By Anita Roberts in Port Vila

The Penama Provincial Disaster and Climate Change Committee is facing a number of challenges in its efforts to help the volcano eruption evacuees on Ambae.

This includes overcrowding and unsanitary evacuation centers, the possibility of contaminated water and not enough food.

The evacuation centers are overcrowded but more evacuees are still arriving.

“There is a need to set up more evacuation centers and provide tents,” a member of the Disaster Working Group at Saratamata on Ambae, Augustine Garae, from Red Cross Vanuatu (RCV) told the Vanuatu Daily Post.

According to the National Disaster Management Office (NDMO), 35 evacuation centers have been set up — 12 in the west and 21 in the east.

Garae stressed concerns about inadequate shelter and overcrowding, causing health problems to thousands who had been forced to flee their homes and were now living together.

“The number of evacuees is expected to rise, making facilities at the evacuation centers as proper toilets and sanitation not enough for everyone to access,” said.

Most evacuated
“There would not be enough space to move around. The majority of villagers have been evacuated.”

NDMO reported that by Tuesday, approximately 6800 people were recorded to be in evacuation with an additional 900 yet to be relocated.

Some people are seeking shelter with families, outside these facilities while a small number have voluntarily moved to Maewo.

Apart from shelter, NDMO has also confirmed ongoing challenges with water and food security on Ambae.

Immediate food needs are being met by provincial authorities and local shops. Water crisis, on the other hand, is already common on west Ambae where volcanic ash fall is regular.

With the situation on Ambae, water is the critical issue as recent dry weather means islands are already facing water shortage, said a Disaster and Natural Hazards Expert attached with RCV, Luke Johnston.

“The people may be displaced for a long period, as these type of eruptions can go on indefinitely. In the 2005 event, people were displaced for three months,” he said.

Water solutions
“RCV is activating an internal international emergency appeal, and is looking at longer term water solutions as well as sending 250 water containers to Ambae.”

The water containers were transported by the patrol boat RVS Tukoro, which left Port Vila last night with shelter equipment and Red Cross Officers who will be conducting hygiene education and awareness in evacuation centers.

The Tukoro will also be delivering donated items from the Port Vila Ambae community, including from Vanuatu Mobile Force personnel.

Further shipments by national authorities are planned for the coming days.

Meanwhile, the Sanma Provincial Disaster and Climate Change Committee have met yesterday to discuss planning in the event of evacuations from Ambae to Sanma.

Anita Roberts is a Vanuatu Daily Post reporter. Daily Post articles are republished in Asia Pacific Report with permission.

By Bob Makin in Port Vila

The Vanuatu government’s Council of Ministers has declared a state of emergency on Ambae island, allowing public funds to be released for the emergency response to the eruption of Manaro Voui volcano.

The Vanuatu Daily Post reports the government has released Vt200 million (NZ$2.6 million) for the emergency.

A new cinder cone and magma lake has formed the volcano, precipitously close to the freshwater lake surrounding it.

The presence of water means that any eruption could potentially be more explosive.

Evacuations are still proceeding on Ambae, and the Penama provincial government says it has now moved all the people in the south of the island to the north.

The most pressing need now with the significant number of arrivals is food and water, as Penama province’s Assistant Secretary-General Ure has noted today.

Some 36 schools have also been closed on the island.

Checks are also proceeding to ensure no one has been missed in the evacuation.

The director of the National Disaster Management Office is on Ambae today to assess the settlement of the 5000 who have so far been relocated.

The New Zealand government has announced it is sending an RNZAF P-3K2 Orion maritime surveillance aircraft to monitor Manaro Voui and the two other volcanoes, Benbow and Lopevi, currently erupting Vanuatu.

Bob Makin is a contributing editor of Vanuatu Digest.

By Bob Makin in Port Vila

Vanuatu’s Manaro Voui volcano on Ambae is erupting and 8000 people are being evacuated on the island.

The Penama provincial government council and National Disaster Management Office is currently evacuating residents from the north, south and western parts of Ambae island to the east, and to neighbouring islands.

Ambae’s total population is about 11,500.

The NDMO has mobilised several ships to assist with the evacuations.

The Vanuatu Meteorological and Geo-Hazards Department (VMGD) has raised the warning level to 4, indicating that a moderate eruption is taking place.

VMGD also warns people on Ambae that dangerous flying rocks and volcanic gas are being experienced within 6.5 km of the volcano’s crater; ash falls have been reported across the island.

The department says other hazards include acid rain and pyroclastic mud flows.

Manaro Voui’s last eruption in 2005 resulted in the evacuation of 5000 people.

Ambae, also known as Aoba, is northwest of Pentecost island.

Bob Makin is editor of Vanuatu Digest.

OPINION: By Willie Jackson

Never before has Labour come from 23 percent to be neck and neck with National. Jacinda has touched people and made them feel like they can believe again and that is a force that cannot and will not be told by rich right-wing broadcasters to go home and be quiet.

Now is the time to show National that lies, deception and deceit will not be rewarded by the people of this country. Let National learn that vision, hope and compassion will always beat cynicism, corruption and venal self-interest.

Rather than tell us why after 9 years they have failed the homeless, the first home buyers, the mentally ill, the hungry kids, the workers on flat wages, the women on gender biased wages, our waterways choked with cow filth, the children in underfunded and overcrowded classrooms and a health system strangled by debt – rather than tell us why after 9 years they’ve failed each of those segments of our society, National have spent this entire campaign lying about Labour.

