philip Mehrtens and demanded independence talks for his release.
After searching for six months the Indonesian military (TNI) has so far failed to free the Kiwi.
The OPM started gaining traction in the 1970s. Indonesia has designated it a “terrorist group” giving the armed forces greater arrest and interrogation powers.
Amnesty International claimed this showed Indonesia’s “lack of willingness to engage with the real roots of the ongoing conflict”, although it failed to pick apart the “roots” or offer practical solutions.
Journalists are banned
Communications in the mountains are tough and not just because of the terrain. Cellphone signals could lead to discovery. Journalists are banned. Requests for entry by this correspondent were given verbal OKs but are now ignored.
The only news comes from Christian pastors smuggling out notes, and statements from different West Papua freedom movement factions like the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP).
The lobbying is angering Jakarta, a major donor to the region. Papuans identify as Melanesians and are mainly Christian. The Indonesian delegation walked out in Port Vila when Wenda got up to speak.
Indonesia’s deputy Foreign Minister Pahala Mansury was quoted as saying: “Indonesia cannot accept that someone who should be responsible for acts of armed violence in Papua, including kidnappings, is given the opportunity to speak at this honourable forum.”
Could not reach consensus
The ABC reported that the leaders could not reach a consensus, but Wenda told Radio NZ he was confident the ULMWP would eventually get full membership: “The whole world is watching and this is a test for the leadership to see whether they’ll save West Papua”.
PNG’s National Capital District Governor Powes Parkop told Asia Pacific Report: “I am totally disappointed in the failure of the MSG leaders to seize the opportunity to redefine the future of West Papua and our region.
“Fear of Indonesia and proactive lobbying by Indonesia again has been allowed to dominate Melanesia to the detriment of our people of West Papua.”
Curiously Indonesia is an associate member of the MSG though the republic is dominated and led by Javanese. Around two million (0.7 percent) Papuans are Indonesian citizens.
Dr David Robie, NZ-based publisher of Asia Pacific Report, responded: “The MSG has thrown away a golden chance for achieving a historical step towards justice and peace in West Papua by lacking the courage to accept the main Papuan self-determination advocacy movement as full members.
‘Terrible betrayal’
“Many see this as a terrible betrayal of West Papuan aspirations and an undermining of Melanesian credibility and solidarity as well as an ongoing threat to the region’s security and human rights.”
Wenda is not the only emigre: Prize-winning Indonesian human rights lawyer Veronica Koman is wanted by the Indonesian police for allegedly speaking out on violence in Papua.
Like Wenda, she says she does not support hostage-taking.
Koman lives in Australia, works with Amnesty International and says she gets death threats. Her parents’ house in Jakarta has reportedly been stoned.
Just like The Hague’s handling of Indonesian anti-colonialists in the 1945-49 Revolutionary War, Jakarta’s policy has been force. Protesters are dehumanised, tagged as “criminals” or “terrorists”, however mild their involvement, an ancient tactic in warfare making it legally easier to shoot than arrest.
The pro-independence cause gets little sympathy from Indonesians in other provinces. Papuan students in Java have been attacked and suffered racial abuse. Anyone caught flying the Morning Star flag of independence risks 15 years in jail.
Vice-President Ma’ruf Amin has urged the military to “get tough”. At a Jakarta ceremony in June, former President Megawati Soekarnoputri was quoted as saying: ‘”If I were still a commander, I would deploy the number of battalions there. That’s cool, right?”
Battalions will not solve the problem
No, said Dr Poulgrain: “The history of the Papuan people that has become the norm is not correct. This is still a problem today. It’s our perception that’s the problem. Adding battalions will not solve the problem today.”
Dr Poulgrain is a specialist in Indonesian history and an adjunct fellow at the University of the Sunshine Coast and Malang State University in East Java. His interest in Papua goes back to his student years as a backpacker exploring the archipelago.
Dr Poulgrain said his involvement in the debate was as an independent historian seeking a peaceful settlement. After speaking in Jakarta he flew to Jayapura to address a seminar at the Papua International University.
In 1999, when Megawati was vice-president (she is now the chair of BRIN), he was invited to a meeting on Papua with 10 of her advisors:
“They said to me, quite frankly, Papua was a problem they did not know how to solve. I suggested vocational training schools. We started — but the whole educational project stopped when the East Timor referendum established independence. Times haven’t changed.”
In 2018, activists delivered a petition to the UN with 1.8 million signatures demanding an independence referendum. That has gone nowhere. Instead, Jakarta has split West Papua into six provinces supposedly to give locals more say, but to no real effect.
“As the US and Australia continue to support Indonesia’s sovereignty and territorial integrity in Papua, both administrations are unlikely to take bolder stances.
“International action in the situation is likely to remain limited to the Pacific Islands . . . Separatist violence, having shown its resiliency to Indonesia’s attempts to control the region, is thus likely to continue.’
Duncan Graham has been a journalist for more than 40 years in print, radio and TV. He is the author of People Next Door: Understanding Indonesia (UWA Press) and winner of the Walkley Award and human rights awards. He lives in East Java and is now writing for the English language media in Indonesia on a permanent resident visa with work rights. This took five years to get using sponsorship through his Indonesian wife. He contributes to Asia Pacific Report and this article was first published by Michael West Media and is republished with permission.
Fiji is on the road to economic recovery and the government looks forward to the support and assistance of the Fijian diaspora in its progress, says Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Professor Biman Prasad.
Inaugurating the Fiji Centre, an entity established at the premises of the Whānau Community Centre and Hub in Mount Roskill last night, Dr Prasad said that while the challenges faced by his administration were many, he and his colleagues were confident of bringing the economy back on track.
He said tourism was the first industry to recover after the adverse effects of the covid-19 pandemic, but foreign remittances by Fijians living overseas had been a major source of strength.
Dr Prasad was elected to the Fiji Parliament and is the leader of the National Federation Party, which won five seats in the current Parliament.
His NFP formed a Coalition government with Sitiveni Rabuka’s People’s Alliance Party and the Social Democratic Liberal Party (SODELPA).
The general election held on 14 December 2023 ousted former prime minister Josaia Voreqe Bainimarama and his FijiFirst Party.
Bainimarama took over the leadership after a military coup on 5 December 2006, but the first post-coup general election was not held until 17 September 2014.
Individual foreign remittances “Tourism was quick to bounce back to pre-pandemic levels and personal remittances have been extremely helpful. The diaspora remitted about F$1 billion last year and I hope that the trend will continue,” Dr Prasad said.
He appealed to New Zealand-resident Fijians to also invest in Fiji.
“Fiji was under siege for 16 years and many suffered silently for fear of being suppressed and punished but that has changed with the election of the new Coalition government . . . The first law change was to amend the Media Industry Development Act which assures freedom of expression,” he said.
“Freedom of the media is essential in a democracy.”
Formal opening of Auckland’s Fiji Centre . . . the inauguration plaque. Image: APR
Dr Prasad said that the pandemic was not the only reason for the state of the Fijian economy.
“Our economy was in dire straits. We inherited a huge debt of F$10 billion after 16 years of neglect, wasteful expenditure on non-priority items and total disregard for public sentiment,” he said.
“We believe in consultation and understanding the needs of the people. The National Business Summit that we organised in Suva soon after forming the government provided us with the impetus to plan for the future.”
Dr Prasad admitted that governments were elected to serve the people but could not do everything.
“We are always guided by what the community tells us. People voted for freedom at the . . . general election after an era of unnecessary and sometimes brutal control and suppression of their opinions,” he said.
“They wanted their voices to be heard, be involved in the running of their country and have a say in what their government should do for them.
“They wanted their government to be more accountable and their leaders to treat them with respect.”
Professor Biman Prasad’s speech at Auckland’s Fiji Centre. Video: Indian Newslink
Formidable challenges Later, speaking to Indian Newslink, Dr Prasad said that the first Budget that he had presented to Parliament on 30 June 2023 was prepared in consultation with the people of Fiji, after extensive travel across the islands.
His Budget had set total government expenditure at F$4.3 billion, with a projected revenue of F$3.7 billion, leaving a deficit of F$639 million.
The debt to GDP ratio is 8.8 percent.
He said that education had the largest share in his budget with an allocation of F$845 million.
“This includes the write-off of F$650 million [in the] Tertiary Scholarship and Loan Service Debt of $650 million owed by more than 50,000 students.
“But this comes with the caveat that these students will have to save a bond. The bond savings will be years of study multiplied by 1.5, and those who choose not to save the bond will have to pay the equivalent cost amount,” he said.
Dr Prasad allocated F$453.8 million for health, stating that there would be a significant increase in funding to this sector in the ensuing budgets.
He said that the Fijian economy was expected to grow between 8 percent to 9 percent, revised from the earlier estimate of 6 percent since there is greater resilience and business confidence.
According to him, the average economic growth for the past 16 years has been just 3 percent, despite various claims made by the previous regime.
“We have promised to do better. We will stand by our commitment to integrity, honesty, accountability and transparency.
“The consultative process that we have begun with our people will continue and that would our community in countries like Australia and New Zealand,” he said.
He said that the Fiji diaspora, which accounted for about 70,000 Indo-Fijians in New Zealand and larger numbers in Australia, the United Kingdom, the United States of America and Canada, had the potential to support the rebuilding efforts of his government.
Engagement with trading partners “Whenever I visit New Zealand, I like to spend more time with our community and listen to their views and aspirations.
“I invite you to return to Fiji and help in rebuilding our economy. We are in the process of easing the procedures for obtaining Fijian citizenship and passport, including a reduction in the fees.
“The future of Fiji depends on our communities in Fiji and across the world,” he said.
Dr Prasad that he and his government were grateful to the Australian and New Zealand governments which had provided aid to Fiji during times of need including the pandemic years and the aftermath of devastating cyclones.
“We want to re-engage with our traditional partners, including New Zealand, Australia, India, the USA, the UK and Japan (as a member of Quad),” he said.
Dr Prasad said that while both Australia and New Zealand had had long ties with Fiji, he had always been drawn towards New Zealand.
He said that his wife had completed her PhD at the University of Otago and that his children received their entire education, including postgraduate qualifications, in this country.
Dr Prasad is in New Zealand to meet the Fiji diaspora, including the business community.
He addressed a meeting of the New Zealand Fiji Business Council at the Ellerslie Convention Centre in Auckland today.
Republished with permission from Indian Newslink.
Fiji’s Dr Prasad speaking at the Fiji Centre in Auckland last night . . . While both Australia and New Zealand have had long ties with Fiji, Dr Prasad has always been drawn towards New Zealand. Image: David Robie/APR
An Australian advocacy group in support of West Papuan self-determination has criticised the Melanesian Spearhead Group leaders for failing to grant West Papua full membership in the organisation at last week’s summit in Port Vila.
While praising Vanuatu Minister for Climate Change Adaptation Ralph Regenvanu for his public stance in support of the West Papuans, Australia West Papua Association (AWPA) spokesperson Joe Collins said that “every West Papuan and their supporters also feel let down by the MSG leaders”.
Collins, who was in Port Vila for the coinciding second West Papuan leaders summit, said in a statement: ”Over the last few months in West Papua, the grassroots have taken to the streets calling on the MSG to grant full membership to the ULMWP (United Liberation Movement for West Papua) at the MSG.
“Many were arrested, beaten, tortured and jailed as they rallied peaceful in calling on the MSG to support them.
“It is tragic that the MSG did not respond to their call. Do the MSG leaders not read the reports of the ongoing human rights abuses in West Papua?”
Collins cited a video and human rights report about attacks on villages around Kiwirok in West Papua and the aftermath exposing Indonesian military brutality as recent examples.
“Surely with all the aid flowing to the Pacific countries it’s not simply a case of ‘follow the Money?’, Collins said.
Humanitarian aid
He referred to an article in the Vanuatu Daily Post which reported: “A top Vanuatu government official allegedly travelled to Jakarta to negotiate a reported VT300 million to fund the VIP Lounge of Port Vila International Airport and fund humanitarian aid.
“The ground breaking ceremony happened recently.”
The ground-breaking ceremony for the Indonesian-funded ugrade of the VIP Lounge at Port Vila’s Bauerfield Airport last week. Image: Vanuatu Daily Post
Collins said that when the Indonesian delegation walked out of the MSG summit as ULMWP leader Benny Wenda prepared to speak, “it was not only an insult to West Papua but to the MSG leaders as well.”
“The leaders should have granted full membership to the ULMWP [in response to] that outrageous act alone,” Collins added.
“If the MSG leaders failed West Papua, the people of the Pacific, and Vanuatu in particular, do not.
“Just spending a few days in Port Vila, one can see the support for West Papua everywhere. The West Papuan flag flying free, and stickers, in taxis and on walls.”
The West Papuan representatives at their own summit also “showed a determined people committed to their freedom”.
The West Papuan summit was addressed by Regenvanu and a former Vanuatu prime minister, Barak Sope.
The leaders of five Melanesian nations have agreed to write to French President Emmanuel Macron “expressing their strong opposition” to the results of the third New Caledonia referendum.
In December 2021, more than 96 percent of people voted against full sovereignty, but the pro-independence movement FLNKS (Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front) has refused to recognise the result because of a boycott by the Kanak population over the impact of the covid pandemic on the referendum campaign.
Since then, the FLNKS has been seeking international support for its view that the referendum result was not a legitimate outcome.
The Melanesian Spearhead Group leaders — Fiji, Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea, Vanuatu and the FLNKS — met in Port Vila last week for the 22nd edition of the Leader’s Summit, where they said “the MSG does not recognise the results of the third referendum on the basis of the PIF’s Observer Report”.
