Second Chamber urges cabinet to take up cause Papua

THE HAGUE - A motion by the Geert Wilders’ PVV to take up the cause of the Papuans, who struggle for independence from Indonesia, received majority support in the Second Chamber recently. PVV’er Wim Kortenoeven asked Foreign Affairs Minister Uri Rosenthal to press upon the Indonesian government to stop using violence to suppress the Papuan separatist movement. At the very least, Dutch diplomats were urged to attend the reading of Papua’s Declaration of Independence in West Papua. Kortenoeven wore a badge with the Morning Star flag on his lapel. The Morning Star flag was a gift from the Netherlands in 1961 to the Papuans to support their struggle for independence. After losing a campaign against Indonesia, the Netherlands turned the colony of West New Guinea over to UN in 1962, on the condition that the population would be allowed to hold a referendum to decide on their independence. In 1969 the UN, supported by the U.S., consulted a number of Papuan leaders. According to Kortenoeven they chose to become an Indonesian colony in exchange for bribes and false promises. Since then, the Indonesian military has cracked down hard on Papuans who strive towards self-determination.