Word: papua
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...West Papuan asylum seekers released from Australian immigration detention last month on three-year protection visas, says the realization came to her clearly: "I was shown by the Lord that Australia has been given a role as the hand of God in helping to finally resolve the issue of Papua...
...Close as it is to their shores, the western half of the island of New Guinea remains a mystery to most Australians - as does its Melanesian people's 40-year struggle for self-rule. Home to vast mineral and timber wealth, West Papua's status is an accident of colonialism: retained by the Dutch when Indonesia declared independence in 1945, it came under Indonesian rule after the Act of Free Choice referendum in 1969 - a change decried by many Papuans, who say the 1,000 voters were hand-picked by Indonesia...
Last week, rallies to demand the closure of a gold and copper mine run by U.S.-based Freeport-McMoRan in Indonesia's Papua province turned violent, leaving three policemen and one air force officer dead. But the real surprise is that violence didn't break out sooner. Papuans have long seen the mine as a symbol of Jakarta's unequal share of the proceeds from the province's natural resources?and the roots of their resentment go even deeper. The remote province, whose inhabitants are ethnically distinct from the rest of the country, was forcibly taken over by Indonesia...
...University of Indonesia sociologist Thamrin Amal Tomagola says Jakarta's recent truce with rebels in formerly restive Aceh province has inspired Papuans to take to the streets in hopes of securing similar concessions. Indeed, maintaining the status quo in Papua might no longer be an option. "Jakarta must change the way it handles Papua and listen to people's complaints," says Thamrin. "Otherwise the violence will continue and get worse every time it breaks...
...University of Indonesia sociologist Thamrin Amal Tomagola says Jakarta's recent truce with rebels in formerly restive Aceh province has inspired Papuans to take to the streets in hopes of securing similar concessions. Indeed, maintaining the status quo in Papua might no longer be an option. "Jakarta must change the way it handles Papua and listen to people's complaints," says Thamrin. "Otherwise the violence will continue and get worse every time it breaks...