I am sick of it! It is disgraceful and desperate behaviour that undermines the trusted positions they hold.

There is no $11.7 billion dollar hole in Labour’s budget. It is a total lie.

Not one New Zealander will pay more in income tax than they are paying now if Labour win! Another complete fabrication by National!

Dangerous falsehood
And as for Deputy Prime Minister Paula Bennett’s claim that the only reason inequality is so high is because of the Christchurch earthquake and not deeply flawed social policy – well, anything that comes out of Paula’s mouth is questionable at the best of times, but trying to blame inequality on a natural disaster is a delusional dangerous falsehood.

And I was rapt that Phil Twyford gave it to her and the National Party this morning on the AM Show and said it how it was, which was National are without doubt, just a bunch of liars.

The thing that gets me though is that National know they are lying, and then they are supported by a right-wing New Zealand media.

Take the latest Colmar Brunton Poll – added together, Labour + Greens + NZ First will be the new government, but is that the story the right-wing media are telling you?

They are saying that Jacinda’s “fairy dust” has failed her, that the momentum has stopped and that anyone wanting real change this election should just go home, head bent with their tail between their legs for daring to hope.

Once in generation victory?
I call that out and denounce it.

This will be a once in a generation victory if you and your friends and whanau vote.

I will never stop fighting for the people – Māori, Pasifika, women and working class; and I call on each and every decent New Zealander to rush to the voting booths now and bring in a new empathy and a new direction.

Vote as if your life depended upon it – because for many of our children, sick, elderly, brown and poor, it really does.

Kia kaha!

Willie Jackson is an independent Māori broadcaster and list candidate for the Labour Party. This column is republished from The Daily Blog with permission.

By Philip Cass in Auckland

Mangere Labour MP Aupito William Sio has hit out at claims by Tongan Māori Party candidate Manase Lua that Labour has done nothing for Pasifika people.

In comments reported by Kaniva News, Lua said Labour had backed 80 percent of the National Party’s legislation.

Aupito, who is Labour’s spokesperson for Pacific Island Affairs, said the Māori Party had been part of the National government and was responsible for New Zealand’s growing unequal society.

“They are responsible for the growing unequal society we now have,” Aupito said.

“While the wealth of the wealthiest New Zealanders continues to rise, we see more homelessness in our communities.

“People live in cars, garages, or share a bedroom among several people in a boarding house, a caravan, or hotel room.

“New Zealand never used to be this way. The Salvation Army tell us they see more and more people who work full-time coming to them for food parcels.

Māori Party support
““All this has happened under the National government, supported by the Māori Party.”

Aupito said that in opposition Labour had challenged the government on its spending of public funds and advocated strongly for more affordable housing, better fund healthcare, free education and for the lifting of family incomes and workers’ incomes.

“National has refused and only promised tax cuts, which favour the very wealthy.

“Labour has voted against the government’s budget in the last nine years because we don’t believe in giving wealthy people more money at the expense of creating more poverty, more homelessness and making it difficult for families to put their children through tertiary studies.”

Inequality more severe
In an interview with Kaniva News before the last election in 2014, Aupito said that in the previous six years inequality in New Zealand had become severe.

“People come to my office for a variety of reasons and often turn up as a last resort where they just aren’t getting any assistance from the various government departments,” he said.

“A lot of these issues have been determined by the struggles our families are facing.

“There’s also the housing crisis which affects so many of our Pacific families.

“The housing crisis has also been exacerbated due to the government removing itself from providing state houses.”

In the same interview, Aupito defended Labour’s record against criticism from the Pacific community for its stand on gay marriage.

He said at the time that while he respected members of the gay community, he had voted against gay marriage to reflect the views of the majority view of his Pasifika constituency.

By Philip Cass in Auckland

Tonga’s Consul has denied claims by Tongan Māori Party candidate Manase Lua that he was endorsed by King Tupou VI.

Lua made the claims in comments posted underneath photographs of him and his supporters meeting the consul on Monday.

His comments under the photos on Facebook said this was proof he was endorsed by the king and the Tongan consulate to be the only Tongan candidate in New Zealand for Tongans to vote for.

“Here are photos of our meeting with His Excellency Sitaafoti Aho, the Tongan Consulate-General for NZ, on 20 July 2017 confirming me as the number 1 Tongan candidate for the Māori Party. In humble response to the Māori King’s request to the King of Tonga,” Lua wrote on Facebook.

However, Tongan Consul Stafford ‘Aho told Kaniva News today Lua was wrong. He said neither the king nor he had endorsed Lua.

On Sunday, a Māori Party press release said: “He (Maori King Tuheitia Potatau Te Wherowhero VII) made a request for His Majesty King Tupou VI to ask his subjects living in Aotearoa to join and provide a Tongan candidate to stand for the Māori Party. The King of Tonga answered the call.

“Manase Nehemaia Lua is the chosen Tongan candidate blessed by the Royal Houses.”

Similar requests
The press release claimed similar requests had been made to the Head of State in Samoa and the Ariki of Rarotonga.

“All have answered the call, hence why we now have eight candidates from these Pacific nations running,” the media release said.