FLNKS spokesperson Victor Tutugoro told RNZ Pacific the pro-independence group had continued to protest against the outcome of the December 2021 referendum.
“We contest the referendum because it was held during the circumstances that was not healthy for us. For example, we went through covid, we lost many members of our families [because of the pandemic],” Tutugoro said.
“We will continue to protest at the ICJ (International Court of Justice) level and at the national level. We expect the MSG to help us fight to get the United Nations to debate the cause of the Kanaks.”
The leaders have agreed that “New Caledonia’s inclusion on the UN List of decolonisation territories is protected and maintained”.
The MSG leaders have also directed the UN permanent representative to “examine and provide advice” so they can seek an opinion from the ICJ “on the results of the third referendum conducted in December 2021”.
FLNKS spokesperson Victor Tutugoro at the 22nd Melanesian Spearhead Group Leaders’ Summit in Port Vila. . . . “We contest the referendum because it was held during the circumstances that was not healthy for us.” Image: RNZ Pacific/Kelvin Anthony
They have also requested that the UN provide a report on the “credibility of the election process, and mandated the MSG UN permanent representatives, working with the MSG Secretariat and the FLNKS, “to pursue options on the legality of the 3rd referendum”.
Support for West Papua New Caledonia’s pro-independence FLNKS movement also said it would continue to back the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) to become a full member of the Melanesian Spearhead Group.
Tutugoro told the 22nd MSG Leader’s Summit in Port Vila that FLNKS had always supported West Papua’s move to join the MSG family.
He said by becoming a full member of the sub-regional group, FLNKS was able to benefit from international support to counterbalance the weight of France in its struggle for self-determination.
He said the FLNKS hoped the ULMWP would have the same opportunity and in time it could be included on the UN’s list of non-self-governing territories.
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
United Liberation Movement for West Papua delegates at last week’s 22nd Melanesian Spearhead Group Leaders’ Summit in Port Vila, Vanuatu. Image: RNZ Pacific/Kelvin Anthony
The Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) has failed West Papua, says a Vanuatu government champion of West Papuan self-determination.
Minister for Climate Change Adaptation Ralph Regenvanu, a former foreign minister and who is also a pioneer spokesman for freedom for the Melanesian people of West Papua, said this when delivering his remarks at the closing of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) Second Summit in Port Vila last weekend.
“Today I feel very sad because the MSG has failed West Papua. When I found out the decision of the leaders, I was shocked and I was really sad,” he said.
“We have not gone forward, we have gone backward here in Vanuatu. And this should not have happened in Vanuatu as we are the chair of MSG.”
Today’s Vanuatu Daily Post front page featuring Minister Ralph Regenvanu’s condemnation of the MSG. Image: Vanuatu Daily Post screenshot APR
Speaking on behalf of the Vanuatu government, he described the failure to admit West Papua as the latest full member of MSG, as “a failure not only by the Vanuatu fovernment, but a failure by the Vanuatu Free West Papua Association (VFWPA), a failure by the ULMWP and we all have to pull up our socks”.
He continued: “If we had all been much better prepared in working together, I think we would have had a different result here in Vanuatu.
Why was ULMWP left out?
“For example, the Vanuatu government gave an office here for ULMWP, but the ULMWP was not a participant of the senior officials’ meeting of MSG.
“What is the purpose of having a meeting to decide the agenda for the leaders if ULMWP was absent from the meeting?”
However, he assured the second ULMWP summit, “For me this meeting is more important than the MSG Summit.
“Because it is a meeting to represent the unity for the people of West Papua for the self-determination of the people of West Papua”.
Minister Regenvanu challenged ULMWP to learn from Vanuatu’s political history.
“Vanuatu became independent because we formed a political grouping called Vanua’aku Pati and everybody got behind it to become independent. In fact without it, we would not have become independent,” he said.
“I am pleading with you to refocus this organisation which was formed here in Port Vila (in 2014). Rebuild, reunite, restrategise and with a truly united movement representing all Melanesians of West Papua, and one which is responsive and strategic and smart, we can achieve what we all want to help the Vanuatu government to do better next time.
‘This is your struggle’
“The Vanuatu government is helping you but this is your struggle. We are your backup but we can’t set the direction for you. So please help us to help you.”
Vanuatu’s first former roving ambassador and a former prime minister, Barak Sope, was the second speaker.
Former Vanuatu prime minister Barak Sope . . . speaking at the West Papua leaders’ summit in Port Vila at the weekend. Image: Joe Collins/AWPA
“We struggled for our freedom from Britain (and France),” he said.
“Despite what happened now [failure to adopt West Papua as latest full member of MSG], the struggle must continue until victory is certain.
“We fully support the statement of Mr Regenvanu that ‘united we stand, divided we fall’. Vanuatu will continue to support the struggle of the people of West Papua.
“We’ve always taken the stand that West Papua should have been the first Melanesian country to become independent.
“The first Speaker of Parliament (of West Papua) Ayamiseba stayed with us here. He told us everything that happened.
People of West Papua ‘sold’
“How Holland, the colonial power, sold the people of West Papua, how the United States and Australia also sold the West Papuan people.
“And how the United Nations sold the people of West Papua.
“So we must never accept how Indonesia came in and stole your freedom.
“The reason for their presence is because of West Papua’s resources and not because of us the Melanesians.
“They are stealing (Melanesian resources). They are stealing our lands, they are stealing our trees, and they are stealing our gold so the struggle must continue for West Papua victory is certain!”
ULMWP president Benny Wenda with supporters in Port Vila, including a former Vanuatu prime minister, Barak Sope. Image: SBS World News screenshot APR
The ceremony was closed with a prayer from the Vanuatu Christian Council.
A Melanesian custom ceremony followed. It was coordinated by the chairman of the Council of Chiefs of West Papua, referred to as “Chief Tommy”.
Witnessed by the interim president of ULMWP, Benny Wenda, and his delegates and custom chiefs of Efate, the ceremony ended in the Melanesian way with the presentation of three live pigs, food, kava and mats to the government, Vaturisu [Council of Chiefs on Efate island] and VFWPA.
Len Garaeis a Vanuatu Daily Post journalist. Republished with permission.
In spite of again being denied full membership of the Melanesian Spearhead Group, the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) has welcomed the call from the MSG Leaders’ Summit in Port Vila last week for Indonesia to allow the long-awaited visit of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to West Papua.
“I hope that the MSG chair will honour the commitment to write to Indonesia as a matter of urgency, as every day that international intervention is delayed sees more West Papuans suffer and more Melanesian blood spilt,” ULMWP president Benny Wenda declared.
“Even in the run up to the MSG summit, with the eyes of the Pacific region on human rights in West Papua, Indonesia brutally cracked down on peaceful rallies in favour of ULMWP full membership, arresting dozens and killing innocent civilians,” he said in a statement.
As an associate member of the MSG, Indonesia must respect the chair’s demand, Wenda said.
“If they continue to deny the UN access, they will be in violation of the unified will of the Melanesian region.
“As the leaders’ communique stated, the UN visit must occur this year in order for the commissioner’s report to be put before the next MSG summit in 2024.”
Wenda said he also welcomed the MSG’s commitment that it would write to the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) chair to ensure that the UN visit was undertaken.
‘Guarantee UN visit’
“The PIF must honour this call and do all they can to guarantee a UN visit,” he said.
United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) interim chair Benny Wenda being interviewed by Vanuatu Television during MACFEST2023.
“And yet Indonesia has come no closer to allowing the United Nations access. Mere words are clearly not enough: the MSG Leaders’ Summit must be the trigger for international pressure of such overwhelming force that Indonesia has no choice, but to allow a UN visit.
“Although we are disappointed to have been denied full membership on this occasion, our spirit is strong and our commitment to returning home to our Melanesian family is undiminished.
“We are not safe with Indonesia, and will only find security by standing together with our Pacific brothers and sisters.
“Full membership is our birthright: culturally, linguistically, ethnically, and in our values, we are undeniably and proudly Melanesian.”
6/9) @MsgSecretariat must set terms, that should Indonesia fail to allow & respect the visits of an independent fact-finding mission by PIF, and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, then Indonesia must be BANNED from the MSG. pic.twitter.com/FUrJZQSvK0
Youngsolwara Pacific criticises MSG
Meanwhile, the Youngsolwara Pacific movement has made a series of critical statements about the MSG communique, including deploring the fact that the leaders’ summit was not the place to discuss human rights violations and reminded the leaders of the “founding vision”.
They called on the MSG Secretariat to “set terms, that should Indonesia fail to allow and respect the visits of an independent fact-finding mission by PIF, and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, then Indonesia must be BANNED from the MSG.”
They also demanded “clarity on the criteria for associate members and their respective engagement”.
Indonesia is the only associate member of the MSG while the ULMWP has observer status.
The United Liberation Movement for West Papua has responded cautiously over the Melanesian Spearhead Group’s surprise denial of full membership at its leaders summit last week, welcoming the communique while calling for urgent action over Indonesia’s grave human rights violations.
In a statement released today by President Benny Wenda after the second ULMWP leaders’ summit in Port Vila, the movement said the MSG had “misinterpreted” its founding principles based on the “inalienable right” of colonised countries for independence.
Strong speeches in support of the West Papuan struggle were made at the ULMWP summit by Vanuatu’s Ralph Regenvanu, the current Climate Minister and a former foreign minister, and Barak Sope, a former prime minister.
Vanuatu’s Climate Change Minister Ralph Regenvanu . . . one of the speakers at the ULMWP leaders’ summit. Image: Joe Collins/AWPA
Wenda said the ULMWP agreed to the MSG chair asking the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) to ensure that the requested visit of the UN Human Rights Commissioner to Indonesia takes place, and to asking Jakarta to allow the commissioner to visit West Papua and have the report considered at the next MSG summit in 2024.
But he added the hope that the MSG chair would “honour” these commitments urgently, “given the grave human rights violations on the ground in West Papua, including the recent warnings on human rights issues from the UN Special Advisor on Genocide”.
The ULMWP also expressed:
Scepticism about the impact of the renewed call for a UN visit, given that the visit had been continually denied in spite of the 2019 calls by the Pacific islands Forum (PIF) and the Organisation of African, Caribbean and Pacific States (OACPS);
Reservation on the possibility of future dialogue with the Indonesia government. Full MSG membership was a precondition;
Reservation on the discussion of “closer collaboration” with the Indonesian government when the people of West Papua had asked for full MSG membership; and
Reservation on the statement: “Membership must be limited only to sovereign and independent states, with special arrangements for FLNKS”.
On the FLNKS statement, Wenda said: “This appears to be a misinterpretation of the founding principles of the Melanesian Spearhead Group which state that, ‘having come together, the Melanesian Spearhead Group commit themselves to the principles of, respect for, and promotion of, independence as the inalienable right of colonial countries and people.’”
Port Moresby’s Governor Powes Parkop with the West Papuan Morning Star flag … “Our heritage is that we defend our land and our people.” Image: Filbert Simeon
Meanwhile, as condemnation of the MSG’s position on West Papua has grown since the “disappointing” summit last week, Governor Powes Parkop of Papua New Guinea’s capital Port Moresby, has made renewed criticism.
“I am totally disappointed but I will never give up until my last breath,” he told Asia Pacific Report.
“Our heritage is that we defend our land and our people. For thousands of years we defeated the Melayu people of Indonesia or the various Muslim and Hindu empires which tried to enter our ancestral land.
“They never succeeded. We only were overwhelmed by European superior weapons and abilities in 1800s and subsequently Indonesians took over after arming themselves with these superior weapons left by colonial powers and the Japanese invading army,” said Parkop, who has long been a critic of Papua New Guinea’s failure to take a stronger stance over Indonesia.
“I will honour our heritage and our ancestors by continuing to challenge Indonesian rule over West Papua our ancestral land. We have lost many battles, heroes and heroines, but Indonesia has and will never win the war.
“We are fighting for our rights, our dignity and our heritage and nothing Indonesia does will dent that drive and energy.”
ULMWP president Benny Wenda (red shirt) with supporters in Port Vila, including a former Vanuatu prime minister, Barak Sope. Image: SBS World News screenshot APR
A West Papuan leader has condemned the Melanesian Spearhead Group for abandoning the West Papuan cause in favour of a “corrupt alliance” with Indonesia.
Jeffrey P Bomanak, chairman of the Free Papua Organisation (OPM), declared last week’s MSG Leaders’ Summit ruling on West Papua a “betrayal” of the Papuan people and called for the regional group to be dissolved.
His response was among mounting criticism of the MSG’s denial of full membership for the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) alongside the Melanesian sovereign states of Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu, and the Kanak and Socialist and National Liberation Front (FLNKS) that is seeking independence for Kanaky New Caledonia from France.
The upgrade from observer status to full members had been widely expected. Indonesia is an associate member of the MSG even though it is an Asian sovereign state.
“The act of deferring any decision on justice, sovereignty, and freedom for West Papua is because the MSG Secretariat and various MSG leaders have placed more importance on receiving Jakarta’s blood money than on the victims of Jakarta’s barbarity,” Bomanak declared in a statement today.
“For West Papuans, Melanesia is a symbol of genuine solidarity, where the value of brotherhood and sisterhood is not some abstract sentiment, but an ideal of kinship that is the pillar of our existence.
“Until last week, this ideal was still able to be expressed with hope.”
‘Chalice of betrayal’
The MSG had “quenched its thirst” for an unprincipled economic progress from the “chalice of betrayal”, Bomanak said.
“In doing so has fatally speared the heart of Melanesian kinship. Melanesia as our divine ideal in a unique ancestral affinity is dead.”
