The call made during a rally by the National Action Committee of the West Papuan People during a demo at the office of the DPRP earlier this week, which included a call to boycott the election has provoked responses from a number of political parties.

Paskalis Kosay, deputy chairman of the West Papua branch of Golkar, described this as nothing more than an expression of the political dynamics in Papua and everyone is entitled to do that. "If there is a boycott that will just be local here in Papua. The organisation of the election is already very advanced and (a boycott) will have no effect, even for the parties themselves. It depends on people whether they want to boycott and they shouldn't disturb thse who want to vote." Furthermore, he said, boycotting the election won't guarantee that there will be a resolution of the Papuan question. The Papuan question is a national problem, he said.

As regards the calls being made for a referendum, Kosay said this was an expression of society's dissatisfaction with the way Otsus (Special Autonomy) is being implemented. "The rights of the indigenous people are not being properly accommodated as a result of which people haven't experienced any improvements in the their living conditions."

Yanni, chairman of the regional branch of Partai Bintang Reformasi (Star Reform Party) also thought that boycotting the election will change nothing in Papua. "It could even make things worse and be harmful for us," he (she?) said. "I therefore think it is better for people to use their vote which could be very important for Papua for the next 5 years."

As for having a referendum, Yanni said that it was necessary for the government and the legislature to correct themselves and decided how to do better so as to ensure that the people's aspirations about their conditions can be realised.

Dr John Manansang, chairman of Partai Nasional Benteng Kerakyatan Indonesia (National Fortress Party of the Indonesian People) described the call for a boycott as not being "very mature" but it was the right of anyone (not to vote). He said that during the next month, he hoped that people will think hard about where Papua is going. "This demands make us realise what we thing about Papua's future and to think about what best needs to be done for the welfare of the Papuan people."

But he nevertheless felt that a boycott was not a wise thing to do. He also wondered why peole were calling for a referendum. Otsus has been in force for eight years but people see it as a failure in that it has not answered the aspirations of the Papuan people. Although, he said, the annual Otsus budget had been going up every year, people dont see any changes in their living conditions.

"The Papuan people are not prosperous, instead things have got worse, and we should ask ourselves why this is," he said. If people want independence, the government and the DPRP will have to deal with this, and one way would be to persuade the candidates to struggle for the aspirations of the people.

As for Martinus Werimon, chairman of the Papuan branch of Partai Merdeka (Independence Party) he said that the young people should take part in the election. Boycotting the elections won't solve anything, and could only make things worse. He said that he was one of the Team of 100 which met President Habibie in 1999, when they called for a boycott, but the elections went ahead anyway. In the event, we damaged our own interests because we did not help to decide which candidates to vote for. If we do the same thing again, it means that we are lacking in any wisdom. "We should call on all Papuans to take part in the elections and use their vote in favour of those Papuans who really want to fight for the aspirations of the Papuan people. If people want to abstain, that's okay if there are no candidates who they trust."

He said that the call for a referendum was an expression of feelings of dissatisfaction with Otsus. There have been so many corruption cases with no-one know how the money has been used while in some regions the military were present and intelligence operations were being conducted, all of which has been very upsetting many people.

[Item slightly abridged in translation. Comment: Whether or not a boycott is justified is for Papuan people to decide but the issue raised by demonstrators earlier this week has provoked a number of very interesting comments which highlight the depth of dissatisfaction felt among senior Papuans who have leading positions in the parties contesting the elections and which were reported at some length by Cenderawasih Pos. It will be interesting to see what the turnout will be on 9 April. Calling for a boycott could have repercussions for those making the call but a low turnout should make those who gain seats in the DPR and who becomes President in October recognise the need to respond to the Papuan call for dialogue which now has the support of Defence Minister Yuwono Sudarsono. TAPOL]