West Papua: Indonesia’s last regional conflict

Richard Chauvel

Small Wars and Insurgencies, 2021, vol. 32, issue 6, 913-944

Abstract: This article explores three interrelated components of the independence movement in Papua – armed resistance, political struggle, and international lobbying. As an insurgency, the armed resistance in Papua is local, sporadic and does not threaten Indonesian control. Indonesia’s predominantly military response to both armed and peaceful resistance has given violence a greater significance in the Papua conflict than the capacity of the armed resistance groups would suggest. The significant Indonesian military deployment and the associated human rights abuses have provided ammunition for pro-independence international lobbying. Notwithstanding a highly constrained political environment, activists continue to demonstrate after nearly 6 decades of Indonesian rule the capacity to mobilise support for independence harnessing issues such as racism. The article examines the Government’s dilemma that the means it has chosen to sustain its authority – an overwhelming military superiority – is one of the factors that fuels Papuan support for independence. What form of governance is possible in democratic Indonesia, when a portion of Papuan society does not consent to Indonesian rule?

Date: 2021
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DOI: 10.1080/09592318.2021.1990491

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