The OPM leader said that 25 August 2023 would be recorded by history as the day kinship was abandoned by the Melanesian Spearhead Group.
“It will be remembered as a day of infamy where our family nations joined the international abandonment of West Papua’s right to freedom, nation-state sovereignty, and to an end of the Holocaust Indonesia has brought into our island nation.”
The MSG was now a “fully-fledged member of the moral and ethical cancer” in international diplomacy where nations had no dilemma over the hundreds of thousands of West Papuan victims that was the cost of doing business with Indonesia.
“The military occupation of our ancestral lands by Indonesia, and the barbarity that we have been subjected to for six decades, leaves no room for ambiguity.
“Indonesia is our enemy, and our war of liberation will never stop until Indonesia has left our ancestral lands.
‘Freedom right intact’
“Our right to freedom remains intact even after every drop of our blood is spilled, after every village and family home is destroyed, after our Melanesian kin have acted in spiritual servitude to Indonesia’s batik diplomacy — selling their ancestral souls for generosity in blood money while we remain enslaved and refugees in our own land.”
Bomanak appealed to the remaining leaders of MSG nations which honoured “the true value of our kinship” to withdraw from the MSG.
Critics of the MSG stance claim that the Indonesian right to govern the West Papua region is contestable, even illegal.
West Papua and the Right to Self Determination under International Law – Melinda Janki
The Act of Free Choice 1969 which handed control of West Papua to Indonesia was a violation of international law. West Papua has never exercised its legal right to self https://t.co/mY4cmvm2e9… pic.twitter.com/QSZSykxiYY
— Lewis Prai : West Papuan Diplomat (@PapuaWeb) March 13, 2023
A 2010 paper researched by one of the founders of International Lawyers for West Papua, Melinda Janki, called for a “proper act of self-determination” in accordance with international law.
Mass arrests and intimidation were widespread in the lead up to the “Act of Free Choice” vote in 1969. Image: APR file
In 1969, West Papua, then a former Dutch colony, was classified as an Indonesian province following a so-called “Act of Free Choice” carried out under Indonesian administration, but with only 1022 Papuan tribal representatives taking part in a referendum under duress.
Janki’s paper examined the process and concluded that it was a violation of the right of self-determination held by the West Papuan people under international law.
It studied Indonesia’s territorial claims and argued that these claims did not justify Indonesian sovereignty over West Papua.
The paper concluded that Indonesia’s presence in West Papua was illegal and
that this illegality is the basis for continuing conflict in West Papua.
This content originally appeared on Asia Pacific Report and was authored by APR editor.
The Melanesian Spearhead Group has thrown away a golden chance for achieving a historical step towards justice and peace in West Papua by lacking the courage to accept the main Papuan self-determination advocacy movement as full members.
Membership had been widely expected across the Pacific region and the MSG’s cowardly silence and failure to explain West Papua’s fate at the end of the two-day leaders’ summit this week was a tragic anticlimax.
Many see this as a terrible betrayal of West Papuan aspirations and an undermining of Melanesian credibility and solidarity as well as an ongoing threat to the region’s security and human rights.
It is also seen as a success for Indonesia’s chequebook and cultural diplomacy in the region that has intensified in recent years and months with a perception that Jakarta has bribed its way to prevent the United Liberation Front for West Papua (ULMWP) from upgrading its status from observer to its rightful full membership.
Questions are often asked about why is Indonesia even in the MSG, albeit only as an associate member, when this an organisation was founded with a vision expressed in Goroka, Papua New Guinea, for Melanesian independence, solidarity and development.
Its own website declares that the MSG stands for “a strong and shared political desire, for the entire decolonisation and freedom of Melanesian countries and territories which [are] still under colonial rule in the South Pacific, thereby developing a stronger cultural, political, social and economic identity and link between the people and communities of Melanesia.”
Why have a Trojan horse in their midst? A former Vanuatu prime minister, Joe Natuman, questioned the direction of the MSG back in 2016 when he claimed the West Papuans had been “sold out” and likened the failure of the organisation to grant ULMWP membership to when Jesus Christ was betrayed and sold for 30 pieces of silver.
Driven by ‘own agendas’
He complained at the time that “some people” were trying to drive the MSG for their own agendas with implied criticism of Fiji, Papua New Guinea and Indonesia.
Deputy Prime Minister Joe Natuman … accused of stopping a police investigation team from carrying out a 2014 inquiry into a mutiny case involving senior police officers. Image: Dan McGarry/Vanuatu Daily Post
“We Melanesians have a moral obligation to support West Papua’s struggle in line with our forefathers’ call, including our founding prime minister, Father Walter Lini, Chief Bongmatur, and others,” he said.
“Vanuatu has cut its canoe over 40 years ago and successfully sailed into the Ocean of Independence and in the same spirit, we must help our brothers and sisters in the United Liberation Movement of West Papua (ULMWP), to cut their canoe, raise the sail and also help them sail into the same future for the Promised Land.”
This week’s failure of the Melanesian leadership to stand by the ULMWP is a travesty.
The justification as outlined in the final communique – there was a silence on West Papua when the summit ended and a promised media conference never eventuated – is barely credible.
The communique claimed that there was no consensus, the ULMWP “does not meet the existing” criteria for membership under the MSG agreement, and it also imposed a one-year membership moratorium, apparently closing the door on West Papuan future hopes.
The Melanesian Spearhead Group pact signing in Port Vila yesterday . . . prime ministers (from left) James Marape (PNG), Ishmael Kalsakau (Vanuatu), Sitiveni Rabuka (Fiji), Manasseh Sogavare (Solomon Islands), and pro-independence FLNKS spokesperson Victor Tutugoro (Kanaky New Caledonia). Image: Vanuatu Daily Post
Shocking surrender
This is a shocking surrender given that one of the existing and founding members is not an independent state, but a political movement – the Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front (FLNKS) of Kanaky New Caledonia. Already a positive precedent for ULMWP.
The FLNKS has long been a strong supporter of West Papuan self-determination and was represented at this week’s summit by former front president Victor Tutugoro.
The other members are the host country Vanuatu (represented by Prime Minister Ishmael Kalsakau, now leader of a minority government after the Supreme Court ruling on Friday), Fiji (Sitiveni Rabuka, who made a public statement earlier in the year backing West Papuan leader Benny Wenda and the ULMWP), Papua New Guinea (Prime Minister James Marape), and Solomon Islands (Manasseh Sogavare).
The tone was set at the MSG when the Indonesian delegation (the largest at the summit) walked out in protest when ULMWP president Benny Wenda addressed the plenary. An insult to the “Melanesian way”.
Indonesian delegation walks out of MSG leaders summit before West Papuan leader Benny Wenda’s speech. pic.twitter.com/qW0YMxnrVk
Only a day earlier, Wenda had expressed his confidence that the MSG would admit ULMWP as full members. This followed a week of massive demonstrations in West Papua in support of MSG membership.
Stressing West Papua’s vulnerability and constant history of human rights violations at the hands of Indonesian security forces, Wenda said: “This is the moment the entire world, all Melanesians, are watching. It’s a test for the leaders to see if they will stand up for West Papua in the eyes of the world.”
Had he been lied to by MSG officials? What went wrong?
United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) president Benny Wenda being interviewed by Vanuatu Television during MACFEST2023 . . . “The entire world, all Melanesians, are watching.” VBTC screenshot APR
‘Frustrating day’
“It was a frustrating day since there was no press conference despite repeated promises and so far no official statement/communique,” leading Vanuatu-based photojournalist Ben Bohane said of the summit wrap. “Leaders took off and media feel like we were lied to.”
Across the Pacific, many have reacted with shock and disbelief.
“I am totally disappointed in the failure of the MSG leaders to seize the opportunity to redefine the future of West Papua and our region,” PNG’s National Capital District Governor Powes Parkop, long a staunch advocate for the West Papuans,” told Asia Pacific Report.
“Fear of Indonesia and proactive lobbying by Indonesia again has been allowed to dominate Melanesia to the detriment of our people of West Papua.”
Parkop said it was “obvious” that the MSG leaders were “not guided by any sound comprehensive policy” on West Papua.
“The MSG Secretariat has failed to do a proper historical and social political analysis that can guide the MSG leadership,” he said.
Parkop said this policy of appeasing Indonesia had not worked in the “last 50 to 60 years”.
Port Moresby’s Governor Powes Parkop with the West Papuan Morning Star flag … strong backing for West Papuan self-determination and independence. Image: Filbert Simeon
‘Affront to Melanesian leadership’
“So banking on it again will not only condemn our people of West Papua to more hardship and suffering under the brutal Indonesian rule but is an affront to the leadership of Melanesia.
“I will continue to advocate against Indonesian rule and the status quo unless we see real tangible changes in the rights and freedom of the West Papuan people.
“Melanesia, as late Father Walter Lini eloquently stated in his prime, is not free while West Papua is not free.”
Dan McGarry, investigations editor of the Organised Crime and Corruption Reporting Project, said: “Many people in Melanesia will see this as a betrayal. Public sentiment throughout the subregion runs strongly pro-independence for West Papua.
“That said, the odds of consensus on this were vanishingly small. Indonesian and French lobbying in the lead up further reduced those odds.”
Lewis Prai, a self-styled West Papuan diplomat and advocate, also condemned the MSG rejection blaming it on “throwing away moral values for the sake of Indonesia’s dirty money”.
“We know that we are victims of Indonesian oppression and [of] the unwillingness of Melanesians to do the right thing and stand up for freedom, justice and morality.
“And it is very unfortunate that this Melanesian organisation has been morally corrupted by one of the biggest human rights violators in Asia — and one of the worst in the world — Indonesia.
“Thank you to the West Papua supporters in Vanuatu and the surrounding region. We will continue to speak. No amount of money will be able to silence our voices.”
Dr David Robie, editor and publisher of Asia Pacific Report, has written on West Papuan affairs since the 1983 Nuclear Free and Independent Pacific (NFIP) conference in Port Vila and is author of Blood on their Banner: Nationalist Struggles of the South Pacific.
The battle to stop the destruction in Australia of critical koala habitats in state forests in Northern NSW has escalated in recent weeks. Wendy Bacon reports on the campaign from daring lock-ons and vigils in the depth of forests to rallies, parliament and courts in Sydney which has led to a halt to logging in Newry State Forest.
SPECIAL REPORT: By Wendy Bacon
Back in Feburary this year, campaigners celebrated as the then shadow Environmental Minister Penny Sharpe announced Labor’s support for a Great Koala National Park (GKNP), stretching along the Mid-North coast from Kempsey to Coffs Harbour.
The purpose of the park, which was first proposed more than a decade ago, is to protect critical habit for the koala and other threatened species.
Koala numbers in NSW plummeted by more than half between 2000 and 2020 due to logging, land clearing, drought and devastating bushfires. A NSW Parliamentary Inquiry in 2020 heard scientific evidence that koalas could be extinct by 2050 unless there are dramatic changes.
NSW is the only mainland state not to have a plan to stop logging of native forests, essential koala habitats.
Hopes raised by Labor’s narrow election win in March this year were quickly dashed. Hope has now turned to anger with 200 people marching in protest in the mid-north NSW city of Coffs Harbour earlier this month and nation-wide rallies.
NSW Forestry Corporation steps up logging When she received a petition calling for a moratorium on logging within the GKNP in June, Minister for Environment Penny Sharpe reiterated her commitment to the Park but confirmed that logging would not stop.
Instead the government-owned, NSW Forestry Corporation (NSWFC) has stepped up its logging inside the proposed GKNP, including in areas containing long-lasting koala hubs, carting off huge tree trunks and leaving devastated land in its wake. These operations are losing millions each year.
The campaign consists of a network of local community groups, such as the Friends of Orara East Forest, some of which conduct weekly vigils; the Belligen Activist Network and the Knitting Nannas, as well as larger environmental groups such as the National Parks Association.
It is supported by the NSW Greens, Animal Justice and some Independent MPs including MP for Sydney Alex Greenwich. Further north, the North East Forest Alliance has taken legal action to stop the NSWFC logging 77 percent of the Braemar forest, part of the proposed Sandy Creek National Park where koalas survive despite long standing koala communities being reduced by 70 percent in the 2019/2020 bush fires.
On June 28, a broad-based group of MPs and NGOS advocating for the park held a press conference calling on politicians across all parties to support a moratorium on the ongoing destruction of the GKNP and immediately start to work on transition plans for timber workers and development of the Park, including with local First Nations people.
But Minister Sharpe reiterated her intention to allow logging to continue.
A few days later, logging began in the Orara East and Boambee Forests, both of which are inside the Great Koala National Park. Vigils and petitions were clearly not working.
Civil disobedience begins On July 7, three HSC students on school holidays locked on to heavy machinery and a full barrel of cement in Orara East Forest. At the same time in Boambee Forest, two Knitting Nannas locked onto heavy machinery. Another protester occupied a tree. In all, logging was delayed by 10 hours.
Seventeen-year-old Mason said: “I’m here on behalf of myself and my 14-year-old brother. The rate at which our government is auctioning off natural forests is frightening, and I feel powerless to do anything about it.
“We’ve tried protesting, and we can’t vote, which is why we feel driven to take this action against these machines ripping our trees down. The government can stop this and we just need them to take notice.”
The three students were arrested but released from custody with cautions and no charges laid.
On the same day, two Knitting Nannas Christine Degan and Susan Doyle were arrested in the Boambee State Park. Both are veterans of vigils and protests aimed at stopping logging and for action on climate change.
“Shame … shame … shame” banners in Orara State Forest. Image: Chris Deagan/CityHub
In desperation, they took a further step. They slept overnight in a home near the perimeter of the State Park.
