Jakarta – The central government must remove their security forces from Papua and West Papua provinces and communicate better with residents in order to reduce tensions in the region, a legislator says.

Legislator Mahfudz Siddiq from the House of Representatives Commission I on foreign affairs said trust in the government would wither if President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono continued to maintain the same policies in the region.

"The government should end the security force presence in the region for a start," he said.

The Prosperous Justice Party (PKS) legislator said the government had allocated more than Rp 30 trillion (US$3.33 billion) to implement special status for the two provinces, and the Papua and West Papua administrations had absorbed the money.

But, life expectancy for Papuans continues to decrease. The life expectancy of Papuans is now 48 years. Before the special status, it was 50.

Special status for the two provinces began in 2001. It included the requirement that only Papuans can occupy strategic positions in local administrations.

Muridan S. Widjojo of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences said things have not changed in decades, with army members beating residents, burning villages and exchanging fire with resistance groups. "Some are arrested for political reasons. It's impossible for local people to be free from fear as our constitution guarantees," he said.

Seventeen exchanges of fire took place this year, with residents and army officers suffering casualties. The most recent exchange occurred in Jayapura, Papua, on Nov. 28. In October, NGOs released a video showing army members abusing local men.

Muridan, who has led a team creating a road map for improving conditions in Papua since 2004, said the government has started to take issues in the regions seriously.

Muridan cited a speech the President made and two visits, to Wasior in West Papua and to Jayapura, as evidence. On Aug. 16, Yudhoyono said in a speech that he would foster constructive communication to settle issues in the region.

Muridan said the government has taken interest in the matter because of pressure from groups that brought to light human rights violations against Papuans in international forums. "That surely humiliated the country as a sovereign state that is committed to supporting human rights," he said.

US President Barack Obama said in a speech during his recent visit to Indonesia that all citizens, including Papuans, deserved the same rights.

The Indonesian representative for the Southeast Asia Human Rights Commission Refendi Djamin agreed that the country was pressured diplomatically because of the issue.

"As long as the government does not have a good policy for handling domestic affairs, our diplomats will never have a good position in their diplomatic efforts," Refendi said.

Although violence against Papuans still occurs, he praised ruling governments in the reformation period for leaving behind the culture of denial. Rafendi said the government should be focusing on guaranteeing at least the two most basic rights, freedom from fear and freedom to be a political entity, instead of recklessly building infrastructure in the name of Papuan welfare.

Home Affairs Ministry director general of regional autonomy Djohermansyah Djohan said the government was currently preparing a new plan to guard special status so it would benefit Papuans.

"We are planning to establish a special agency to handle and observe the implementation because now we have different agencies handling the matter, which makes everything more confused and complicated," he said.

He said the plan included the stipulation that the special agency would be led by someone in authority like the Vice President, so the agency would have greater legitimacy. (rch)