Comments on: Indonesian incursions: accident or design? http://themelanesian.org/2008/08/03/indonesian-incursions-accident-or-design/ a community of critics committed to putting people first Wed, 28 Sep 2011 00:59:34 +0000 hourly 1 http://wordpress.org/?v=3.3 By: Dorothy Tekwie http://themelanesian.org/2008/08/03/indonesian-incursions-accident-or-design/comment-page-1/#comment-25 Dorothy Tekwie Fri, 15 Aug 2008 18:29:02 +0000 http://themelanesian.org/?p=16#comment-25 Invasion and intimidation of PNG's citizens along the common border has been taking for the last 40 years and the only action our Government have taken is to send a diplomatic note to complain about these incursions. What can PNG do as a small army ill equiped to handle such matters?. The people along the west coast of Vanimo, especially people of Wutung the village on PNG side of the border have always lived in fear of been raided, kidnapped, murdered and harassed by the Indonesia's military of Asian origin. I am a third generation decendent of a woman from Skow a Melanesian villages just on the other side of the Tami River a few kms from Wutung. I come from Lido village next to Vanimo town and grew up during the early 60s to 70s living with fear that our town and villages would be raided by the "Javanese army" and our people mistreated like our Melanesian relatives on the other side of the border. While I don't think Indonesian will try a West Papua or Leste Timores type of invasion of PNG at this time, the Indonesian military will continue to invade our country and intimidate our people along the border as long as there is no strong Government presence and develoment of the border region from Western to Sandaun Provinces. Then there are other forms of invasions that 'intimidates' the border people an will have term effects on PNG. The social, economic and political influences brought on by the opening of the border to local traders at Wutung/Batas means lot more than just "strenghtening of relations between our people'. While the economic benefits to the border people are good for them in certain ways, PNG citizens in these five west coast villages are not only mingling with our people on the other side of the border, they are speaking Bahasa Indonesia, cooking and eating Indonesian food and buy the cheaper goods and services that Indonesians provide via Jayapura and Batas. PNG shoppers travel from as far as Wewak, Madang and Hagen to shop at Jayapura. There have been cases of illegal trading of petrol and kerosen, allegations of arms. porn and drug smuggling and growning business of prostitution by PNG citizens visiting Jayapura. There are no proper policies and measures in place for monitoring and control of disease and pests invasion. Many of our local plants, flowers and crops have been destroyed or replaced with Indonesian variaties. There is no awareness on dangers of the loss of our crops and biodiversity through introduction of pests and plant diseases from Java, Bali and other Indonesian provinces to Wes Papua and through to PNG via Jayapura. In other words, invasion of PNG is not only a military issue but a bigger national concern that is going a little out of control. Invasion and intimidation of PNG’s citizens along the common border has been taking for the last 40 years and the only action our Government have taken is to send a diplomatic note to complain about these incursions. What can PNG do as a small army ill equiped to handle such matters?.

The people along the west coast of Vanimo, especially people of Wutung the village on PNG side of the border have always lived in fear of been raided, kidnapped, murdered and harassed by the Indonesia’s military of Asian origin.

I am a third generation decendent of a woman from Skow a Melanesian villages just on the other side of the Tami River a few kms from Wutung. I come from Lido village next to Vanimo town and grew up during the early 60s to 70s living with fear that our town and villages would be raided by the “Javanese army” and our people mistreated like our Melanesian relatives on the other side of the border.

While I don’t think Indonesian will try a West Papua or Leste Timores type of invasion of PNG at this time, the Indonesian military will continue to invade our country and intimidate our people along the border as long as there is no strong Government presence and develoment of the border region from Western to Sandaun Provinces.

Then there are other forms of invasions that ‘intimidates’ the border people an will have term effects on PNG. The social, economic and political influences brought on by the opening of the border to local traders at Wutung/Batas means lot more than just “strenghtening of relations between our people’.

While the economic benefits to the border people are good for them in certain ways, PNG citizens in these five west coast villages are not only mingling with our people on the other side of the border, they are speaking Bahasa Indonesia, cooking and eating Indonesian food and buy the cheaper goods and services that Indonesians provide via Jayapura and Batas. PNG shoppers travel from as far as Wewak, Madang and Hagen to shop at Jayapura.

There have been cases of illegal trading of petrol and kerosen, allegations of arms. porn and drug smuggling and growning business of prostitution by PNG citizens visiting Jayapura. There are no proper policies and measures in place for monitoring and control of disease and pests invasion.

Many of our local plants, flowers and crops have been destroyed or replaced with Indonesian variaties. There is no awareness on dangers of the loss of our crops and biodiversity through introduction of pests and plant diseases from Java, Bali and other Indonesian provinces to Wes Papua and through to PNG via Jayapura.

In other words, invasion of PNG is not only a military issue but a bigger national concern that is going a little out of control.

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