Before day break, Degan and Doyle and supporters walked up a steep hill, using torches to find their way through the bush to the logging camp. There they were met by an angry security guard who burst into an aggressive tirade, accusing them of being terrorists.
While two supporters calmed him down, the two women were locked onto equipment. There they sat in two small beach chairs in drizzling rain and cold for eight hours until the NSW police arrived and arrested them.
A bulldozer in Orara State Forest. Image: Chris Deagan/CityHub
The two friends were released on condition that they did not contact each other, except through a lawyer, or go near any forests were logging was underway.
Earlier this month, they were each fined a total of $500 for entering and refusing to leave a forest.
Battle moves to Newry Forest A vigil camp is now in its third week in the Upper reaches of the Kalang River where other sites have recently been made “active” for logging.
Nearer the coast, the the battle front has moved to the Newry Forest near Belligen. For nine months in 2021, the community had joined the local Gumbaynggir elders in a blockade that successfully delay logging operations.
Although Newry is a core part of the GKNP, the NSWFC approved 2500 hectares of the forest for logging in May this year. In July, the listing went from “approved” to “active,” leading the Bellingen action group to organise a workshop to upgrade their direct action tactics.
On July 31, local Gumbaynggirr Elders, Traditional Custodians and supporters established a peaceful protest camp on sacred land within the forest. They were met with armed police and steel gates preventing the public from entering the forest.
A Gumbarnggirr spokesperson told the National Indigenous Times that the NSW Forestry Corporation (NSWFC) was endangering koala and possum gliders that are their totem animals.
“The values of Newry to the Gumbaynggirr people are precious, priceless and absolutely irreplaceable. …There is a desperate need for these appalling industrial logging operations to be stopped or we simply won’t have koalas left and priceless and irreplaceable Gumbaynggirr values and cultural heritage will be destroyed.”
“Hands off country” . . . protesters locked on in Newry Forest. Image: CityHub
Gumbaynggirr elder arrested after locking on
On the second day of logging, two younger protesters locked onto machinery. On the third day, Wilkarr Kurikuta, a Ngemba, Wangan and Jangalingou man, locked-on to a harvester.
“I’m here for my old people and my sister, a proud Gumbaynggirr woman, to exercise my sovereign right to protect country,” he said.
He told the NSW government that it should expect resistance until an end is put to the destruction of his people’s land and waters. He was violently removed, charged and held overnight in a cell.
The next day, two more young people locked onto industrial logging machinery in Newry Forest, again halting logging. They were arrested, charged and released. Logging had so far been disrupted on six days.
On August 2, Greens MP Sue Higginson moved a motion in the NSW Legislative Council to confirm the NSW government’s intention to protect critical koala habitat, noting that the Newry State Forest was “identified for protection in 2017 as having three koala hubs” and that a three-day survey had found five threatened plant species, evidence of koalas and high quality habitat for threatened koalas, the Glossy Black Cockatoo and Greater Glider.
She described the “industrial scale logging operation” as happening under “martial law”.
First Nations elders were integral to the protest at Newry Forest. Image: Bellingen Activist Network/Facebook/CityHub
“The community on the front line are not doing this because it is fun or because they want to, or because they dislike forestry workers or police,” she told Parliament.
“They are doing it as an act of hope in the democratic process in which they believe — the genuine hope that they will be seen and heard and that their actions will lead to political outcomes that protect this forest, which the government has promised to protect but is currently destroying.”
Labor opposed the motion with the Minister for the Environment Sharpe moving amendments which removed any reference to the factual core of the motion described above. Her amendments were passed with Liberal National Party support.
A reduced anodyne motion recording commitment to protect the koala was then passed.
In her response Penny Sharpe referred to “internal work” being done to proceed with the Park. She said she was working closely with the Minister for Forestry Tara Moriarty.
This will further concern forest campaigners because in Moriarty’s speech in support of Sharpe’s amendments, she supported the current logging operations as being done in line with sustainable ecologically sound forest management, with the NSW Environmental Protection Authority ensuring compliance with all policies.
This is the very issue that is being contested by the movement to save the forests. It suggests that Moriarty may not accept the findings of a recent NSW Auditor-General’s report which found that both the NSW Forest Corporation and the NSW Environmental Protection Authority were insufficiently resourced, trained and empowered to enforce compliance and that NSWFC’s voluntary efforts did not extend to satisfactorily ensuring contractors do not breach regulations and policies.
This issue is already before the courts. The North Eastern Alliance, which has previously taken successful court actions during the 34 year period it has been campaigning to protect forests, is arguing that the NSW Land and Environment Court should set aside approvals to log sections of the Braemar and Myrtle Forests further north at the Sandy Creek State Park which is also a proposed national park in the Richmond Valley.
The NSWFC has agreed to halt logging in these forests which are home to koalas and more than 23 threatened species, until the case is decided. The Alliance will be represented by the Environmental Defenders’ Office.
Alliance President Dailan Pugh, who has 44 years experience in protecting forests, said that “Myrtle and Braemar State forests are both identified as Nationally Important Koala Areas that were badly burnt in the 2019/20 wildfires, killing many of their resident koalas.
“Despite this, recent surveys have proved that most patches of preferred koala feed trees are still being utilised by Koalas. Logging of more than 75% of the larger feed trees … that koalas need to rebuild their numbers will be devastating for populations already severely impacted by the fires.”
Protesters hold a banner on cleared ground. Image: Bellingen Activist Network/Facebook/CityHub
The Environmental Defenders’ Office is arguing that the logging operations are unlawful for several reasons: because the operations are not ecologically sustainable, because Forestry Corp failed to consider whether they would be ecologically sustainable, and because the proposed use of “voluntary conditions” is in breach of the logging rules.
NEFA is asking the court to declare the logging approvals invalid and to restrain NSWFC from conducting the operations.
Pugh said: “We have been asking the NSW Government for independent pre-logging surveys on State forests to identify and protect core Koala habitat and climate change refugia, and protection of Preferred Koala Feed Trees (select species >30 cm diameter) in linking habitat. Our requests are falling on deaf ears, we hope this will make them listen.”
While Labor politicians insist that the logging is consistent with protecting biodiversity, the situation looks different to campaigners on the ground. Degan describes seeing crushed casuarinas which provide habitat for the Glossy Black Cockatoo when she visited the Newry Forest for the first time in four weeks.
“It’s just a vast area with trash that’s a metre deep, that no footed animal can get across. I couldn’t get across and I’d break an ankle or shoulder falling over. There’s no way that animals on foot could traverse that debris that’s left behind. It may be regrowth native forest but after 50 years it provides substantial decent habitat.”
Down in Hobart, another forest activist Collette Hamson is spending three months in prison because she broke conditions of a suspended sentence. Before she went to prison she said:
“The reason I commit these offences [is] because I am terrified of the worsening climate crisis. I am not a menace to society, yet here I am facing a jail term . . . I am not giving a finger to the entire judicial system, I am standing up for the forests, for takayna, a safer planet and if that makes me a dangerous criminal then I think we are going to need bigger prisons.”
Labor plans lengthy consultation While the Minister for Environment Penny Sharpe may be able to remove any mention of protests in a parliamentary motion, it is another thing to deal with the wave of civil disobedience that is likely to continue until native forest logging is halted. Sharpe says that A$80 million has been set aside for GKNP and planning is underway.
City Hub asked the Department of Environment to confirm that no consultation was yet underway and on what date one consultation would begin.
A National Parks and Wildlife Service spokesperson replied, stating that development of the park “will be informed by expert scientific advice, an independent economic assessment of impacts on jobs and the local community, and an inclusive consultation process with stakeholdes . . .
“Consultation with stakeholders will occur in the future, with specific timings still to be determined.”
This lengthy process could take most of NSW Labor’s term in government ending in 2027. Unless logging is halted while planning occurs, the proposed National Park along with threatened species it is supposed to protect could be decimated before it arrives.
Wendy Bacon was previously professor of journalism at the University of Technology Sydney (UTS) and supported the Greens in this year’s NSW election. This article was first published by CityHub on August 15 and is republished with permission. Wendy Bacon’s investigative journalism blog.
The leaders of five Melanesian countries and territories avoided a definitive update on the status of the United Liberation Movement of West Papua’s application for full membership in the Melanesian Spearhead Group in Port Vila.
However, the 22nd MSG Leaders’ Summit was hailed as the “most memorable and successful” by Vanuatu’s prime minister as leaders signed off on two new declarations in their efforts to make the subregion more influential.
As well as the hosts, the meeting was attended by Fiji, Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and the pro-independence FLNKS (Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front) of New Caledonia.
But the meeting had an anticlimactic ending after the leaders failed to release the details about the final outcomes or speak to news media.
The first agreement that was endorsed is the Udaune Declaration on Climate Change to address the climate crisis and “urging countries not to discharge potentially harmful treated nuclear contaminated water into the Pacific Ocean”.
“Unless the water treated is incontrovertibly proven, by independent scientists, to be safe to do and seriously consider other options,” Vanuatu Prime Minister Alatoi Ishmael Kalsakau said at the event’s farewell dinner last night.
The leaders also signed off on the Efate Declaration on Mutual Respect, Cooperation and Amity to advance security initiatives and needs of the Melanesian countries.
This document aims to “address the national security needs in the MSG region through the Pacific Way, kipung, tok stori, talanoa and storian, and bonded by shared values and adherence to the Melanesian vuvale, cultures and traditions,” Kalsakau said.
He said the leaders “took complex issues such as climate change, denuclearisation, and human rights and applied collective wisdom” to address the issues that were on the table.
Stefan Armbruster reporting from Port Vila. Video: SBS World News
No update on West Papua The issue of full membership for the United Liberation Movement of West Papua (ULMWP) was a big ticket item on the agenda at the meeting in Port Vila, according to MSG chair Kalsakau.
However, there was no update provided on it and the leaders avoided fronting up to the media except for photo opportunities.
Benny Wenda at the 22nd Melanesian Spearhead Group Leaders’ Summit in Port Vila . . . “I don’t know the outcome. Maybe this evening the leaders will announce [it].” Image: RNZ Pacific/Kelvin Anthony
ULMWP leader Benny Wenda (above) told RNZ Pacific late on Thursday he was still not aware of the result of their membership application but that he was “confident” about it.
“I don’t know the outcome. Maybe this evening the leaders will announce at the reception,” Wenda said.
“From the beginning I have been confident that this is the time for the leaders to give us full membership so we can engage with Indonesia.”
According to the MSG Secretariat the final communique is now expected to be released on Friday.
Referred to Pacific Islands Forum
However, it is likely that the West Papua issue will be referred to the Pacific Islands Forum to be dealt with.
Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape said after the signing: “on the issues that was raised in regards to West Papua…these matters to be handled at [Pacific Islands Forum]”.
“The leaders from the Pacific will also visit Jakarta and Paris” to raise issues about sovereignty and human rights,” he said.
Kalsakau said he looked forward to progressing the implementaiton of important issue recommendations from the 22nd MSG Leaders’ Summit which also include “supporting the 2019 call by the Forum Leaders for a visit by the OHCHR to West Papua”.
MSG leaders drink kava to mark the end of the meeting and the signing two declarations. Image: RNZ Pacific/Kelvin Anthony
Indonesia ‘proud’ Indonesia’s Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs, Pahala Mansury, said Indonesia was proud to be part of the Melanesian family.
Indonesia is an associate member of MSG and has said it does not accept ULMWP’s application to become a full member because it claims that this goes against the MSG’s founding principles and charter.
During the meeting this week, Indonesian delegates walked out on occasions when ULMWP representatives made their intervention.
Some West Papua campaigners say these actions showed that Indonesia did not understand “the Melanesian way”.
“You just don’t walk out of a sacred meeting haus when you’re invited to be part of it,” one observer said.
However, Mansury said Indonesia hoped to “continue to increase, enhance and strengthen future collaboration between Indonesia and all of the Melanesian countries”.
“We are actually brothers and sisters of Melanesia and we hope we can continue to strengthen the bond together,” he said.
Australia and China attended as special guests at the invitation of the Vanuatu government.
China supported the Vanuatu government to host the meeting.
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
Upon this big boat rests prayers, hopes, longings, struggles, dreams, and ideals with a profound sense of justice, peace, and dignity.
According to Reverend Dr Yoman, the ULMWP is a symbol of unity among the Papuan people. It is a representation of their collective desires and relentless pursuit of justice.
Reverend Dr Socratez Yoman . . . a Papuan public figure, leader, academic, church leader, prolific writer, and media commentator. Image: Yamin Kogoya/APR
Therefore, West Papuans living in the Land of West Papua, including those living abroad, all pray, hope, and support ULMWP. It is the responsibility of the nation of West Papua and its people to safeguard, maintain, care for, and protect ULMWP as their common home.
Because ULMWP provides a collective shelter for many tears, blood droplets, bones, and the suffering of West Papua.
