Letter from the Campeace Re: the Act of Free Choice

Dear Mr Downer,

A recent article in the Sydney Morning Herald (November 14, 2000) has quoted you as saying with reference to the 1969 "Act of Free Choice" that "We don't think there's any value in unravelling that [vote] and exacerbating the situation in Irian Jaya,"

We welcome your concerns for peace in Indonesia. However, one would like to see that a time comes when human rights are respected in Indonesia. Without this there cannot be peace or political stability in the country. There is immense value in unravelling what happened in West Papua in 1969, first for the people whose rights have been denied for 38 years and secondly for the international community as a whole, bound by international law to respect such rights.

The Indonesian government undertook in 1962 with the New York Agreement to carry out an act of self-determination in West Papua. Article 18 of the Agreement guaranteed the rights of all adult Papuans to participate in an act of self-determination to be carried out in accordance with international practice. The Indonesian government has still an obligation to carry out that act of self-determination. It is simply unreasonable and dishonourable to consider the blackmail of a few Papuans by former dictator Suharto as an act of self-determination. It is hardly surprising that by Papuan accounts those few men who took part in the 1969 "Act of Free Choice", later rescinded their so-called votes. One of them was Theys Eluay, the present Chairman of the Papuan Presidium Council. That cold war pressures caused the UN to turn a blind eye to this injustice, to deliver an entire people to one of the most repressive regimes of our times, has been the greatest stigma in the history of that organisation. This cannot continue and present governments cannot be allowed to perpetuate this injustice, especially in view of the continuing repression in West Papua and other Indonesian provinces.

Neither is the history very different from that of East Timor either, as both countries were invaded after moves from their former colonial rulers to grant them independence. West Papua had already been granted a constitution, flag and national anthem when the Indonesian army invaded the country.

The United Nations "took note" with Resolution 2504 that an act of free choice had taken place, but not according to international practice, only according to Indonesian practice. The practice of former dictator Suharto is well known and hardly merits a defence from your office.

Yours respectfully,

Nicholas Angelopoulos
Cambridge Campaign for Peace (CamPeace) UK