Oceania

West Papuan Dancers Highlight Indonesian Human Rights Violations

By Hayley J. Campbell
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Officer, Oceania

MANOKWARI, West Papua – A dance troop from West Papua performed at Stonehenge in Britain to draw attention to the human rights violations in the Papua region.

The British Council of Druids invited the Mambesak troupe and a West Papuan activist, Benny Wenda, to partake in the Summer Solstice celebrations. The celebration attracted a record breaking 36,500 people.

The Mambesak troupe consists of four semi-nude dancers, who according to the Times Online, danced through the night and ended with a performance at sunrise. The West Papuan dancers came to Britain to highlight what they believe is the Indonesian government’s history of persecuting people from the Papua region and denying them their independance.

Rollo Maughfling, head of the British Council of Druids Archdruid, spoke to the crowds at Stonehenge, informing them of Papua’s history of human rights violations and encouraging listeners to actively support West Papuan efforts in gaining independence from Indonesia.

Separatist protests and demonstrations for independence have long marked Papua’s history. Once a Dutch colony on New Guinea’s western end, Papua became Indonesia’s largest province in 1969. Violence erupted in 2003 after President Megawati Sukarnoputri separated Papua into three provinces: Central Irian Jaya (Irian Jaya Tengah), Papua (or East Irian Jaya, Irian Jaya Timur), and West Irian Jaya (Irian Jaya Barat).

For more information, please see:
Radio New Zealand International – West Papuans push their cause at Stonehenge event–  22 June 2009

Radio New Zealand International – 11 Papuans jailed in Indonesia for separatist activities – 09 January 2009

Indonesian Government Delays Release of Five Detained Australians Till Next Week

By Hayley J. Campbell
Impunity Watch Senior Desk Officer, Oceania

JAKARTA, Indonesia – A supporter of the five Australians being detained in Papua for the last nine months, says the Indonesian government is delaying their release until next week.

The “Merauke Five,” as the five Australian detainees have been called, were arrested last September after they were caught flying their small aircraft over Papua without the requisite visas or flight clearance.

The Five were expected to be released over the weekend, but their lawyers fear that the Indonesian government may raise “further hurdles” before granting their release.

“There was a belief that the Indonesian government might not sign off on the Supreme Court decision, that they might not allow them to leave but I think that was more a misunderstanding. That seems to have been cleared. The pilot, (William) Scott-Bloxham, has taken the plane up for a test run for about fifteen minutes yesterday and that was fine. The plane’s ready to go. They’re ready to go. They’re just nervous about something going wrong,” Mark Bousen, editor of Torres Strait News, said.

Bousen said, however, that despite the delay, the Indonesian government is eager to release the five Australians, and put the matter behind them.

“A lot of the paperwork has been cleared now. They’re just waiting on the odd bit now. It seems that everyone’s been very co-operative: the Indonesian officials, the Australian bureaucracy at long last seem to be very proactive – they are very keen to have this case resolved and there seems to be a sense of co-operation between the two governments to have the five home as soon as possible,” Bousen said.

Bousen expects that the Five will be released by Monday.

For more information, please see:
Radio New Zealand International – Supporters of five Australians in Papua fear hurdles will delay return home – 19 June 2009

Radio New Zealand International – Australians’ release from Papua delayed until next week – 19 June 2009

International Community Urged To Return Fiji To Democracy

By Angela Marie Watkins
Impunity Watch Reporter, Oceania

SUVA, Fiji – Australia and New Zealand on Thursday urged China and the rest of the international community to back efforts to return Fiji to democracy and renewed demands that the United Nations stop using Fijian troops for peacekeeping duties, more than two years after a military coup in the South Pacific nation.

Fiji has up to 2,000 troops on peacekeeping duties with U.N. security forces around the world, including Iraq, Lebanon and East Timor. The UN decided last year not to use Fijian peacekeepers for any new missions but it has continued to deploy those already engaged.

Fiji’s military regime “has gained comfort and considerable amounts of cash from those ongoing peacekeeping activities,” said New Zealand’s Foreign Minister, Murray McCully.

McCully said the U.N.’s use of Fiji troops was “particularly unhelpful” to the international community, given former U.N. Secretary-General Kofi Annan’s warning to Fiji in 2006 that its peacekeepers would be “sent home” if the 2006 coup led by Commodore Frank Bainimarama proceeded.