Reverend Dr Yoman says in his message to me that I have translated that the ULMWP carries the spirits of our ancestors, fallen heroes, and comrades. The ULMWP is the home of their spirits, and he wrote some of their names as follows:
Johan Ariks
Lodewijk Mandacan
Barens Mandacan
Ferry Awom
Permenas Awom
Aser Demotekay
Bernandus Tanggahma
Seth Jafet Rumkorem
Jacob Prai
Herman Womsiwor
Markus Kaisiepo
Eliezer Bonay
Nicolaas Jouwe
F. Torrey,
Nicolass Tanggahma
Dick Kereway
Melky Solossa
Samuel Asmuruf
Mapia Mote
James Nyaro
Lambert Wakur
S.B. Hindom,
Louis Wajoi
Tadius Yogi
Martin Tabu
Arnold Clemens Ap
Eduard Mofu
Willem Onde
Moses Weror
Clemens Runaweri
Andy Ayamiseba
John Octo Ondowame
Thomas Wapay Wanggai
Wim Zonggonauw
Yawan Wayeni
Kelly Kwalik
Justin Morip
Beatrix Watofa
Agus Alue Alua
Frans Wospakrik
Theodorus Hiyo Eluay
Aristotle Masoka
Tom Beanal
Neles Tebay
Mako Tabuni
Leoni Tanggahma
Samuel Filep Karma
Prisila Jakadewa
Babarina Ikari
Vonny Jakadewa
Mery Yarona and Reny Jakadewa (the courageous female spirits who raised the Morning Star flag at the Governor’s Office on August 4, 1980).
Also, the spirit of Josephin Gewab/Rumawak, the tailor who created the Morning Star flag.
In honour of these fallen Papuan heroes and leaders, Reverend Yoman says:
“It is you, the young generation, who carry forward the baton left by the names and spirits of these fighters, as well as the hundreds and thousands of others who have not been named.
“If there is someone who fights and opposes the political platform of the ULMWP, that individual is questionable and is damaging the big house and the big boat, which contains the tears, blood, bones, and suffering of the People and Nation of Papua as well as the spirits of our ancestors and leaders.
“The eyes and faces of the LORD, the spirits of our ancestors, and the spirits of our leaders who have passed on always guard, protect, and nurture the honest, humble, and respectful members of the ULMWP.”
By this message, he urges the ULMWP to never forget these names and stand bravely with courage on their shoulders.
Reverend Yoman’s letter: a brief comment Indigenous people view life as a system of interconnected relationships between beings, spirits, deities, humans, animals, plants, and the celestial heavens.
Their holistic cosmology is held together by this interconnectedness — a sacred passageway to multidimensional realities. Although Indigenous cosmologies differ, most, if not all, subscribe to the tenet of interconnectedness.
Having a strong connection to one’s ancestors’ roots is an integral part of being Indigenous.
During times of need, rituals, and grief, ancestral and fallen heroes are mentioned and invoked. A specific ancestor’s name may be mentioned in response to a specific situation, such as grief, conflict, sacred ceremonies, or rituals.
This helps to connect modern generations to the ancestral spirits, providing a source of strength and guidance while honouring the legacy of those who have gone before.
Those who adhere to original cultural values understand why Reverend Dr Yoman mentioned some of these Papuans.
In the chronicle of Papuans’ liberation story, these names are mentioned.
There were some who suffered martyrdom, some who became traitors, who died of old age, and others who died from disease. However, they all have stories connected to West Papua’s Liberation.
Mentioning these names is intended to invoke a specific energy within the consciousness of West Papua’s independence leaders. Inviting the new generation of fighters to take up the cause of their fallen comrades.
It is important to encourage Papuans to see the greater picture of a nation’s liberation struggle — which spans generations. Calling on them to revive their minds, spirits, and bodies through the spirit of fallen Papuans and the spirit of Divine during times of turmoil.
Who is Rev Dr Yoman and why did he mention these names? Most people are familiar with Reverend Dr Yoman. He is everywhere — on television, on the news, known in churches, involved in human rights activism, mentioned in public speeches, appears in seminars, and lectures and so on.
He is well known, or at least heard of, by the Papuan and Indonesian communities, as well as the broader community.
Reverend Dr Socratez Sofyan Yoman is a public figure, leader, academic, church leader, prolific writer, and media commentator. He is a descendant of the Lani people of Papua.
He is one of the seeds of the civilisation project launched by Christian missionaries in the Highlands between the 1930s and 1960s. His life has been shaped by four significant events in his homeland — the teachings of his elders, the arrival of Christianity, Indonesian invasions, and the resistance of the Papuans.
He rose to become an exceptionally accomplished thinker, speaker, writer, and critic of injustice, oppression, and upholds humanity’s values as taught by the Judeo-Christian worldview within these collusions of worlds.
Growing up among Lani village elders taught him many sacred teachings of the original ways — centred around Wone’s teachings. This is one of the most important aspects of his story.
Wone is the cornerstone of life for the Lani people. Wone is the principle of life and the foundation for analysing, interpreting, evaluating, debating, understanding, and exchanging life.
As with many other Lani, Papuan, Melanesian, and Indigenous leaders, Wone is the reason for his birth, survival, and leadership. He has thus a deep sense of duty and responsibility to serve and fight for his people, as well as other marginalised and oppressed members of society.
Reverend Dr Yoman stands firmly in his beliefs in the face of grief, tragedies, and death in his ancestral homeland. His commitment is unwavering, as he continually strives to stand up for and protect the rights of those who are most vulnerable and in need of a voice.
Wone has inspired him to lead a life of purpose and integrity, making him a pillar of strength and an example to others. In a dying forest, he becomes the voice of the falling leaves.
Among his greatest contributions to West Papua, Indonesia, and the world, will be his writings. Generations to come will remember his research and writings regarding history and the fate of his people.
West Papua will be high on the agenda at the Melanesian Spearhead Group Leaders’ Summit in Vanuatu this week.
West Papua’s United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) is also present in Vanuatu. Other factions have arrived and are on their way to witness MSG’s decision on West Papua’s fate as well as their own leaders’ summit.
A feeling of anxiety pervades Reverend Dr Yoman as he prays — prompting him to write this letter as he recognises the many challenges ULMWP faces and warns them that they cannot afford even the slightest misstep.
This is the time inspiring Papuans and the ULWMP leadership must remember their fallen comrades, heroes and ancestors.
Yamin Kogoya is a West Papuan academic who has a Master of Applied Anthropology and Participatory Development from the Australian National University and who contributes to Asia Pacific Report. From the Lani tribe in the Papuan Highlands, he is currently living in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
Conflict and insufficient social cohesion are the biggest challenges in Fiji, and all and any efforts to mitigate and address this situation are laudable.
The research literature posits that while news media can exacerbate social and political conflicts through their reporting styles and focus, they also have the potential to alleviate tense situations by adopting conducive, conflict resolution methodologies.
The Conflict-Sensitive Reporting Manual for Fijian Journalists includes guidelines to approach and report conflicts in a responsible manner by, among other things, conducting the requisite research, and avoiding unnecessarily inflammatory tones.
Dialogue Fiji is the most active civil society in the “social cohesion” space and besides this manual, it published the proceedings of its first symposium on social cohesion in 2017 entitled Ethnic Relations in Fiji: Threats and Opportunities.
The book, which I co-edited with Dialogue Fiji executive director Nilesh Lal, not only highlighted the challenges of social cohesion in Fiji, but also the reservoir of goodwill in our communities, despite everything that we have been through together.
More than 50 years after independence we are still struggling with social cohesion, not the least because it is a complex problem given our context, with no overnight solutions.
The problem requires commitment from every sector of our nation, the news media being no exception.
National media’s contribution
In this regard, conflict-sensitive reporting can be seen as the national media’s contribution to social cohesion and nation-building.
To understand how conflict-sensitive reporting can contribute positively, we first need to look at the media-conflict dynamic, that is, how media conventionally report conflicts.
According to critics, most violent conflicts are “rooted in resource or land disputes, but fought with strong references to ethnic, cultural, and religious identities”.
The news media tend to focus on the manifestations of conflict, such as the tensions, violence, and damage, rather than the root causes, or possible solutions to any disputes. This lopsided approach risks feeding prejudices and fueling misconceptions.
Conflict-sensitive reporting, on the other hand, takes a nuanced approach to the coverage of conflicts, in that it does not regard conflict as run-of-the mill, daily news reporting round, but something that needs extra care and attention.
Conflict-sensitive reporting is an informed and considered approach, based on a commitment to understanding the roots of a conflict and reporting in an in-depth and circumspect manner.
The idea is to not only “do no harm” but report stories with the aim of facilitating solutions to conflict.
Fair and balanced?
It should be pointed that conflict-sensitive reporting is an idea that is not fully accepted in the news media fraternity, which has traditionally espoused reporting the “facts” in a fair and balanced manner. But what is “fair”, “balanced” and “objective” is in itself heavily debated in the news media sector.
Journalists and camera people at a Suva media conference . . . USP open to researching and experimenting with new and innovative concepts like conflict-sensitive reporting. Image: The Fiji Times
As a university journalism programme, we at the University of the South Pacific are open to researching and experimenting with new and innovative concepts like conflict-sensitive reporting.
The framework has been designed for developing countries with multiethnic communities at greater risk of conflict, than societies with greater ethnic homogeneity.
Such countries are highly susceptible to movement towards civil conflict and/or repressive rule. If this sounds familiar, it is because “civil conflict and repressive rule” have been very much part of our existence in Fiji.
Fiji, mired in ethnic tensions and political differences culminating in four coups fits the description of “fragile” or “vulnerable” societies”.
Media have described Fiji’s coups as “short-lived”, “clean-up-campaign” or “coup-to-end all coups.”
This terminology is regrettable because it grossly underestimates the lingering, sustained, pervasive and long-term damage of our coup culture.
Infrastructure deficit
For example, research published by professors Biman Prasad and Paresh Narayan in 2008 indicates a 20-year infrastructure deficit of $3.4 billion partly due to instability.
Likewise, Professor Wadan Narsey in his 2013 article estimates that by 2011, Fiji had lost $1700 million because of the 2006 coup alone.
This included $400 million in government revenue, which could have been used in education, health, infrastructure and public debt repayments.
Because of just a few deaths due to the four coups in Fiji, media often describe these upheavals as “bloodless coups”.
However, in social and economic terms, the coups caused a bloodbath.
The expression “death by a thousand cuts” comes to mind. We do not feel the pain immediately because after the initial shock, there are smaller aftershocks that we feel and absorb over the course of years and decades.
In time, these repeated blows add up to inflict deeper wounds that are more difficult to heal, but we adjust to the pain, normalise it, and learn to live with our situation, especially the poor and disadvantaged, who face the brunt of it.
Low life expectancy
In Fiji these wounds are manifest in the lack of services, dilapidated infrastructure, low life expectancy, lack of opportunities, low employment and high crime, brain drain, and so forth.
Fiji gives meaning to renowned author Paul Collier’s words: “Wars and coups are not tea parties: they are development in reverse”.
Some of the key underlying causes of our lack of progress are the lack of social cohesion and national unity, which equal unrealised potential.
Since the 1980s there has been idle talk of turning Fiji into a Singapore, and more recently, political chatter about Fiji surpassing Australia and New Zealand
In my opinion, this is a pipe dream unless and until we get social cohesion right, learn to resolve our differences without guns, and move together as a united force.
This requires leadership and vision from the government, support and selflessness from citizens and professionalism and responsibility from the news media, with regards to taking it on themselves to understand the national context, and tailor their coverage accordingly
This is an edited version of Associate Professor Shailendra Bahadur Singh’s launch address for Dialogue Fiji’s Conflict Sensitive Reporting Manual for Fijian Journalists on 8 August 2023 at the University of the South Pacific in Suva, Fiji. It was also published in The Fiji Times.
The leader of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP), Benny Wenda, has expressed confidence that the leaders’ meeting in Vanuatu will grant the ULMWP full membership of the Melanesian Spearhead Group.
Wenda is in Port Vila for the 22nd MSG Leaders’ Summit, the first full in-person MSG Leaders’ Summit since 2018.
“I’m really confident,” he said, adding “the whole world is watching and this is a test for the leaders to see whether they will save West Papua.”
MSG chair and Vanuatu Prime Minister Alatoi Ishmael Kalsakau has confirmed the ULMWP’s application to become a full member will be a top priority for the leaders.
Wenda told RNZ Pacific the West Papua liberation movement has been lobbying to be part of the MSG’s agenda for more than a decade, without success. The movement currently has observer status within the MSG.
However, he believes this year they are finally getting their chance.
Wenda said all branches of the ULMWP were in Port Vila, including the West Papua Council of Churches and tribal chiefs, and “we are looking forward to becoming a full member”.
“That’s our dream, our desire. By blood, and by race, we’re entitled to become a full member,” he said.
Indonesia, an MSG associate member, is also present, with the largest delegation of all countries in attendance at the meeting.
ULMWP leader Benny Wenda (left) with the ULMWP interim prime minister at the 22nd Melanesian Spearhead Group Leaders’ Summit in Port Vila yesterday. Image: RNZ Pacific/Kelvin Anthony
RNZ Pacific has been in contact with an Indonesian official for an interview in Port Vila.
Benny Wenda said they were not asking for independence, but to become a full member of MSG.
“We’ve been killed, we’ve been tortured, we’ve been imprisoned [by Indonesian security forces],” he said.
Members of the Indonesian delegation at the Melanesian Leaders’ Summit pre-meeting of the Foreign Ministers in Port Vila this week. Image: RNZ Pacific/Kelvin Anthony
‘No hope’ in Indonesia “So, it’s live with Indonesia for 60 years and there is no hope. We’re not safe. That’s why it is time for the [Melanesian Leaders’ Summit] to make a right decision.”
Wenda said it was “unusual” for Indonesia to bring “up to 15 people” as part of its delegation.
Melanesian leaders, he said, were capable of dealing with their regional issues on their own.
“Why are [Indonesia] here — [what] are they scared about,” he asked.
“When we become full members we are ready to engage [with Indonesia] and find a solution, that is our aim. This is a part of a peaceful solution.”
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
West Papuan rallies in support of membership
Meanwhile, an ULMWP statement reports that thousands of POapuans held peaceful rallies throughout the territory of West Papua yesterday in support of the ULMWP application for full MSG membership.
