Agus Triyono & Markus Junianto Sihaloho – While experts and activists agree that mutual dialogue is the only way to solve problems of growing separatist sentiment and lack of economic development in Papua, finding the right people to talk to is a different matter altogether.

Farid Hussein of the Unit for the Acceleration of Development in Papua and West Papua (UP4B) said on Wednesday that with hundreds of tribes and political elites, finding a unifying figure who could speak on behalf of all Papuans was nearly impossible.

The unit, he said, is mapping out the various leaders in Papua, with whom the government will stage discussions.

"The mapping is done to get figures who can truly represent Papuan people and communities, whose voice can immediately be heard and implemented by people there," he said. "And there are a lot of figures there."

Farid, who previously negotiated with rebels in Aceh, said the mapping could take some time.

"Based on my experience in Aceh, the mapping could take two years," he said. "But it could be less or even more than that." The UP4B, he said, will try to accommodate different groups in Papua, including armed rebel group the Free Papua Organization (OPM).

Rev. Socratez Sofyan Yoman, a Papuan religious leader, said in a hearing at the House of Representatives that Papuans could not afford to wait out a lengthy mapping process, stressing that dialogue must be conducted immediately.

"This is about a mutual and dignified dialogue," he said. "Papuan problems are not those concerning welfare. Papuans are not poor, they are not hungry, so stop these demeaning statements. Just go to each district and listen to the people there one by one, listen to what they want. Just listen with your own ears."

The National Commission for Human Rights (Komnas HAM) called on the government to reorganize the security forces' presence in Papua. "We don't need units like Brimob [the police Mobile Brigade] or Densus 88 [antiterror unit] to uphold the law there," said Komnas HAM chairman Ifdhal Kasim.

Muridan Satrio Widjojo, a senior researcher at the Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), said the overwhelming number of security forces in Papua and West Papua had created a vicious cycle of violence there. "You cannot break the cycle [of violence] by deploying more troops and conducting more military operations," he said.

Police and the military have been accused of torturing and abusing the human rights of unarmed Papuans as well as enjoying impunity under the excuse that they are fighting a rebel movement in the province.

Sayid Fadhal Al Hamid of the Papuan Customary Council (DAP) said that military officers from Jakarta always stigmatized Papuans as "curly-haired men who cause trouble". "The military must commit itself," he said. "Stay out of the dialogue. Don't do anything that can destroy the peace process."

[Additional reporting from Antara.]