Six candidates from New Zealand’s Pacific communities will stand in general seats for the Māori Party in the national elections.

They are standing in areas with strong Labour support and in some cases against sitting Labour MPs with Pacific backgrounds, including Jenny Salesa and Aupito Su’a William Sio.

Lua has been contacted for comment.

Media academic Dr Philip Cass is an adviser and contributor to Kaniva News. This article is republished by Asia Pacific Report with permission.

ANALYSIS: By Connor Woodman

The Indonesian President, Joko “Jokowi” Widodo, is desperate to keep hidden Indonesia’s dark, dirty secret – its brutal 50-year war in its easternmost provinces. Here are five things you should know about Indonesian rule in West Papua:

1. It is one of the world’s longest-running military occupations
Indonesia seized West Papua, the western half of the island of New Guinea, in 1963, shortly after the Dutch colonists pulled out. Political parties were immediately banned, nascent Papuan nationalism crushed, and tens of thousands of troops, police and special forces flooded in. In 1969 a UN-supervised sham referendum was held, and just over a thousand hand-picked representatives were bribed, cajoled and threatened into voting in favour of Indonesian rule.

A police state has shackled the vast region ever since, battling a low-level tribal insurgency and suppressing independence aspirations with such vigour that raising the Papuan national flag, Morning Star, can land you 15 years in prison.

2. It’s possible that Indonesian rule constitutes a genocide
Although international media and NGOs have been nearly uniformly banned from the territory for decades, most observers estimate that over 100,000 native Papuans have been killed since the 1960s – at least 10 percent of the population. With echoes of Indonesia’s rule in East Timor, which eliminated around one third of the population, a 2004 report from Yale Law School concluded: “[There is] a strong indication that the Indonesian government has committed genocide against the West Papuans.” Several other scholars have reached a similar conclusion.

Reports of barbarous killings regularly emerge, and one study recently described torture as a “mode of governance” in the two provinces of Papua and West Papua. The abuse tends to be intertwined with projects of resource extraction and “transmigration” – the effort (formerly supported by the World Bank) to shuttle hundreds of thousands of landless Indonesian peasants from the rest of Indonesia into West Papua.

During a military campaign in the early 1980s, the Indonesian army ran under the slogan, “Let the rats run into the jungle so that the chickens can breed in the coop”. In practice, this meant wiping out Papuan villages and bringing in ethnic Indonesians to work on economic projects like Freeport’s giant Grasberg gold and copper mine, which has been accused of “ecocide” and dumps over 200,000 tonnes of tailings in the local river system every day. The influx of Indonesians has left the original inhabitants a near-minority in the land, struggling to maintain their culture and often nomadic way of life. An Indonesian minister once in charge of the transmigration programme has stated: “The different ethnic groups will in the long run disappear because of integration, and there will be one kind of man.”

3. West Papuans overwhelmingly want independence
Even the pro-Indonesian US ambassador admitted in the late 1960s that “possibly 85 to 90 percent” of West Papuans “are in sympathy with the Free Papua cause”. Paul Kingsnorth, an investigative reporter who travelled to the region in the early 2000s, described the independence campaign as a “broad-based social movement, which almost everyone in West Papua, if you get them alone, will admit to belonging”.

Nothing speaks to this more than the long campaign of armed resistance and civil disobedience against the Indonesian state. In 2011, documents leaked from the Indonesian army detailed a “longstanding guerrilla network that is relatively well organised and which operates across the whole country”. A recent book describes the non-violent wing of the movement as “savvy and sophisticated”, and notes that “Papuans in 2015 desire freedom as much, if not more, than Papuans who desired freedom in 1963”.

Most West Papuans consider themselves Melanesian, with more in common with darker-skinned Pacific populations than the Indonesians who often treat them as racially inferior. Culturally, linguistically, ethnically – Papuans have little in common with Indonesians. For the overwhelming majority, nothing short of independence will suffice.

4. The Indonesian state is terrified of international exposure
Alongside barring international media from West Papua, Indonesia runs counter-intelligence operations overseas to neutralise the international independence movement, surveilling and harassing campaigners based in Australia and elsewhere. Leaked military documents bemoan the success activists have had in “propagating the issue of severe human rights violations in Papua”, and Indonesia has been working hard to ensure exiled Papuan representatives are barred from regional Pacific organisations. Foreign visitors in the provinces are placed under routine surveillance, and Indonesian concern at the opening of the Free West Papua campaign office in Oxford even prompted the British ambassador in Jakarta to publicly distance himself from independence aspirations.

5. Britain & the West have supported Indonesia’s occupation for decades
Britain’s historic alliance with the Indonesian state dates primarily to General Suharto’s bloody coup in 1965-6. In the midst of the slaughter of at least 500,000 suspected members of the Indonesian Communist Party – which British officials gleefully described as a “ruthless terror” – the Foreign Office argued that “the generals are going to need all the help they can get”, releasing £1m in aid and granting the export of military equipment. The Indonesian Left was duly decimated – never to recover – and the pro-Western Suharto was firmly in control.

