Pacific Civil Society Organisations (CSOs) have called on incoming Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) Chair and Solomon Islands Prime Minister, Jeremiah Manele, to honour past commitments on West Papua.
In an open letter addressed to Prime Minister Manele, PIF leaders, Secretary-General Baron Waqa, CROP agencies, and United Nations human rights bodies, the CSOs urged Indonesia to demonstrate accountability by granting “immediate and unrestricted access” to West Papua for independent observers, including the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights.
“From the 31st Pacific Islands Leaders Forum in Tarawa in 2000, to the 50th Forum in Tuvalu in 2019, and across MSG Summits from 2014 to 2025, Pacific leaders have consistently adopted resolutions expressing grave concern over the escalating crisis in West Papua,” the letter stated.
CSOs noted that Forum communiqués have repeatedly acknowledged the root causes of conflict, ongoing state violence, and deteriorating human rights conditions in the territory. They reminded leaders that commitments had been made to send a fact-finding mission and to engage Indonesia in meaningful dialogue.
“One of the region’s clearest and most consistent calls has been for the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to be granted unimpeded access to West Papua, a call echoed again at the 2023 MSG Summit,” the CSOs said.
In support of this, Fiji and Papua New Guinea Prime Ministers were appointed as Special Envoys to engage Indonesia.
But their mandate expired in November 2023 without results, and neither has visited West Papua.
The CSOs also warned that while Indonesia has deepened ties with the region—through MSG associate membership, PIF dialogue partner status, and bilateral agreements—Pacific leaders must use these relationships to assert moral authority rather than shy away from the issue.
“The 2024 Forum Communique merely noted the envoys’ report from their visit to Jakarta. This muted response, while a resurgent humanitarian crisis deepens, sends a troubling message to those on the ground: their suffering is being acknowledged, but not acted upon,” the letter said.
Describing West Papua as a “Pacific crisis” and part of the “soul of the region,” the CSOs accused leaders of showing insufficient urgency and solidarity.
“How can we claim a vision of a peaceful, people-centred Blue Pacific while turning away from the crisis of our own people in pain? Now is the time for courage, for unity, for decisive leadership,” they said.
PIF Secretary-General Waqa confirmed that leaders will discuss the issue this week, describing it as a “very important and sensitive matter” requiring careful attention.
By EDDIE OSIFELO
Solomon Star, Honiara