“This action was held in order to support the full membership agenda of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) in the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG),” the statement said.
The rallies were held simultaneously in all the seven regions of the West Papua government.
In the Lapago Region, thousands of Papuans took to the streets of Wamena City and gathered at the Sinapuk-Wamena field to deliver a statement.
“The masses came down wearing various traditional clothes and dyed their bodies with the Morning Star flag pattern and the five permanent member flags of the MSG.
“They also carried and waved a number of flags from the Melanesian member countries — Fiji, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, PNG and Kanaky (FLNKS), including the flag MSG flag.”
Support rallies also took place in the Lapago region in several districts such as Puncak Jaya, Tolikara, Gunung Bintang and Lani Jaya regencies.
The Melanesian Spearhead Group Secretariat’s Director-General, Leonard Louma, says the Pacific region continues to be the centre of geopolitical interests by global superpowers.
The 22nd MSG Leaders’ Summit is taking place in Port Vila this week– the first full in-person meeting since the covid pandemic.
The prime ministers of Fiji, Solomon Islands, Papua New Guinea and the president of the FLNKS (Kanak and Socialist National Liberation Front) of New Caledonia are confirmed to attend the leaders’ session on Wednesday.
Louma said the battle for influence “impels the region to take sides, but it does not protect Melanesia and the region”.
“There are some who would like us to believe that taking sides in that geopolitical posturing is in our best interest. May I hasten to add, I tend to defer — it is not in our best interest to take sides,” Louma said.
Vanuatu’s Deputy Prime Minister Matai Seremaiah (left) and MSG Director-General Leonard Louma at the opening of the 22nd MSG Leaders’ Summit Foreign Ministers’ Meeting in Port Vila yesterday. Image: RNZ Pacific/Kelvin Anthony
The director-general also took aim at MSG member countries for not moving with “urgency” on issues that have been on the Leaders’ Summit agenda.
“Certain decisions also made by leaders and the foreign ministers of past continue to languish on the shelf and there seems to be no real sign of a desire to implement.”
Free trade Louma said the MSG Free Trade Agreement had “somehow been tethered to other training and commercial arrangements”.
“Our enthusiasm to cooperate appears to have waned. We need to rejuvenate this enthusiasm and appetite for industrial cooperation that once was the hallmark of MSG,” he said.
Vanuatu’s Foreign Minister Matai Seremaiah has urged Vanuatu and Papua New Guinea to sign up to the trade agreement which has already been signed by Fiji and Solomon Islands.
Prime Minister Ishmael Kalsakau told RNZ Pacific he shared the concerns of his deputy on the issue of the free trade agreement.
“Vanuatu must adhere quickly. If you look at the theme of the meeting it’s about being relevant and being relevant means that we’ve got got to participate as a core group so that we can advance all our interests together,” he said.
Leonard Louma said the MSG needed to make concessions where it was needed in the interests of MSG cohesion.
“The nuclear testing issue in the Pacific could not have proceeded the way we had proceeded without MSG taking a strong position on it.”
The Melanesian Spearhead Group flags . . . will the Morning Star flag of West Papua be added? Image: RNZ Pacific/Kelvin Anthony
Declarations On Monday, MSG Secretariat officials said there were up to 10 issues on the agenda, including West Papua.
In his opening statement at the Foreign Minister’s session on Monday, Seremaiah said there were two key draft declarations that would be put for the leaders’ consideration.
The first one would be on climate action and “urging polluters not to discharge the treated water in the Pacific Ocean,” he said.
“Until and unless the treated water is incontrovertibly proven to be safe to do so and seriously consider other options.”
The second was a declaration on a MSG region of peace and neutrality, adding that “this declaration is aimed at advancing the implementation of the MSG security initiatives to address national security needs in the MSG region, through the Pacific way, talanoa or tok stori and binded by shared values and adherence to Melanesian vuvale, cultures and traditions”.
The MSG Pre-Summit Foreign Ministers Meeting has concluded with recommendations to be submitted to this weeks’ 22nd MSG Leader’s Summit. It was chaired by Hon. Matai Seremiah, MP, Deputy Prime Minister & Minister for Foreign Affairs, International Cooperation & External Trade. pic.twitter.com/Xe87w27BtW
West Papua
This year’s agenda also includes the issue of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) application to become a full member of the sub-regional body.
The movement is present at the meeting, as well as a big delegation from Indonesia, represented by its Vice-Minister for Foreign Affairs.
However, neither Seremaiah nor Louma made any mention of West Papua in their opening statements.
West Papua observers and advocates at the meeting say the MSG is like a “custom haus or nakamal” for the Melanesian people.
They say Vanuatu has the opportunity to make this more than a “normal MSG” if it can be the country that gets the MSG Leaders’ Summit to agree to make the ULMWP a full member.
The West Papua delegation as observers at the 22nd MSG Leaders’ Summit pre-meeting in Port Vila yesterday. Image: RNZ Pacific/Kelvin Anthony
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
Fiji recently lost Dr Meraia Taufa Vakatale, a monumental woman leader who broke many glass ceilings with her numerous firsts. As an educationalist, diplomat and politician, she profoundly impacted on the lives of tens of thousands in Fiji and the Pacific region, particularly young women in politics and anti-nuclear activists.
Dr Vakatale was Fiji’s first woman deputy prime minister, the first woman to be elected as a cabinet minister, the first female to be appointed as a deputy high commissioner, and the first Fijian woman principal of a secondary school in Fiji.
Dr Vakatale was also a fervent anti-nuclear activist. In 1995 she took a costly stand against her party and the then Sitiveni Rabuka government on renewed French nuclear testing on Moruroa Atoll in “French” Polynesia.
Joining a protest march against French testing led to her losing her cabinet position in the Rabuka-led government, in which she served as a member of the Soqosoqo ni Vakavulewa ni Taukei (SVT) party.
She held the portfolio of Education, Science and Technology in two stints — from 1993 to 1995 and then, after being reinstated, from 1997 to 1999. In 1997, she was appointed Deputy Prime Minister.
In 2000, she resigned as President of the SVT party over the 2000 coup fallout.
She was a woman ahead of her time. Dedicated to her principles, she “paid it forward” to Pasifika generations by her fight to keep the Pacific a nuclear-free zone.
Idealism inspired thousands Dr Taufa Vakatale’s spirited and unwavering determination, her activism, idealism and her principles inspired thousands of women and youth to fearlessly pursue their dreams.
The name Taufa Vakatale was first linked to the renowned all-girls Adi Cakobau School when she became a pioneer student there in 1948, aged 10 years. She was also the first female student at the all-male Queen Victoria School.
She completed her 6th form year at Suva Grammar School, where she became the first Fijian female to pass the NZ University Entrance. She entered the University of Auckland and in 1963 was the first Fijian woman to graduate with a Bachelor of Arts degree, privately funding her studies from her wages as a teacher in Fiji.
Taufa Vakatale went on to further studies in the United Kingdom from 1963 to 1971. On return to Fiji, she became the first Fijian woman president of the Fiji YWCA and principal of her old school, the Adi Cakobau School.
The YWCA in Fiji was the driving force of the anti-nuclear protest movement in the early 1970s, while she was president.
In her time as an educator, Dr Vakatale disciplined fairly, understood her students, and entrusted them with positive goals for their future, instructing them to “leave the world better than we found it”.
She was respected and honoured. Her feats helped ease the students’ own steps, to bring to life the Adi Cakobau School motto.
Towering moral stature
Of petite and elegant frame, in moral stature Dr Vakatale towered above many. In diplomacy she served as Fiji’s Deputy High Commissioner to the UK in 1980, while single-handedly raising her daughter to become a lawyer.
The University of St Andrews in Scotland awarded her an Honorary Doctorate of Letters for her contribution to the cause of Pacific women, while Fiji bestowed her with the Order of Fiji in 1996.
The extraordinary Dr Meraia Taufa Vakatale died on 24 June 2023, aged 84. She leaves behind her only daughter Alanieta Vakatale, three granddaughters, and many more following in her footsteps to leave this world a better place.
Thirty eight years on from the sinking of the Rainbow Warrior and the adoption of the Pacific nuclear-free zone treaty, the Rarotonga Treaty, and with the imminent release of Japan’s Fukushima nuclear plant radioactive waste into the Pacific ocean, the leadership and sacrifices of Dr Vakatale must be hailed, and her life celebrated.
Asenaca Uluiviti is a community legal officer in Auckland. She has worked as a state solicitor in Fiji and at its diplomatic mission in the UN, and has served as chairperson of Fiji YMCA, and on the NZ board of Greenpeace. She went to the Adi Cakobau School. Sadhana Sen is regional communications adviser at the Development Policy Centre. Republished from the DevPolicy blog through a Creative Commons licence.
Fears are rife in Hawai’i of predatory land buying after the recent wildfires have left many locals homeless and in dire financial straits.
The wildfires incinerated the town of Lāhainā, destroying 2200 homes and businesses and leaving hundreds unaccounted for. At least 114 people are confirmed dead.
The disaster has shed light on Hawai’i’s housing crisis which has prompted many to leave the state for the US mainland.
According to Hawai’i’s Senate Housing Committee, an average of 14,000 Hawai’ians leave the state every year. The state also has one of the highest homeless rates in the country — in 2022, close to 6000 people experienced homelessness.
Hawai’i — a state notorious for high mortgage rates and rent — was already in a housing crisis before the disaster occurred. In fact, it was only last month that Hawai’i’s Governor Josh Green declared a housing emergency — announcing plans to build 50,000 homes before 2025.
“Homeowners have been reached out to by developers and realtors offering to buy their land…and this is disgusting and we just want to let people around the world to know that Lahaina is not for sale,” Maui community leader Tiare Lawrence told US media.
Lawrence accused out-of-state developers of taking advantage of the disaster, by buying up multi-generational lands from residents forced into financial desperation by the wildfires.
Hawai’i’s numerous luxury Hotels have been blamed for pushing up property costs. Image: RNZ Pacific/Finau Fonua
Lāhainā evacuee John Crewe told RNZ Pacific local inter-generational property owners were already struggling to keep up with costs before the wildfires destroyed their homes.
“People feel that they will be forced to sell out because they’re desperate, and then that will mean there is no place for them to return to,” said Crewe.
“Certain people may try to take advantage of the disaster to gain more real estate because it’s a vacation destination, people like to buy properties for vacation and that drives up the cost of everything.
“This is something that should have been addressed long ago.”
In response to the public concerns, Hawai’i’s Governor Josh Green announced he had organised attorneys to assist local landowners.
“I’ve asked my attorney to watch out for predatory practices,” Green said last week.
“We’ll also be raising incredible amount of resources to protect us financially so that none of that land falls into anyone else’s hands,” he added.
The governor even suggested the state government would look to acquire the land in devastated parts of Maui.
That comment caused a social media backlash from critics who accuse the administration of protecting the interests of lucrative hotels and tourism developers — blamed by many for making the Hawai’i’s property markets so expensive.
“Some people have taken out of context a comment I made about purchasing land — that is to protect it, to protect if for local people so that it is not stolen by people on the mainland,” said Green.
“This is not about the government getting land, this is the people’s land and the people will decide what to do with Lāhainā.”
Hawai’i Governor Josh Green poses after signing the Housing Emergency Proclamation last month. Image: Office of Hawaii Governor Josh Green
But many remain doubtful. In the days following the disaster, thousands of Lāhainā evacuees were forced to live in gymnasiums, churches, community shelters and their cars while Maui’s many hotels and resorts remained open to tourists.
Governor Green did announce that he had arranged with hotels for more than 500 rooms to be made available for evacuees to use.
Lāhainā evacuee and Native Hawai’ian Kanani Higbee told RNZ Pacific she had no choice but to leave Hawai’i for another state where the costs of living were cheaper.
John Crewe said he prayed the community which had existed for generations in Hawaii’s historical city would remain intact.
“People might have the tendency to leave the island and go somewhere else. We should build it so that people will come back and make Lāhainā a vibrant society and not just a tourist destination,” he said.
According to Hawai’i’s Senate Housing Committee, one resident emigrates from Hawai’i every 36 minutes.
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
The last USAID office in the region was closed over 25 years ago.
The haste with which the US re-established these offices with its Administrator, Dr Samantha Power — a former Harvard professor, flying from the US to officiate in the ceremonies in Suva and in Port Moresby in PNG on August 15 has also got some sceptics in the region questioning its motives.
Addressing Pacific youth at a ceremony at the University of the South Pacific, also attended by the Pacific Island Forum’s Secretary-General Henry Puna — a former prime minister of Cook Islands — Power said USAID was setting up an office in the Pacific to help them to directly “listen, learn, and better understand” the challenges that Pacific Island countries were facing.
“Our new mission here in Fiji and our office in Papua New Guinea — are not going to come in and impose our ideas or our solutions for the shared challenges that we face” she told an audience of students and academics from the region.
USP is one of only two regional universities in the world largely funded by regional countries. She described the two missions as “reinvigorated (US) commitment to the Pacific Islands”.
At a number of times during her 20-minute speech, Power emphasised that USAID only gave grants and they did not give loans.
“As we increase our investments here in the Pacific, I want to be very clear — and this is subject to some misunderstanding — so please, I hope I am very clear,” she said.
Not forcing nations
“The United States is not forcing nations to choose between partnering with the United States and partnering with other nations to meet their development goals.
“That said, we do want you to have a choice. It’s not a choice that we will make for you, but we want you to have options.
“We want Pacific Island nations to have more options to work with partners whose values and vision for the future align with your own.”