Since then, Britain’s support for Indonesian rule in West Papua has been unwavering. Privately recognising the “savage” nature of Indonesian rule, publicly officials have voted to legitimate Indonesian rule at the UN and pledged support for Indonesia’s “territorial integrity”. Until the late 1990s, the UK was one of Indonesia’s primary arms suppliers. Kopassus, the Indonesian special forces, have been trained and armed by the UK, US and Australia, despite a well-documented record of horrific human rights abuse in Papua. Britain funds and trains Detachment 88, the Indonesian counter-terrorism unit accused of massacres in Papua’s central highlands.

While in opposition, David Cameron described the situation in Papua as “terrible”; once in power, he headed to Jakarta with representatives from BAE Systems in tow. By contrast, opposition Labour Party leader Jeremy Corbyn is a long-time supporter of the Papuan struggle – another example of his “direct and open challenge to the British system of government of international alliances”, as Peter Oborne described it. It remains to be seen whether or not he will be able to dislodge the British establishment’s ossified support for the Indonesian state if he comes to power.

Connor Woodman is with the Politics of Papua Project, University of Warwick, UK. This article is republished from the Peter Tatchell Foundation for Human Rights and is republished under a Creative Commons licence.

By Dwi Andayani and Noval Dwinuary Antoni in Jakarta

Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) advocacy head Muhammad Isnur has accused retired Major-General Kivlan Zen and Presidium 313 member Rahmat Himran of being behind the attack on the LBH Jakarta offices.

He bases this on the names Kivlan and Himran which have appeared in social media in relation to the attack.

READ MORE: ‘Fake PKI news behind anti-communist chaos’

“The first is Rahmat Himran, I don’t know who he is but apparently he is with the Presidium 313, in several press releases and hoaxes (false news reports) in the media, his name has been cited as the one responsible, I don’t know if the police have arrested him or not”, said Isnur at the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) offices on Monday.

Meanwhile, Isnur cites Kivlan Zen because his name was mentioned in an online news website.

In the article, Zen was mentioned as chairing a coordinating meeting on closing down the “Indonesian Communist Party” (PKI) meeting at YLBHI.

“The second name was Kivlan Zen, this was the first name that emerged when the news website Public News reported that he was chairing a coordination meeting on closing down the [alleged] PKI seminar, the police must investigate this,” said Isnur.

Zen has not yet been able to confirm or deny Isnur’s statement and Zen’s attorney Krist Ibnu was unable to comment any further about Isnur’s allegations.

Opposed to PKI
Ibnu, however, confirmed that Zen had indeed been moved to oppose the reemergence of the PKI.

“Now Pak Kivlan has indeed often spoken out opposing the PKI issue hasn’t he, because the PKI’s teachings have been banned. Pak Kivlan has been moved in his heart as a former fighter, so yes it quite legitimate that he opposes it,” said Ibnu when contacted.

“Now with regard to whether or not Pak Kivlan was behind the action last night I don’t really know, but we admit that Pak Kivlan has often spoken out opposing the PKI.

“Only, there have been those that have been candid about it and those that have done it on the sly, it’s not just Pak Kivlan,” he added.

In relation to the siege on the YLBHI offices, Isnur also linked this with President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo statement about “clobbering the PKI”.

According to Isnur, Jokowi’s statement is open to misuse by certain groups as a justification to carry out such attacks.

Background
Presidium 313 refers to the organising body that was behind the so-called 313 rally in Jakarta against former Jakarta governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama on March 31 calling for him to be jailed for alleged blasphemy.

Retired Army Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad, Green Berets) commander Major-General Kivlan Zen is as a hardline general best known for his bizarre claims about a PKI resurgence and was a staunch supporter of Gerindra Party chairman Prabowo Subianto during the 2014 presidential election. In December 2016, following the mass protests against Ahok, Zen was arrested and charged with treason for allegedly attempting to overthrow the Widodo government.

Speaking before 1500 TNI soldiers in Riau on May 19, Widodo said that the government would not stay silent in confronting movements that undermine the Constitution and the state ideology of Pancasila and this also applied to groups that followed communism. “Yes, we will clobber them, we will stamp them out, this is already clear. Don’t question this again. Don’t question this again. The legal umbrella is clear, the TAP MPRS,” said Widodo, referring to a 1966 decree banning the Indonesian Communist Party.

Translated by James Balowski for the Indoleft News Service. The original title of the article was “LBH Tuding Kivlan Zen Terlibat dalam Aksi Pengepungan Kantor”.

By Jonas Cullwick in Port Vila

Vanuatu’s Prime Minister, Charlot Salwai Tabimasmas, says some South Pacific leaders at this month’s Forum in Samoa backed off making a decision about West Papua because it was a “sensitive issue”.

This was in spite of it being a Forum agenda item.

However, Tabimasmas labelled the efforts of Vanuatu “developing” as several countries in the region had recently joined Vanuatu in supporting West Papuan self-determination.

Nauru, Marshall Islands, Palau, Solomon Islands, Tonga and Tuvalu were determined to continue the work towards taking the issue to the UN Human Rights Committee and were taking the issue up in the corridors of the UN General Assembly in New York, Tabimasmas added.

“So far, Vanuatu continues to commit itself to spearheading the West Papua cause, through the government, the civil society, and the churches. And this year we took the matter up to the Africa, Caribbean and Pacific (ACP) group of countries,” Tabimasmas said.

The council of ministers has appointed the former Ambassador to Brussels, Roy Micky Joy, as the special envoy for the issue of West Papua.

“These are some of the things the Vanuatu government has undertaken to show its commitment to the West Papua cause.

