Papua is Forever Part of the Legacy of Indonesia

Racist actions and persecution that sparked mass demonstrations have been used by separatist groups to call for a referendum. This cunning ploy is unfortunate due to the fact that Papua is a legitimate part of Indonesia and that the government continues to optimize welfare programs.

In 2001, about 80 percent of families in Papua were still living in underdeveloped conditions in agriculture, economy, education, health and mastery of science and technology. At that time the prices of consumer goods in the city of Jayapura were 45 percent higher compared to Jakarta and much more expensive in remote areas. Even the price of BBM is very different from the BBM in Java.

Learning from this, in the end the Government, in the hands of President Jokowi, built a variety of infrastructure for Papua, such as the construction of roads, bridges and also uniform fuel prices throughout Indonesia. Although various threats from separatist groups have not subsided, development in Papua continues.

Of course it would not be wise if we accuse someone of being evil just because of the color of their skin. If non-Papuan Indonesians mock Papuans as monkeys, then in fact they feel they are more noble creatures than Papuans. Of course this is a crime.

Former Chief Justice of the Constitutional Court Mahfud MD said that the President of Indonesia from the Soekarno era to Joko Widodo had always paid attention to the Papuan people and never considered Papua as a stepchild.

Mahfud even appreciated President Jokowi's steps in building infrastructure so that Papua would be more advanced. Even Jokowi said that building Papua was not because he wanted to win the election, but because Papua was an inseparable part of the Republic of Indonesia.

Society should return to history, so that there is no more referendum vote behind the nuances of Human Rights. In the run-up to Operation Trikora in Papua (1961 - 1962), President Soekarno made a speech against the so-called puppet state formed by the Netherlands and called on the Indonesian people to prepare for general mobilization. He also stated that he would not resign before Papua (at that time still under the auspices of the Dutch) entered Indonesian territory.

History also records that President Soekarno announced that he would prepare an operational command to occupy West Papua with armed force.

The operation, supported by the Mandala Command under Suharto, was a success. 13 years after the Round Table Conference, one of which is the agenda to discuss the fate of Papua. Finally the Dutch softened and Papua was then called West Irian.

Certainly, the Indonesian government's policy on the status of Papua when viewed from international law is of course final, namely, Papua and West Papua are part of the territory of the Republic of Indonesia. Remembering when the process of integrating international law into national law.

From this history, of course we know that Papua is something that must be fought for, and currently all people from Sabang to Merauke must have the desire to defend the sovereignty of the Republic of Indonesia while maintaining Papua, so there is no need for rumors of a referendum.

The racial differences according to the separatist group as one of their reasons for separating the Melanesian race from the bosom of the Republic of Indonesia, according to them are different from the Malay race, so they have to separate from Indonesia, but statistically it turns out that there are more Melanesian people living in Papua and its surroundings than outside. Papua, besides that the Melanesian race is divided into dozens of countries in the south Pacific. So that there is no country specifically for the Melanesian Race and no country in this world that is based on race as the Fascist ideology of Adolf Hitler before World War II exploded.

Every society wants to live in peace without any riots. As Indonesian citizens, the spirit of tolerance must be shown, not by selfishness alone.

We must also avoid racist attitudes towards the Papuan people. This is certainly a form of our practice of Pancasila values ​​which have become the ideology of the Nation. There is no longer racialist speech like the term monkey for any citizen in Indonesia, because we are all compatriots and in the same country.

Source: https://www.suaradewata.com/read/201909060004/papua-selamanya-bagian-sah-indonesia.html