Republic of West Papua
Encyclopedia
The Republic of West Papua is a proposed but unrecognised separatist
Separatism
Separatism is the advocacy of a state of cultural, ethnic, tribal, religious, racial, governmental or gender separation from the larger group. While it often refers to full political secession, separatist groups may seek nothing more than greater autonomy...
state
State (polity)
A state is an organized political community, living under a government. States may be sovereign and may enjoy a monopoly on the legal initiation of force and are not dependent on, or subject to any other power or state. Many states are federated states which participate in a federal union...
in the Western New Guinea
Western New Guinea
West Papua informally refers to the Indonesian western half of the island of New Guinea and other smaller islands to its west. The region is officially administered as two provinces: Papua and West Papua. The eastern half of New Guinea is Papua New Guinea.The population of approximately 3 million...
region (comprising the provinces of Papua
Papua (Indonesian province)
Papua comprises most of the western half of the island of New Guinea and nearby islands. Its capital is Jayapura. It's the largest and easternmost province of Indonesia. The province originally covered the entire western half of New Guinea...
and West Papua) that was unilaterally declared during the temporary United Nations administration
United Nations Temporary Executive Authority
The United Nations Temporary Executive Authority / United Nations Security Force in West New Guinea was established during October 1962 in accord with Article two of the New York Agreement to administer the colony of West New Guinea until the 1st May 1963.-History:Western New Guinea became the...
of the region in 1963. There are few organizations that fight for West Papuan independence. One of them is Free Papua Movement
Free Papua Movement
The Free Papua Movement is a militant organisation established in 1965 to encourage and effect the violent overthrow of the current governments in the Papua and West Papua provinces of Indonesia, formerly known as Irian Jaya to secede from Indonesia, and to reject economic development and...
. Also there are such organizations as WPLO (West Papua Liberation Organization)
(it's head is John Anari
John Anari
John Anari is the leader of the West Papua Liberation Organization. He is 31 years old and he comes from a vilage named Kebar that is located on the territory inhabited by Mpur tribe....
)
and WPNLA (West Papua National Liberation Army). WPNLA supports both WPLO and Free Papua Movement
Free Papua Movement
The Free Papua Movement is a militant organisation established in 1965 to encourage and effect the violent overthrow of the current governments in the Papua and West Papua provinces of Indonesia, formerly known as Irian Jaya to secede from Indonesia, and to reject economic development and...
. Ideology of the Free Papua movement is connected with decline of modern life and refusing cultural or economical development.
External links and further reading
- Free West Papua Campaign
- West Papua Media Alerts site
- Free West Papua Documents and Information Centre
- United Nations - West New Guinea UNSF
- An article about the history of West Papuan separatism by John Anari (United Nations website)
- Bertrand, Jaques (1997). "Business as Usual" in Suharto's Indonesia. Asian Survey 37(6):441-452.
- Brad Simpson. Indonesia's 1969 Takeover of West Papua Not by "Free Choice". The National Security Archive, George Washington University.