“I think the lobby effort has developed because before only Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands were taking up the struggle for West Papua, but now there are six other countries from Polynesia and Micronesia supporting them, advocating for West Papuan self-determination and against violation of human rights.”

Progress beyond region
The Parliamentary Secretary for the Prime Minister’s Office, Johnny Koanapo, echoed Tabimasmas’ comments in a meeting with media, the Vanuatu Daily Post reports.

Koanapo said the issue of West Papua’s self-determination and violations of human rights by Indonesia had progressed beyond the South Pacific islands region.

“The issue has now moved beyond the jurisdiction of the Melanesian Spearhead Group,” he said.

“It has moved to the level of the Forum and has become a regional issue. And if you see how the issue was listed in the South Pacific Islands Forum meeting to deal with out of 14 issues, one of them was West Papua.”

“The issue now has progressed to the international stage and I say this with a lot of confidence — the issue has never taken so much international attention as it is today, simply because the government is serious about it, there is no second opinion on it as to whether the government will take up the issue or not.

“The government has taken on this role because it is a global country and we are global citizens with obligations to defend such things as human rights, which are parts of the rights of a human being,” Koanapo said.

Pacific Island solidarity
The Vanuatu Daily Post also reports the prime ministers of Vanuatu and the Solomon Islands are organising a side event at the UN General Assembly in New York this week to continue to lobby for West Papua, so that when leaders make their political statements at the General Assembly these would reflect the Pacific’s efforts.

West Papua’s plight and struggle for independence from Indonesia was raised at the UN General Assembly in September last year, which the Free West Papua Campaign called an “incredible show of Pacific Island solidarity” and a “landmark moment”.

The 72nd session of the UN General Assembly is currently underway in New York and will conclude next Monday, September 25.

Jonas Cullwick is a reporter with the Vanuatu Daily Post. VDP news items are republished by Asia Pacific Report with permission.

By Paterno Esmaquel II in Manila

United Nations Rapporteur Agnes Callamard has slammed the P1000 (NZ$26) budget that the House of Representatives voted to give the Philippine Commission on Human Rights (CHR) for 2018.

Callamard has explained in an email to Rappler that the CHR “is a crucial institution for the Philippines: for human rights protection, the rule of law, accountability”.

“It cannot deliver on its mandate without an appropriate budget, particularly at a time when it is confronted with allegations of massive human rights violations throughout the country, and including, but not only, in the context of the ill-advised, destructive ‘war on drugs,’” Callamard said.

READ MORE: Give CHR zero budget if it cannot be abolished – Alvarez

“The people of the Philippines deserve a strong independent human rights institution able to monitor, investigate, and report on human rights violations, protect victims and their families, and hold the powerful to account for their abuses of international human rights standards,” she said.

“Instead they are getting a ‘war on drugs’ which, by the President’s own account, has failed to curtail addiction rates, while creating a climate of fear and insecurity, feeding impunity, and undermining the constitutional fabric of the country. If the Philippine Congress is looking for public money being wasted, damaging and hurting the Philippine society, this is it,” the UN rapporteur said.

Earlier, in a tweet, Callamard said of the lawmakers’ move: “Reprehensible and unconscionable”.

Callamard is the UN’s Special Rapporteur on extrajudicial executions, connected with the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR).

She was the UN expert invited by President Rodrigo Duterte to probe the killings in the Philippines, provided that she engages Duterte in a debate – a condition that she has refused.

Callamard made her statement after the House of Representatives voted 119-32 to allocate only P1000 for the CHR in 2018.

In contrast, the House earlier approved a P900-million ($18-million) budget for Oplan Double Barrel, the anti-drug campaign of the Philippine National Police.

The P1000 budget for the CHR is not final, however, as it has to go through the Senate too for another round of deliberations. In any case, it already drew flak from Filipinos who described it as an “act of tyranny”.

The House is dominated by allies of Duterte, who has repeatedly slammed the CHR for questioning the killings in his war on drugs.

More than 14,100 people have been killed in both police operations and vigilante-style killings since Duterte began his drug war in July 2016.

By Mong Palatino of Global Voices

Indonesian police in East Java are investigating a veteran journalist for comparing former President Megawati Sukarnoputri to Myanmar’s Aung San Suu Kyi in a Facebook post.

On September 3, 2017, journalist and documentary filmmaker Dandhy Dwi Laksono wrote on Facebook that Megawati and Suu Kyi were alike in many ways, noting that both were former opposition leaders who now head the ruling parties in their respective countries.

Dandhy added that if Myanmar’s government was being criticised for its treatment of ethnic Rohingya, the Indonesian government should similarly be held liable for suppressing the independence movement on the Indonesian-ruled Melanesian region of West Papua.

He further compared Suu Kyi’s silence on the persecution of the Rohingya to Megawati’s role as party leader of the government, which has recently intensified the crackdown on West Papuan independence and self-determination activists.

Rohingya people born and living in Myanmar are not recognised as citizens by the Myanmar government.

In recent weeks, hundreds of thousands of Rohingya civilians have been displaced from their homes due to clearing operations of the Myanmar military in response to attacks by a pro-Rohingya insurgent group in northwest Myanmar.

Tens of thousands of Rohingya refugees, who are mostly Muslim, are crossing into Bangladesh to escape the fighting.

