Government Prepares Additional Papua Special Autonomy Fund

The Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs Mahfud MD emphasized that currently the government is preparing to increase the Papua special autonomy (otsus) fund, which was only 2 percent, now it has now become 2.25 percent.

The additional funds, said Mahfud, will be carried out through the revision of Law 21 of 2001 concerning Special Autonomy for Papua Province which will be carried out in the near future.

In addition, said Mahfud, in the near future the government will also expand the administrative area in Papua Province in accordance with applicable statutory procedures so that the government can be managed more regularly by more people.

Mahfud said this was also contained in the Presidential Regulation on a welfare approach to dealing with problems in Papua which the government is currently preparing and studying.

This was conveyed by Mahfud during a press conference at the Kemenko Polhukam RI Office in Central Jakarta which was broadcast live on the Youtube channel of the Indonesian Ministry of Political, Legal and Security Affairs.

"We have first prepared a Presidential Decree which is currently being studied, so that development in Papua can truly be felt by the people. Because the funds for Papua are huge but are corrupted by the elites there. The people do not get any," said Mahfud.

Mahfud emphasized that the two efforts were carried out for one purpose, namely the welfare of Indigenous Papuans (OAP).

"The goal of all of this is the welfare of the Papuan Indigenous People (OAP). There are TNI, related ministries, the DPR monitoring, the Ministry of Home Affairs will organize the government and so on," said Mahfud.