Since 2006, Bainimarama has suspended the constitution, detained opponents, delayed elections to 2014, suppressed freedom of speech, and required lawyers to get new licenses to practice under his administration.

The military regime has previously stated that Fiji’s soldiers would continue with U.N. peacekeeping duties because the U.N. hadn’t stopped peacekeeping participation by countries like Pakistan and Zimbabwe.

Fiji has also recently received support from China, who has extended its influence into the Pacific with various forms of aid, including money for infrastructure projects. Last month a new bridge was opened in Fiji, funded and built by China.

“We’ve been urging all members of the international community that, if they are having contact with Fiji, that they should certainly make the point that the international community wants to see Fiji return to democracy,” said Australian Foreign Minister Stephen Smith.

For more information, please see:
BBC – China support for Fiji questioned – 19 June 2009

The Sydney Morning Herald – Aust/NZ FMs criticise UN over Fiji – 19 June 2009

Taiwan News – Australia, NZ want UN to stop using Fiji troops – 19 June 2009

Pacific Countries Discuss Women’s Issues

By Angela Marie Watkins
Impunity Watch Reporter, Oceania

SUVA, Fiji – Among pleas for gender equality and maternity pay, a workshop on violence against women has sparked calls for legislation encompassing all abuse against women.

The Fiji Women’s Crisis Center hosted the Pacific Regional Meeting on Violence Against Women in Fiji last week with 60 attendees from 11 Pacific countries.

Edwina Kotoisuva, the Deputy Coordinator of the Center, said most organizations at the workshop are strengthening relations with their respective governments to pursue a reform in their laws.

“What we’re hoping to do is that countries look into having overarching violence against women legislation so it includes domestic violence, sexual assault and then can take into account emerging issues that have come through in the Pacific, such as trafficking, which is a cause for concern for some of our Pacific countries,” said Kotoisuva.

During the meeting, the Fiji Women’s Crisis Center also argued for legislation recognizing that maternity leave and pay is a woman’s right and should not be seen as a burden by employers.

Stephen Fisher, an advocate with the Chisholm Institute in Melbourne, spoke at the meeting and argued that a gender-imbalanced society will breed violence, but it can be eliminated when men listen more to women and help them with housework, raising children, cooking and cleaning.

Fisher also stated that he felt much progress was made at the meeting.

For more information, please see:/em>
New Zealand International Radio – Regional conference hears plea for gender equality – 16 June 2009

New Zealand International Radio – Workshop calls for laws to halt abuse of women – 16 June 2009

Fiji Times – Maternity pay is a woman’s right -16 June 2009

Freedom For “Merauke Five” Delayed

By Angela Marie Watkins
Impunity Watch Reporter, Oceania

JAKARTA, Indonesia – Prosecutors are continuing to hinder the release of five Australians detained in Papua for the past nine months, even though Indonesia’s Supreme Court has cleared them of wrongdoing, the group’s lawyer says.

The so-called “Merauke Five” were arrested last September for flying their small aircraft into Papua without visas or flight clearance.

On Wednesday, Merauke District Court officials received from Jakarta the paperwork that will enable them to return the five Australians’ passports and let the pilot, William Scott-Bloxam, fire up his twin-engined aircraft. However, the group’s lawyer, Mohammad Rifan, says he fears prosecutors may yet raise further hurdles.

“They still have not lifted the ban that prevents them leaving. They say they have to ask the attorney-general’s office for guidance to do this,” said Rifan. “But it seems like there is an effort from prosecutors to hinder the process.”

Earlier, Scott-Bloxham had been given a three year jail term and each of his passengers two-year terms, but their convictions were overturned in March. However, before they could get out of Indonesia, they were banned from leaving while prosecutors appealed to the Supreme Court.

Lawyer Efrem Fangohoy said he expected the bureaucratic process could still have them on the ground in Papua until the end of this week.

For more information, please see:
The Sydney Morning Herald – Australians delayed from leaving Papua – 17 June 2009

The Australian –  Australians detained in Indonesia closer to freedom – 17 June 2009

New Zealand International Radio – “Merauke Five” could still be hindered from returning to Australia – 17 June 2009