Although Dr Power did not mention China in her speech, this could be interpreted as a reference to the Chinese presence in the Pacific and the “rules-based order” the US and its allies claim to promote in the region.
She immediately added to the above comments by pointing out that USAID only gives grants.
“We are very interested in economic independence, and independence of choice and not saddling future generations with attachments and debts that will later have to be paid,” she said.
“And we will engage with you openly, transparently, with respect for individual dignity and the benefits of inclusive governance, the benefits of being held accountable by your citizens, and we will join you in seeking to combat corrupt dealings that can enrich elites often at the expense of everyday citizens.”
Training farmers in new techniques
Another area where they would allocate funding would be training farmers in new techniques to grapple with changing weather patterns and encroaching salt water.
She also announced the launch of a new initiative, a Blue Carbon Assessment, to quantify the true value of the marine carbon sinks across the Blue Pacific continent.
Referring to Dr Power’s comments about reinvigorating the US’s commitment to the region, Maureen Penjueli, coordinator of the Pacific Network on Globalisation (PANG), told IDN that this was a way to frame the US as a partner of choice by allowing the islanders to determine what is a priority in terms of their development.
“The US is not the only development partner that is suggesting this,” she added, “Australia’s recent Development Policy attempts to frame themselves is no different.”
Referring to US ally Australia’s aid policies, she pointed out that for decades there has been accusation of tied aid, “boomerang aid” by many of our development partners — or how aid is an extension of foreign policy and therefore it is by its nature extractive — an iron fist in a velvet glove”.
“But its other implication is to subtly suggest that the US and its allies’ goals are unlike what China does, which is to ‘extract concessions’ through this relationship either through ensuring that Chinese companies get the contracts, Chinese labour is recruited (as well as) many other forms of accusation of Chinese engagement in the region,” Penjueli said.
During an interaction with the local media after her speech, a local television reporter told Dr Power that critics had been quick to say that the US was ramping up support in the greater Indo-Pacific region because it believed that American dominance was at risk.
“How do you respond to such an observation? And why should Pacific leaders choose US diplomatic support over Chinese support?”, the reporter asked.
“Lots of experience around the world is the recognition that governance and human rights, and economic development go hand in hand,” Dr Power replied.
“You can have economic development without human rights, but it’s almost impossible to have inclusive economic development that reaches broad segments of the population.
“So, we really believe that a development model that values transparency, that ensures that private sector investment is conducted in a manner that benefits broad swaths of the population rather than like a couple of government officials who take a bribe or pay a bribe.”
Grants at a time of a different model Dr Power also added that USAID gave grants at a time when others were pushing a very different model, “which is much more about concentrating both political and economic power, which tends to stifle the voices of citizens to hold their leaders accountable, allows officials to do what they believe is right, but without checks and balances”.
USAID is representing the reopening of the two offices as a follow up to President Biden’s meeting with the Pacific leaders in Washington DC last year.
Its Manila-based deputy assistant director of USAID, Betty Chung, has told Radio New Zealand that currently there are just two staffers in Fiji but by the end of the year, they hope to have eight to 10 there, building up to about 30.
Also the USAID budget for the Pacific has tripled in the past three years.
In a joint press conference in Port Moresby, PNG Prime Minister James Marape has welcomed USAID’s renewed commitments to the region and said that Power’s presence completes what is President Biden’s 3D strategy — diplomacy, defence, and development — in the focus to revamp the US presence in PNG and the Pacific.
He also referred to recent defence agreements signed with the US but said that it should not be a one-way relationship on how they relate to the US. He asked Power and UNAID to assist PNG in preserving their forest resources.
Pacific people need to watch
Pointing out that PNG is home to one-third of the world’s forests and 67 percent of global biodiversity, Marape said that he had asked Dr Power to take the message back to the US and particularly to Congress “who sometimes offer resistance to support to emerging nations” — to help PNG to preserve its forest resources to offset the US “huge carbon footprint”.
Referring to Dr Power’s undertaking that she came to the Pacific to listen, Penjueli said that people in the Pacific needed to watch how USAID could translate this listening exercise into grant-making and in which areas and how they do it.
“For Pacific Island governments, I do believe that they are in a better place, this gives them more options to consider if they (foreign donors) support their own development needs particularly in the current context of a climate emergency, post-pandemic debt stress economies and an ongoing Ukraine war.”
Dr Kalinga Seneviratne is a Sri Lanka-born journalist, broadcaster and international communications specialist. He is currently a consultant to the journalism programme at the University of the South Pacific. He is also the former head of research at the Asian Media Information and Communication Center (AMIC) in Singapore and the Asia-Pacific editor of InDepth News (IDN), the flagship agency of the non-profit International Press Syndicate. This article is republished under content sharing agreement between Asia Pacific Report and IDN.
Dr Samantha Power (pink in the centre with garland) with University of the South Pacific students at the Laucala campus in Suva, Fiji. Image: Kalinga Seneviratne/IDN
Greenpeace Indonesia’s forest campaigner Nico Wamafma says the West Papua region has lost 641,400 ha of its natural forests in the two decades between 2000-2020 in massive deforestation.
Greenpeace’s research shows this deforestation occurred mainly due to the increasingly widespread licensing of land-based extractive industries that damage the rights of indigenous peoples.
Wamafma said that the total forests loss consisted of 438,000 ha spread across Papua, Central Papua, Mountainous Papua and South Papua provinces.
The remaining 203,000 ha were lost in West Papua and Southwest Papua provinces.
“In the last two decades, we lost a lot of forests in Merauke, Boven Digoel, Mimika, Mappi, Nabire, Fakfak, Teluk Bintuni, Manokwari, Sorong and Kaimana,” Wamafma told Jubi in a telephone interview
Papua is losing natural forests due to the licensing of land-based extractive industries, such as mining, Industrial Plantation Forest (HTI), Forest Concession Rights (HPH), and oil palm plantations.
Wamafma said the formation of four new provinces resulting from the division of Papua had also accelerated the rate of deforestation in Papua.
He said that if the government continued to take a development approach like the last 20 years that relied on investment, the potential for natural forest loss would be even greater in Papua.
Wamafma said there were now 34.4 million ha of natural forests in Papua.
After a 12-year fight, mana whenua will get a seat at the table after the Western Bay of Plenty District Council has voted to establish Māori wards at the next election.
Applause then waiata rang out from the packed public gallery as the councillors voted nine to three in favour of Māori wards yesterday.
Speaking after the meeting, mayor James Denyer said it was a “momentous day, particularly for mana whenua”.
LOCAL DEMOCRACY REPORTING: Winner 2022 Voyager Awards Best Reporting Local Government (Feliz Desmarais) and Community Journalist of the Year (Justin Latif)
“This is about making the right decision, not making the popular decision.”
Mana whenua have long advocated for Māori wards in the district. In 2011 the council decided not to establish one and in 2017 the council opted to have a Māori ward, but it was subject to a poll requested by the public.
It was voted down in the poll with 78 percent of the respondents opposed. Just over 40 percent of eligible voters took part.
During the meeting’s public forum, Mabel Wharekawa-Burt said the poll was not an actual reflection of what the community was feeling.
‘Open your minds’
“My job today is to influence you to open your minds a little bit further, not to change your opinions,” she said.
Wharekawa-Burt, of Katikati, worked with the electoral commission for 14 years and urged the councillors to “take a chance”.
“We’re [Māori] not a threat. I’m bound and obligated to make good decisions for my grandchildren.
“Take a chance on me by unequivocally supporting the establishment of Māori wards and I’ll make sure you’re safe,” Wharekawa-Burt (Ngāi Te Rangi and Ngāti Ranginui) said.
Katikati — Waihī Beach Residents and Ratepayers Association chairperson Keith Hay opposed their establishment and said the decision affected all of the community and referred to the previous poll.
“To knowingly override these views without community consultation is arrogant.
“If you vote to introduce Māori wards today, voters’ views are being overwritten,” said Hay, in his opinion.
The council opted not to consult with the community because under the Local Electoral Act 2001 there were no obligations to consult with any person before passing a resolution to establish Māori wards.
‘Spectrum of community views’ WBOPDC strategic kaupapa Māori manager Chris Nepia’s report to council said: “Council already has a good understanding of the spectrum of community views on the establishment of Māori wards through previous processes.”
Tapuika Iwi Authority chief executive Andy Gowland-Douglas said it was “really important mana whenua were represented at the decision making table” and added “significant value”.
Former mayor Gary Webber, who was on the council for 12 years, said it was the third time he had been involved in the decision.
“It is time to do what is tika, what is right. Please don’t say no and be an outlier in the statistics.”
Deputy mayor John Scrimgeour moved the motion. He said it was a legislative requirement and important the council met this.
“Māori have continued to be entirely consistent in their request for Māori wards.
“They wanted to vote for someone that they could identify with and help them represent their interests.”
Not fairly represented
First term councillor Andy Wichers said he had heard from the community that Māori don’t feel they are fairly and effectively represented as individuals and as communities.
“The simple question was this, could Māori wards achieve a fairer and more effective representation? And the answer was yes, and I could not find an argument against it.”
Councillor Rodney Joyce said: “Partnership is deeply and rightly entrenched into our constitutional arrangements.
“Having guaranteed Māori members will help us be a better council.
“This is not a zero sum game where one treaty partner wins at the expense of the other. We can work together to make better decisions, bringing different perspectives.”
He did, however, want there to be consultation with the community.
“We should consult widely on this and seek to bring our community along with us in this decision.”
‘Incredibly rushed’
Tracey Coxhead said as a first time councillor she felt “incredibly rushed in this process” and “not informed enough” to make the right decision.
She too wanted community consultation.
Allan Sole . . . “This actual document, a great piece of our history, may not be fit for purpose today.” Image: John Borren/SunLive/LDR
Also opposed was councillor Allan Sole — he said he was part Māori but chose not to be on the Māori electoral roll.
“I believe that we have got to be people that look and work towards having a more harmonious whole community, not looking after factions.
He said, in his view, if people felt they were unequal he would “almost consider [it] patronising that somebody makes a special place for you”.
“I believe that to protect those special places is totally wrong and not beneficial to the decision making and future of our district and our country.”
Sole also questioned the Treaty of Waitangi: “We also ought to let the people look at it [the Treaty] and say perhaps . . . this actual document, a great piece of our history, may not be fit for purpose today.”
‘Same rights and privileges’ Kaimai ward councillor Margaret Murray-Benge said: “I believe strongly that, as the Treaty of Waitangi made clear that 180 years ago, all New Zealanders had the same rights and privileges.
“Creating racial division between us by creating racially separate based wards is fundamentally wrong.”
Councillor James Dally was visibly emotional as he spoke and referenced the 2021 decision by the local government minister to remove the ability for the public to request a poll on the creation of Māori wards.
He said the number of councils with Māori wards went from three to 34 and there were 66 councillors elected to represent Māori communities at last year’s local government elections.
“Hopefully in time the separatist or racist narrative will become a thing of the past.”
Denyer said: “It’s clear to me that Māori representation at council is deficient and it is no longer a radical or unknown option.”
He said Māori wards “work quite well” for the 35 councils that have them.
Mayor James Denyer . . . “This is about making the right decision, not making the popular decision.” Image: Alisha Evans/SunLive/LDR
‘About honouring commitments’ Scrimgeour concluded: “I want to emphasise this is not about establishing a race-based constituency. It’s about honouring commitments that we made under the Treaty of Waitangi.”
Speaking after the meeting, Wharekawa-Burt said: “It felt glorious.
“I’m ecstatic for my grandchildren. I just wanted the right to make my own choice.”
Te Kāhui Mana o Tauranga Moana forum chairperson Reon Tuanau said it had been a long time coming and he had been involved since 2011.
Asked if he had any words for those that were fearful of Māori wards, Tuanau referred to the whakataukī.
“Nā to rourou, nā taku rourou, ka ora ai te tāngata. With your basket and my basket put into the same basket people will thrive.”
Western Bay of Plenty is the 36th council to establish Māori wards. Only those on the Māori electoral roll can vote in that ward.
How the Māori ward will be made up will be considered as part of the district representation review next year.
The review looks at what form the wards and community boards should take and how many elected members there should be, to best represent the district’s population. It will be subject to public consultation.
How they voted: For: James Denyer, John Scrimgeour, Grant Dally, Anne Henry, Rodney Joyce, Murray Grainger, Andy Wichers, Richard Crawford, Don Thwaites.
Against: Margaret Murray-Benge, Allan Sole, Tracey Coxhead.
Alisha Evans is SunLive local democracy reporter.Local Democracy Reporting is Public Interest Journalism funded through NZ On Air. It is published by Asia Pacific Report in collaboration.
At least 20 people were wounded when police used batons, water cannon and tear gas to disperse hundreds of people who joined rallies in Indonesia’s West Papua region on the 61st anniversary of an agreement that made the territory part of Indonesia, news agencies report.
The US-brokered 1962 New York Agreement allowed Indonesia to annex the Christian-majority region after the end of Dutch colonial rule, according to a report in the UCA News.
Riot police attacked peaceful demonstrators in three locations near the provincial capital Jayapura yesterday, alleged Emmanuel Gobay, a Catholic and an official of the Papua Legal Aid Institute.
The demonstrators called on the international community to review the agreement and take action to end ongoing violence and repression in the region, said the report.
“In fact, they only held peaceful demonstrations,” said Gobay, who joined one of the rallies.
He stated that more than 20 people were beaten, with one of them later being treated in hospital.
“One person was seriously injured and was immediately transported to the hospital for treatment,” he said.
