Thousands of people in Papua staged coordinated rallies Tuesday in a show of support for the conference of International Lawyers for West Papua (ILWP) in London to pursue a referendum for independence.

An estimated 2,000 people representing the West Papua National Committee (KNPB) rallied peacefully in Jayapura, marching from the Expo Waena area to the Papua Regional Representatives Council (DPRD) building while shouting “Free Papua” and “Referendum Yes”.

Timika Square in Mimika also saw thousands of people gathering to show their support for the ILWP, which demanded a legal review of the so-called Act of Free Choice in 1969 that led to Papua’s union with Indonesia.

The ILWP argues that the 1969 referendum, albeit supervised by the UN, was flawed because it relied on the consensus of “elders”, who did not represent the nationalist movement in Papua.

Rallies also took place in Biak Island and in Jakarta, where hundreds of people gathered at the state palace.

“The demonstrations aim to show the truth and historical facts of Papua to Indonesians and all nations. We want Papuans to have the right of self-determination through a democratic way recognized by international law, a referendum,” Mako Tabuni, the rally coordinator from KNPB, said in Jayapura.

In a release available on the ILWP website, the conference will be attended by Papuan independence leaders, international lawyers, parliamentarians and NGOs. The conference, titled “West Papua — The Road to Freedom”, took place on Tuesday at 2 p.m. London time (8 p.m. in Jakarta).

The Indonesian government played down the significance of the rallies and the conference.

Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa, who was formerly Indonesian ambassador to the UK, said the movement for a free Papua did not have the support of the British people or the government.

“There are people who want to revive the problem. However, the British government always underlines its policy of supporting Indonesia and the special autonomy in Papua,” Marty said Tuesday.

Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Djoko Suyanto echoed the sentiments.

“Papua is part of the republic. We have to keep it,” Djoko was quoted as saying by Antara news agency.

Ramses Ohee, a community leader during the 1969 vote, said there was no need to question the validity of Papua’s union with Indonesia. He called on the “young generation to think of how to develop Papua”.

“Do not ruin what the older generation has built. Let’s talk about the things we haven’t achieved yet: education, health, economy and other things we all need,” Ramses said.

A comprehensive study released in June by human rights group Imparsial concluded that the provinces of Papua and West Papua had seen very little improvement in security after the region became integrated as a part of Indonesia under the Act of Free Choice.

The Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) said the government had to evaluate its military operations in Papua. (rcf)