Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – The Papua People's Council (MRP) proposed two ordinances in this week's plenary session to strengthen indigenous Papuans' basic rights and the principal of indigenous Papuan cultural unity, which have come under pressure from Papua's rapid economic progress and its open stance towards migrants.
MRP vice chairman Hana Hikoyabi said the decisions MRP made disapproved of Papuans being segregated into tribes or areas of administration.
"For example, don't treat a job seeker from Biak as an outsider, but as a native Papuan," said Hana. "As there is now an equal number of migrants and native people, regulations are needed to protect the culture and traditions of native Papuans."
Frans Wospakrik, another MRP vice chairman, said the MRP's decision was taken to prevent tension from rising between Papuans.
The big island of Papua, said Wospakrik, was not deserted, but inhabited by Papuans, so those living in Papua ought to respect the existence of Papuans, or owners of the island. "If the existence of Papuans is recognized, Papuans will feel at ease living in Indonesia," said Wospakrik.
The categorization of native Papuans along tribal lines, a phenomenon that occurred with the introduction of the 2001 special autonomy law, is a growing concern for native Papuans who do not belong to their regency's dominating tribe, as they end up being treated as migrants in their own regency.
"This phenomenon grew during the special autonomy era. It is easily noticeable as each regency was made to correspond to a particular tribe," Papua People's Council (MRP) head Agus Alue Alua said. As a consequence, those who do not belong to a tribe – regardless of whether they are Papuans – are not considered as natives from that particular area and are therefore not accepted there.
Alua said the selection process for civil servants in particular regencies – especially in the newly established ones – prioritized applicants that were natives from those particular regencies, over native Papuans originating from other regencies, who were considered migrants.
"This is actually strange because people who come from outside Papua could surprisingly be accepted as employees. Isn't that segregation?" he asked.
Alua expressed concern such a phenomenon threatened the province's unity. "If nothing is done about it, I am afraid it will lead to conflict among Papuans," he said.
The MRP also recommended teaching children about local culture and tradition at school.
The MRP decisions will be immediately handed over to the provincial, regency and mayoralty administrations in Papua so they can be enacted as ordinances and implemented.