Listening to speeches
Videos and photos obtained by UCA News showed police attacked with water canons and fired tear gas while people were listening to speeches from leaders of the West Papua National Committee (KNPB), the protest organiser.
Gobay said that although the authorities viewed the KNPB as a “separatist — pro-independence — group “they should have the right to express their opinion” as guaranteed in the nation’s constitution.
“Moreover, they submitted an official letter notifying police about the programme beforehand,” he added.
He condemned the use of water cannon and tear gas on demonstrators.
These should only be for anarchic demonstrations — “not peaceful demonstrations,” he said.
The bloodied face of a protester brutally beaten by Indonesian police yesterday. Image: Tabloid Jubi
Gobay alleged that police committed criminal offences by torturing and beating protesters, and called on the Papuan police chief to immediately prosecute the perpetrators so that there was a deterrent effect, said the UCA News report.
Father Bernard Baru from the Jayapura Diocese’s Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation Commission said that this repressive action was a repetition of the discriminatory treatment of Papuans by the state.
Brutal police action ‘normal’
“In Papua, police actions like this are considered normal. This only deepens discrimination against Papuans,” he said.
Police officials were not available for comment.
KNPB spokesman Ones Sahuniap issued a statement to condemn the police brutality and claimed those who were beaten suffered serious head injuries and bled profusely.
Suhuniap said the police used rattan and batons to beat and break up the demonstration.
The KNPB simultaneously held demonstrations in Papua and in other parts of Indonesia, asking the United Nations to review the 1962 New York Agreement.
During the rallies, KNPB leaders called the New York Agreement “a violation of human rights of Papuans” sponsored by Indonesia, the Netherlands and the United States and the United Nations.
Not party to agreement
As per the agreement, later added to the agenda of UN General Assembly, the Netherlands agreed to transfer the control of West Papua New Guinea to Indonesia, pending an UN-administered referendum.
The Papuans were not party to the agreement and it paved the way for the 1969 Act of Free Choice, an independence referendum favoring Indonesian rule in Papua whuch was largely regarded as a sham.
Indonesia’s annexation of Papua and use to force to crush dissent sparked an armed pto-indeoendence movement.
Thousands of civilians, soldiers and rebels have been killed and tens of thousands have been displaced due to the conflict in the easternmost region in the past decades.
International environmental campaign group Greenpeace’s flagship Rainbow Warrior is currently sailing across the Pacific, calling at ports and collecting evidence to present to the International Court of Justice (ICJ) — the World Court — during a historic hearing in The Hague next year.
Rainbow Warrior staff and crew will be joined by Pasifika activists sailing across the blue waters of the Pacific, campaigning to take climate change to the globe’s highest court.
Their latest six-week campaign voyage started in Cairns, Australia, on July 31 and will call on Vanuatu, Tuvalu, and Fiji. Currently, they are on a port call in Suva.
Greenpeace Australia’s Pacific general council member Katrina Bullock told IDN: “Part of what we really wanted to do during the ship tour was to bring together climate leaders from different parts of the world to talk and share their experiences because climate impacts might look different in different parts of the world.”
Staff and volunteers at Greenpeace’s iconic campaign vessel have been welcoming local people here, especially youth, to speak to their campaign staff about what they do and why climate justice campaigns are important to save the pristine environment in the region that is facing a multitude of problems due to climate crisis.
“Everybody is sharing the same struggles, so we had Uncle Pabai and Uncle Paul (indigenous Torres Straits Islanders from Australia) who came with us to Vanuatu, where they joined up with some terrific activists from the Philippines who are also looking at holding their government accountable,” Bullock said.
“If we become climate refugees, we will lose everything — our homes, community, culture, stories, and identity,” says Uncle Paul whose ancestors have lived on the land for 65,000 years.
‘Our country will disappear’
“We can keep our stories and tell our stories, but we won’t be connected to country because country will disappear”.
Pacific climate voyage . . . A South African crew member on the bridge of the Rainbow Warrior briefing Fiji visitors on board. Image: Kalinga Seneviratne/IDN
That is why he is taking the government to court, “because I want to protect my community and all Australians before it’s too late.”
The two indigenous First Nations leaders from the Guda Maluyligal in the Torres Strait are plaintiffs in the Australian Climate Case suing the Australian government for failing to protect their island homes from climate change.
They are training other Pacific islanders on activism to hold their governments to account.
The UN General Assembly on 29 March 2023 adopted by consensus a resolution requesting an advisory opinion from the ICJ on the obligations of states in respect of climate change.
This opinion aims to clarify the legal obligations of states in addressing climate change and its consequences, particularly regarding the rights and interests of vulnerable nations — and people.
It is the first time the General Assembly has requested an advisory opinion from the ICJ with unanimous state support.
This Pacific-led resolution has been hailed as a “turning point in climate justice” and a victory for the Pacific youth who spearheaded the campaign.
The ICJ is the principal judicial organ of the United Nations, entrusted with settling legal disputes between states. It entertains only two types of cases: contentious cases and requests for advisory opinions.
“We have been collecting evidence from across the Pacific of climate impacts to take to the world’s highest court as part of the ICJ initiative,” Bullock said.
“We have also had the opportunity to mobilise communities and bring the leaders from all parts of the world together to share their experiences and do some community training.”
The Rainbow Warrior has a long history of daring activism and fearless campaigning and has been sailing the world’s oceans since 1978, fighting various environment destroyers and polluters.
In 1985, the first Rainbow Warrior ship was sunk by a terrorist bombing at New Zealand’s Auckland port by French security agents with the death of a Greenpeace photographer, Fernando Pereira, on board because the ship and its crew were fearlessly campaigning against French nuclear testing in the Pacific.
The ship’s crew also evacuated the people of Rongelap Atoll in the Marshall Islands who were irradiated by US nuclear testing and moved them to a safer atoll.
Modern sailing ship
Today’s Rainbow Warrior is a sophisticated modern sailing ship with a multinational crew that includes Indians, Chileans, South Africans, Australians, Fijians, and many other nationalities.
Last week they were sharing their stories of environmental destruction with local youth and children to take the fight further with the help of stories collected from people in the Pacific.
According to Bullock, the shared stories were filled with trauma and loss as they went from island to island.
“We were in Vanuatu, and some of the women shared their experiences of what it was like after a cyclone to lose lots of herbal medicine and the plants that you rely on as a community, and what that means to them and why Western pharmacies aren’t a substitute.”
The Rainbow Warrior activists were shown the loss of land and gravesites and collected many stories they believe will make an impact. While they are berthed in Fiji, students and community members were given guided tours on the boat and informed on their work – including how they navigate the high seas.
One such group was the students and teachers from a local primary school, Vashistmuni Primary School in Navua, who were excited and fascinated to learn about the work the Rainbow Warrior does.
Their teacher said that while it is part of their curriculum to learn about climate change and global warming, “it was good to bring the kids out and witness firsthand what a climate warrior looks like and its importance.
‘Hopefully, they take action’
“Hopefully, they go back and take action in their local communities.”
For Ani Tuisausau, Fijian activist and core focal point of the climate justice working group in Fiji, her choice to take this up was personal.
“I am someone who is constantly going to my dad’s island, so compared to how it was then to how it is now, it is different,” she told IDN.
“There are some places where I used to swim. They are polluted, and then, of course, the sea level rises. I don’t want my kids growing up and missing out on the beauty of our beaches and what I experienced when I was younger.
“For that to happen, there needs to be a change in mindsets,” argues Tuisausau, “and this is the best opportunity on board the Rainbow Warrior — they get to hear the stories of what is happening in the Pacific and compare and relate to what is happening in our backyard.”
The Rainbow Warrior’s stories include intense stories and dignified climate migration but also the loss of culture and land. The team is confident that collecting these stories will give them a fighting chance at the ICJ.
Bullock says that when she started with the Rainbow Warrior five years ago, she thought facts and figures were a way to change mindsets.
“But now I realise that while facts and figures are important, stories are crucial because they touch hearts and move people to action”.
Rainbow Warrior leaves Suva tomorrow and heads back to Australia via Tuvalu and Vanuatu.
Sera Sefeti is a Wansolwara journalist at the University of the South Pacific. This article was produced as a part of the joint media project between the non-profit International Press Syndicate Group and Soka Gakkai International in consultation with ECOSOC on 13 August 2023. IDN is the flagship agency of IPS and the article is republished by Asia Pacific Report as part of a collaboration.
An Australian West Papuan solidarity group has condemned the reported arrest of 21 activists protesting in Jayapura over a “tragic day in history” and called on Canberra to urge Jakarta to restrain its security forces.
The West Papuan National Committee (KNPB) activists were arrested at the weekend because they were handing out flyers calling on West Papuans to mark the date on Tuesday — 15 August 1962 — when the Papuan people were “betrayed by the international community”, reports Jubi News.
That was the date of the New York Agreement, brokered by the US, which called for the transfer of the Dutch colony of Netherlands New Guinea to Indonesia after a short period of UN administration.
“Hopefully this year the Indonesian security forces will allow the West Papuan people to hold their peaceful rallies without interference,” said Joe Collins, spokesperson for the Australia West Papua Association (AWPA) in a statement.
“Canberra should be urging Jakarta to control its security forces in West Papua, otherwise we will see more arrests and more human rights abuses.
“We should not forget, Australia was involved and still involved”.
The New York Agreement included a guarantee that the Papuan people would be allowed an “Act of Free Choice” to determine their political status.
Peaceful demonstration
The so-called “Act of Free Choice” in 1969 has been branded as a sham by activists and international critics.
Sixty one years after that contested agreement, West Papuans are still calling for a real referendum.
West Papuan activists handing out New York Agreement protest flyers in Jayapura. Image: Jubi News
The Central KNPB spokesperson, Ones Suhuniap, said that 21 KNPB Sentani Region activists were arrested on Saturday when activists distributed leaflets calling for a peaceful demonstration to mark the New York Agreement and also the racism troubles that Papuan students suffered in Surabaya, Central Java, in August 2019.
Although some of the activists had been released, these arrests were intended to intimidate civil society groups into not taking part in the planned rallies, said the spokesperson.
Collins said: “West Papuan civil society groups regularly hold events and rallies on days of significance in their history, to try and bring attention to the world of the injustices they suffer under Indonesian rule.
“And this is what Jakarta fears most — international scrutiny on the ongoing human rights abuses in the territory”.
A West Papua news report of the activist arrests. Image: Jubi News/APR screenshot
Collins said it was of “great concern” that Indonesian security forces could again stage a crackdown in “their usual heavy-handed approach to any peaceful rallies held by West Papuans” during this coming week.
In the past, West Papuans had not only been being arrested for peaceful action but had also been beaten, tortured – and some people had faced charges of treason.
Three students jailed for ‘treason’
On Tuesday, three students were found guilty of treason and given a 10-month prison term by a panel of judges at the Jayapura District Court for alleged treason by being involved in a “free speech” event last year, reports Jubi News.
Yoseph Ernesto Matuan, Devio Tekege, and Ambrosius Fransiskus Elopere took part in the event held at Jayapura University of Science and Technology (USTJ) on November 10, 2022, when they waved Morning Star flags of independence.
The event aimed to reject a Papua peace dialogue plan introduced by the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM).
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins has called again for the immediate release of New Zealand pilot Phillip Mehrtens, who has now been held hostage by pro-independence fighters in West Papua for six months.
Speaking in Auckland, Hipkins said Mehrtens — a pilot for the Indonesian airline Susi Air which provide air links to remote communities in Papua — was a much-loved husband, brother, father and son.
He said Mehrtens’ safety was the top priority and the six-month milestone would be a difficult time for the family.
New Zealand pilot Phillip Mehrtens, flying for Susi Air, has been held hostage by the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) since February 7. Image: Jubi TV screenshot APR
“We will continue to do all we can to bring Phillip home,” he said.
“I want to urge once again those who are holding Phillip to release him immediately. There is absolutely no justification for taking hostages. The longer Phillip is held the more risk there is to his wellbeing and the harder this becomes for him and for his family.
“The Ministry of Foreign Affairs is leading our interagency response and I’ve been kept closely informed of developments over the last six months.”
Prime Minister Chris Hipkins . . . “I want to urge once again those who are holding Phillip to release him immediately. There is absolutely no justification for taking hostages.” Image: Angus Dreaver/RNZ
Hipkins said consular efforts included working closely with the Indonesian authorities and deploying New Zealand consular staff.
The family was being supported by the ministry both in New Zealand and Indonesia, he said.
“I acknowledge this is an incredibly challenging time for them but they’ve continued to ask for their privacy and I thank people for respecting that.”
Police report ‘good health’
Indonesian police say the NZ pilot taken hostage by the pro-independence fighters on February 7 is in good health and negotiations for his safe release are ongoing.
Jubi reported from Jayapura that Papua police chief Inspector General Mathius Fakhiri said on Monday that Mehrtens remained in good health, but he did not expand on how he obtained that information.
General Fakhiri said the security forces were actively closing in on the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) faction led by Egianus Kogoya and were engaged in negotiations to secure the prompt release of the pilot.
“We are currently awaiting further developments as we work to restrict the movement of Egianus Kogoya’s group. The pilot’s overall condition is healthy,” General Fakhiri said.
Tempo reported General Fakhiri as saying the local government was allowing community and church leaders and family members to take the lead on negotiating with Kogoya, the rebel leader holding Mehrtens.
“Our primary concern is the safe rescue of Captain Phillip. This is why we are prioritising all available resources to aid the security forces in negotiations, ultimately leading to the pilot’s safe return without exacerbating the situation,” General Fakhiri said.
This article is republished under a community partnership agreement with RNZ.
