About West Papua: The History

Traders, however, visited the flatter coastal regions of Irian Jaya, as early as the 7th century from Sriwijaya. European traders began arriving in the early 16th century, looking for spices and have left historical footprints in the area with names such as Bougainville, Cape D'Urville and the Torres Straits, named after Luis Baez de Torres, a Spanish navigator from the early 17th. It was the Dutch who made the most lasting impact on the island, who in 1828, formally made Irian a Dutch Territory which was not released until 1962.

Irian Jaya became part of the Dutch East Indies in 1828 as Western New Guinea, and later became known as Irian Barat. It was retained by the Netherlands after Indonesian independence in 1949 but, after an internationally unrecognized declaration of independence was issued in 1961, it was placed under United Nations (UN) administration in 1962. It was transferred to Indonesia in 1963. As agreed with the UN, a referendum on Irian Barat's future was held in 1969 and it decided to remain part of Indonesia, becoming the province of Irian Jaya. Since then, opposition to Indonesian rule and the fight for independence has been led by the Organization Papua Merdeka (OPM; Free Papua Movement), led by Theys Eluay; the Papuan Taskforce, a pro-independence civil guard; and the Papua Presidium, which favors achieving independence through negotiation with the Indonesian government.

West Irian Jaya covers the Bird's Head Peninsula (Jazirah Doberai) and surrounding islands. West Irian Jaya was created from the western Papua province portion in February 2003. The split remains controversial. Supporters, including those in the central government in Jakarta and immigrants to Papua from elsewhere in Indonesia, argue that the creation of new province will help ensure the efficient management of resources and fair distribution of services. The split is widely opposed in Papua itself, where it is viewed as a violation of special autonomy laws governing Papua, and as an effort to quell the Papuan separatist movement.

In November 2004, an Indonesian court agreed that the split violated Papua's autonomy laws. However, the court ruled that because the new province had already been created, it should remain separate from Papua. The ruling also prohibited the creation of another proposed province, Central Irian Jaya, because the split was not yet completed.

Source:www.indonesia-tourism.com

Read more ... Read more...

About West Papua (West Irian Jaya)

WEST IRIAN JAYA

Irian Jaya is a tropical island with primeval rain forests, powerful rivers, beautiful beaches, lakes, and mountains. The highest mountain is Mount Jayawijaya, with snowcaps covering its 5,000-meter-high peaks. The area is also rich in natural resources, including fish, timber, and precious metals. These, however ever, have become a source of conflict between the central government and local peoples.

West Irian Jaya is a hot, humid island rising from the sea with some of the most impenetrable jungles in the world and yet also has snowcaps covering 5,000meter - High Mountain peaks, towering over glacier lakes. West Irian Jaya is Indonesia's largest and easternmost province and covers the western half of the world's second largest island. It is a land of exceptional natural grandeur, with beautiful scenic beaches, immense stretches of marshlands, cool grassy meadows and powerful rivers carving gorges and tunnels through dark and dense primeval forests. The most heavily populated and cultivated parts of the island are the Paniai Lakes district and the Baliem Valley to the east.

The people of the island can be divided into more than 250 subgroup, which are closely related to the islands along the southern rim of the Pacific and include among others, the Marindanim, Yah'ray, Asmat, Mandobo, Dani and Afyat. Those in the central highlands still maintain their customs and traditions and because of the terrain have virtually been untouched by outside influences. Communications hove always been difficult here and different tribes have lived, for the most part, in isolation even of each other, resulting in an incredibly diverse mixture of cultures.

POPULATION

The province has a population of approximately 800,000, making it one of the least populous of all Indonesian provinces. The capital of Irian Jaya Barat is Manokwari. The most populated and cultivated parts of the island are Paniai Lake district and Baliem Valley to the east. The population comprises migrants from Java and indigenous people from diverse tribes, such as Dani of Baliem Valley in the central highlands, Asmat of the southern coastal region, and Ekari of Wissel Lakes region. The official language is Indonesian, but the indigenous people, reflecting the isolation and small numbers of the tribes, speak at least 250 languages.

GOVERNMENT ADMINISTRATION

The province contains one city, Sorong, and 8 regencies:

• Manokwari
• Fak Fak
• Sorong Selatan with its capital is Teminabuan
• Raja Ampat with its capital is Waisai
• Kaimana
• Bintuni Bay with its capital is Bintuni
• Wondama Bay with its capital is Rasiei
• Sorong Regency
• Sorong city

Read more ... Read more...