Source: Bintang Papua
Translated by Carmel Budiardjo

Manokwari: Yan Christian Warinussy, the Executive Director of the human rights organisation, LP3BH, had concluded, after studying important documents at the Secretariat of the United Nations in relation to the Act of Free Choice, that the political status of West Papua is not yet final. He also said that it would be possible to challenge West Papua’s political status with the use of legal mechanisms.

‘The UN Secretary-General, Ban Ki-Moon himself made a concrete suggestion regarding this during a public meeting in Auckland, New Zealand, on 7 September 2011. On that occasion, he said that the issue of West Papua needs to be discussed by the UN Human Rights Council which is based in Switzerland, and by the UN Decolonisation Commssion under the UN General Assembly in New York,’ he said yesterday.

‘It is essential to test the political status of West Papua by a legal mechanism within the framework of the UN so that West Papua’s political status can be confirmed.

‘Has the UN ever issued an official opinion that is legally binding regarding the political status of West Papua or would a UN opinion not be legally binding?’

He said that in view of this, it is very important indeed for a number of measures to be taken by Papua’s political elite to bring this issue before a legal mechanism within the United Nations.

‘I believe that there are a number of official documents which are open to the public and which can be accessed, in order to make use of these legal mechanisms.’

[Translated by Carmel Budiardjo. As I recollect, the UN Secretary General at the time merely stated that the results of the Act of Free Choice ‘had been noted’ which does not sound like confirmation of the results of that so-called Act of Free Choice.]