View source for Papuans Rally For Independence From Indonesia As Group Declares...

<br>By Agustinus Beo Da Costa<br> <br>JAKARTA, Dec 1 (Reuters) - Hundreds of Papuans held rallies across at least eight cities in Indonesia on Tuesday to renew calls for independence, as a separatist group declared it had established a provisional government in exile.<br> <br>The demonstrations marked the anniversary of West Papua declaring independence from Dutch rule in 1961, which was followed by a contentious U.N.-sanctioned referendum in 1969 that brought Papua under [http://www.ourmidland.com/search/?q=Indonesian Indonesian] control.<br> <br>Among more than 100 students who marched in the capital Jakarta, Papuan Roland Levy said the date remained significant decades on.<br> <br>"My goal in joining the rally today is to commemorate 59 years of the proclamation of independence of the West Papuan nation that was annexed by Indonesia," he told Reuters,  [https://www.kynghidongduong.vn/blog/du-lich-bali-tuyet-voi-nhu-the-nao.html du lịch ba li] as demonstrators waved banners calling for the right to self-determination.<br> <br>Some Papuans regard the 1969 plebiscite as unfair and say intimidation was used to influence the outcome, which Jakarta has rejected.<br> <br>The protests coincided with a declaration from the United Liberation Movement for West Papua that a provisional "government-in-waiting" had been formed, led by exiled independence figure, Benny Wenda.<br> <br>Britain-based Wenda said the group would push for independence and no longer "bow down to Jakarta's illegal martial rule".<br> <br>Teuku Faizasyah, a spokesman for  [https://www.kynghidongduong.vn/blog/du-lich-bali-tuyet-voi-nhu-the-nao.html kynghidongduong.vn] the Indonesian foreign ministry, paid little heed to what he described as "Mr. Wenda's self-proclaimed status".<br> <br>"The status of Papua as part of Indonesia, the successor state of the Netherlands (Dutch) East Indies, is final," he said, referring to the former colonial power.<br> <br>He said the integration process was supervised by the United Nations and included the adoption of a resolution.<br> <br>Papua has been plagued by separatist conflict for decades and access for foreign journalists is often restricted.<br> <br>In the past year there have been sporadic and deadly attacks involving security forces and indigenous Papuans, including the killing of several Papuan minors and a pastor in recent months.<br> <br>The United Nations human rights body on Monday expressed concern over reports of [http://imgur.com/hot?q=extrajudicial%20killings extrajudicial killings] and escalating violence in the region. (Additional reporting by Stanley Widianto; Writing by Kate Lamb; Editing by Martin Petty)<br>