Human rights abuses
West Papua is a region of Indonesia, comprising the provinces of Papua and West Papua, with a vocal independence movement that has called for the creation of a separate Pacific state since the 1960s. Human rights groups have documented many cases of abuse committed by Indonesian state forces against activists, journalists, and other individuals suspected of supporting the independence movement.

Dandhy posted his comments on Facebook following a big rally was organised by Muslim groups in Indonesia, condemning the Myanmar government for its treatment of Rohingya refugees.

The youth arm of the ruling Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle (PDI-P) filed a defamation complaint against Dandhy on September 6:

On the whole, (Dandhy’s) opinion was clearly intended to take advantage of the Rohingya incidents in Myanmar in order to insult and spread hatred of Megawati Soekarnoputri as the chairwoman of PDI-P and Joko Widodo as the president who is backed by PDI-P.

He is now under investigation by the police cyber crime unit. If he is prosecuted for and convicted of defamation, Dandhy could face up to four years in prison.

Reacting to the complaint, Dandhy wrote that it is a minor issue compared to the injustices suffered by Papuan activists and Rohingya refugees.

The complaint is the latest case of how the Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) Law is being used to silence dissent in the country.

35 activists charged
According to Indonesian digital rights group SAFEnet, at least 35 activists have been charged with online defamation since its enactment in 2008. Aside from Dandhy’s case, the group has documented six defamation charges involving activists and journalists in 2017.

Activists were quick to launch a campaign expressing support to Dandhy. They asserted that Dandhy was simply expressing an opinion which should be considered legitimate criticism and not a criminal act.

SAFEnet is encouraging Indonesian netizens to submit reports and testimonies about how the ITE Law is being abused to silence activists like Dandhy and suppress online free speech in general.

Instead of preventing the public from commenting on Megawati, a local investigative portal suggested that Dandhy’s case could in fact trigger greater interest in the former president’s legacy as a leader, including some of the issues that led to her defeat in the polls.

Republished with permission from Global Voices on a Creative Commons licence.

Pacific Media Watch Newsdesk

Indonesia’s National Police continue to dig deeper into the Saracen group, an online syndicate accused of creating and spreading hoax news and hate speech for money, including by investigating their funding over the past three years.

“We are still investigating Saracen. We are looking back about three or four years ago to investigate their funding,” said National Police spokesman Rikwanto reports The Jakarta Post quoting kompas.com.

The police have teamed up with the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Center (PPATK) to investigate at least 14 bank accounts allegedly used in the Saracen campaign.

“We are still waiting for the results from the PPATK to see what has being going on with the bank accounts, including whether there were flows of funds,” Rikwanto added.

Police have named at least three suspects in the case, individuals who had allegedly acted as the group’s administrators since July and spread hate speech and hoaxes on social media.

The group is believed to have been involved in spreading hoaxes and hate speech against President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo and former Jakarta governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama, among others.

National police chief General Tito Karnavian previously promised to solve the case and bring all the culprits before the law.

By Vaidehi Shah

Environmental campaigners have accused The Australian and Courier-Mail newspapers in regional Queensland of being printed on paper linked to illegal deforestation and human rights abuses in Indonesia.

In a campaign launched earlier this month, Tasmania-based advocacy group Markets for Change and Washington DC-headquartered Mighty Earth said that the owners of the two publications, Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp, buys paper from Indonesian paper manufacturer Aspex.

Aspex is a wholly owned subsidiary of Korean-Indonesian agribusiness conglomerate The Korindo Group, which has businesses ranging from palm oil and paper to construction, to real estate, financial services, and building wind towers.

An investigation by Mighty Earth last year revealed that Korindo’s palm oil arm was burning ecologically precious tracts of forest in Indonesia’s Papua province bordering with Papua New Guinea, as well as violating the rights of local indigenous communities by grabbing land without their consent, and destroying their forest livelihoods.

While the company has committed to a moratorium on forest clearing until an independent assessment has identified areas that have a high carbon stock and high conservation value—though it did briefly break this ban in February—it has yet to make progress on implementing more stringent environmental and social impact policies.

Measures that environmentalists are calling for include the institution of a no deforestation policy, restoring forests to compensate for the land they cleared after issuing a moratorium on deforestation, resolving conflicts with communities, and being transparent about its concession boundaries, suppliers, and sustainability practices.

The Australian connection
Deborah Lapidus, campaign director, Mighty Earth, said that the investigation was sparked by a reference to Aspex on the website of Australia-based paper products company Oceanic Multitrading; the firm says it imports Aspex newsprint—that is, the cheap paper used to make newspapers—into Australia.

Through further research, trade data analysis and collaboration with a paper supply chain expert, investigators determined that Aspex newsprint was used to produce The Australian and Courier-Mail in regional Queensland. News Corp has confirmed that it sources some newsprint from the firm.

Lapidus explained that this was not an active decision by News Corp, but rather a “holdover issue” from the media giant’s acquisition of APN News and Media’s regional Queensland publications last December.

APN had an existing trade relationship with Aspex in the regional Queesland market, which News Corp inherited, Lapidus said.

For the rest of its print publications, News Corp sources sustainable newsprint from the Norwegian pulp and paper firm Norse Skog’s Australian business.

