Friski Riana, Jakarta – Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Mahfud Md said the government was preparing a legal instrument related to the handling of Papua.

"[We are] preparing a presidential instruction or Inpres on more comprehensive handling of Papua," said Mahfud in his office, Jakarta on Tuesday, February 25.

Mahfud elaborated that the Inpres being drafted was a follow-up of Presidential Instruction No. 9/2017 concerning the acceleration of social welfare development in the provinces of Papua and West Papua, which was only valid until 2019.

"[We] want to renew it so that coordination [between state institutions] will be more integrated and on the right track," he added.

In the new draft of the Inpres, the team of the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) specifically overseeing economic development and social welfare in the country's easternmost province will be merged with the defense and security team of the Coordinating Ministry for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs. The joint team will be under the Bappenas command.

According to Mahfud, such a policy would allow the handling of Papua to be more integrated so that the conflicts will be settled more comprehensively, and the government would not seem to apply a security or military approach.

"Conflicts in Papua must be resolved seriously and in an integrated manner. We have been serious so far, but the organization units are separated," Mahfud Md concluded.

Source: https://en.tempo.co/read/1312162/mahfud-md-govt-preps-new-presidential-instruction-on-papua