News Corp’s head of environment Tony Wilkins told Mighty Earth and Markets for Change in a letter dated July 19 that “the only paper we procure from Aspex is 100 percent recycled fibre content newsprint and this is Forest Stewardship Council certified”.

Pacific Media Centre Newsdesk

After two weeks of controversy, Pangu Pati leader Sam Basil and most of his party have split with Papua New Guinea’s Opposition and defected to Prime Minister Peter O’Neill’s post-election government, consolidating the People’s National Congress hold on Parliament.

In spite of repeated denials by Basil, Prime Minister O’Neill announced the defection yesterday afternoon, reports Loop PNG’s Annette Kora.

Basil defected with all 11 Pangu MPs from Morobe Province, including Central Province, Sohe and Lufa.

The defection has been widely condemned on social media and Papua New Guinea blogs as a “betrayal” and Oro Province Governor Gary Juffa made an impassioned plea in a video message appealing to fellow Opposition MPs to continue to work responsibly in Parliament for “the interests of all Papuan New Guineans” and not just a few.

Just four Pangu Pati MPs, including former Prime Minister Sir Mekere Morauta (Port Moresby North West), refused to defect and have remained with the Opposition.

ABC News correspondent Eric Tlozek reports Basil was one of the O’Neill government’s most outspoken critics, and his successful grassroots campaign wiped out senior government MPs in his home province of Morobe.

But Basil said he had to respect the Prime Minister’s mandate, Tlozek reports.

“So all I can say is that Papua New Guineans have chosen the government, now we make our choice to join PNC.”

ABC also reports Basil has also filed a criminal complaint against rival members of his party executive who challenged his move, alleging they stole party funds.

The defection helps secure O’Neill’s grip on government, and the Prime Minister praised Basil and the defecting Pangu Pati MPs.

Pacific Media Centre Newsdesk

Greenpeace climate campaigner Kate Simcock has applauded the Greens for their climate policy announced yesterday.

“It’s exactly the sort of response to the biggest threat facing humanity that we need to see from our leaders,” she said.

“All political parties should be adopting this policy, aiming for New Zealand to have 100 percent renewable electricity, to be carbon neutral by 2050, and with clear legislative plans to get us there.”

The policy, announced by leader James Shaw at a Green Party event in Auckland yesterday afternoon, includes a Kiwi Climate Fund, a ban on new coal mines and fracking, an end to drilling for deep sea oil and gas, major investment in sustainable transport and ecological agriculture, and significant afforestation.

“After seeing climate policy from Labour and the Greens, it’s now clear that Jacinda has the talk, but Greens have the walk” Simcock said.

“While Labour’s climate policy, released on Friday, has the bones of a good climate policy, and also aims for New Zealand to be carbon neutral by 2050, it lacks the Greens’ will to immediately put a stop to polluting activities, like burning oil, coal, and gas, that we know are the driving force behind climate change.”

“It’s pretty disappointing that Labour can’t just commit to killing National’s deep sea oil exploration programme. The industry is on its last legs anyway, and we don’t need a climate commission to tell us that this is the frontier oil that would tip our climate over the edge if it’s burnt.

Oil industry must have no future
Simcock said that for New Zealand and the globe to have a future, the oil industry must have no future.

“Government policy must actively hasten the end of oil,” she said.

“It was an inspiring moment when Jacinda Ardern compared climate change to New Zealand’s nuclear-free movement, but it remains to be seen if she has the courage and the will to back it up with action”

“Climate change is threatening our very survival. It affects all life on Earth, and it is getting a whole lot worse. If we don’t act now, we face a hellish existence.”

“The Greens on the other hand, should be applauded for their climate policy. If passed into legislation, it would position New Zealand as a world leader on tackling climate change, and it would give us the hope of a future that we truly can say is clean and green.”

Key points of the Green Party’s Kiwi Climate Fund by 2020 are expected to be:

• $40 per tonne of carbon dioxide emissions.

• $6 per tonne of nitrous oxide emissions from agriculture.

• $3 per tonne of methane emissions from agriculture.

• $40 guaranteed payment for each tonne of carbon sequestered by planting trees.

The previous climate change policy had only included the dairying sector, reports The New Zealand Herald, and now captures all agriculture sectors. The party said it expected charges on dairy pollution to be about the same under the new policy, after a nitrogen levy is factored in.

Previously the Greens had called for an initial price on carbon of $25 per tonne on CO2 equivalent emissions for all sectors except agriculture, which would pay $12.50.

OPINION: By Mata’afa Keni Lesa, editor of the Samoa Observer

On Friday, the 48th Pacific Islands Forum Leaders meeting — and all other related meetings — come to an end. With the Leaders Retreat and the closing ceremony at Taumeasina Island Resort, we can safely say all is well that ends well.

Come to think of, it’s been wonderful to have everyone in Samoa — even if it’s for only a brief period. We certainly hope everyone will have good memories to take home to share with their families and friends.

And if there is anything that might have offended anyone, or perhaps fallen short of expectations, as we do in this part of the Blue Pacific, we apologise and pray that you can forgive and forget.

Keep in mind that with these big events, nothing is ever perfect. But then nothing in the world is perfect or if it were the case, we wouldn’t be having such gatherings.

It is in the acknowledgement that we’ve got gigantic problems to solve, which will take some time to do, that unites us today. And as we are about to part ways, we take a moment to pause and reflect on what has been discussed during the past few days.

A lot has been said and written about the issues. All these arguments for and against are constructive in terms of moving forward. We have one goal and that is to find a united voice in the pursuit of a better future for our region. It’s not easy and there are many challenges.

But there is hope. We always have to believe there is light at the end of the tunnel.

Revisiting interesting issues
That said, we want to revisit a couple of interesting issues raised on the pages of this newspaper this week, which we believe warrant serious attention by our leaders.

First is the issue of customary lands. In a column titled “Colonial dictates on Customary Lands is too much for Samoa and Pacific governments,” advocate Fiu Mataese Elisara made some pertinent points.

Said Fiu:

“The push to take over our customary lands in Samoa and the Pacific are a deliberate ploy of neo-colonialism by developed countries to defend their economic interests, reneging on commitments to assist developing countries.

“For the Pacific, customary lands are alienated, related human rights principles violated, daily livelihood of indigenous communities and traditional practices undermined, climate crisis worsened, profits dictate.

“The danger is all the more pernicious because shifting goal posts and insincere partnerships the culprits that engage the Pacific in their colonial dictates do not always confront us or governments directly. It becomes enmeshed in the institutional machinery that infiltrates the State apparatus and in many cases gain the complicity of government officials.

“As a simple chief from Sili, I again ask the Leaders of the Pacific Countries gathered in Apia this week, Is this the Future We Want? Will this ensure ‘No One in the Pacific is left behind’?

“I urge our Prime Minister, the Government of Samoa, Indeed the Leaders of the Pacific gathered in Samoa this week — in your collective, integrated political and economic pursuit for genuine and durable partnership, for sustainable human development, for climate justice, and protection of customary lands.”

Peaceful West Papua protest
The second issue was the subject of peaceful protest on Beach Road, earlier this week — West Papua.

Led by Jerome Mika and Unasa Iuni Sapolu, the group brought West Papua to the fore — a country that has been occupied by the Indonesian government since 1963 and whose people have experienced brutal abuse by its military police.

Mika explained that it was important for Samoa, a nation who understands the path of struggle for independence, to add their voice in demanding the de-colonisation of West Papua.

“We enjoy our independence but we should also be standing up for our Pacific brothers and sisters of West Papua,” he said.

“We are calling on Samoa to add their voice to the decolonisation of West Papua. We think it’s important that there are some issues around the world to deal with, but we should be looking after our Pacific cousins in our background.”

For Unasa, it was about raising the issue with the leaders. She said:

“They are the ones who are at the height of discussions of these sorts of issues. Don’t just talk about money; don’t just talk about jobs, let’s talk about the freedom of all Pacific islands.

“For Melanesians and for the Micronesians who have been battered by the military and obviously, Korea with Guam. Lets just stand up collectively as the people of the Pacific, don’t just sit back and relax and have a holiday in Samoa. There are deeper issues at hand, the issues of Indigenous freedom and we’ve got to fight for those freedoms.”

Well we couldn’t agree more. Indeed, the issue of customary land ownership and a right to be free are critical issues that our leaders must not ignore.

What do you think?

Republished from the Samoa Observer.

OPINION: By Mata’afa Keni Lesa in Apia

There is no doubt about it. The leaders of the Pacific Islands Forum in Apia this week have had their work cut out. Or so we hope.

As they do at these meetings, it has everything to do with trying to save our people and our part of the planet from eternal damnation.

Time will fly and with climate change taking most of the focus, this meeting is as good as finished already with the communiqué probably being written as we speak.

Keep in mind that climate change is not an issue that can be fixed overnight, you know. Truth be told, regardless of how many accords, frameworks and promises our leaders make, the fact is our islands are sinking and there is little we can do about it.

That shouldn’t stop us from pretending we are doing something about it.

And when you have a well-travelled group of officials who claim to be doing it for the sake of those poor folks in the village, we can at least rest well knowing they will have a jolly good time doing well … who knows.

Of course, there is a lot of noise being made about the issues.

Pretend to look busy
That’s about the best part of gatherings such as the one we are having in Apia this week. We can come together, wear our finest clothes, move from one meeting to the next and pretend to look busy.

But what does that mean for the person who is struggling to make ends meet in the village?

Does it change the prospects for the subsistence farmer who is toiling day and night to make ten tala to feed his family of 12?

Does it really empower the average woman who has to overcome so much to look after herself and family?

Let’s not forget, someone is picking up the bill for all this. What about taxpayers who are forking out for the bill, what do they get in return?

And how do we measure the return on investment?

Questions for a simple reason
We ask these questions for a very simple reason.

At the beginning of this meeting, the Secretary-General Dame Meg Taylor made the point that “Pacific people must be the recipients of the common good delivered by the policies and initiatives” discussed at such meetings.

She couldn’t have said it better.

But lets pause here for a second.

How many Forum meetings have we had now and where exactly are we today?

Looking at some of the recent developments, has the Forum become a stronger regional body to represent the voices of the Pacific? What are we to make of the emergence and strengthening of sub groups like the Polynesian Leaders Group and others? Is it possible that the emergence of these groups could spell the beginning of the end for the Forum?

Nobody wants to be the person asking these questions. But if we are serious, they have got to be asked and our leaders must respond.

Fancy closing ceremony
The fact is before you know it, this meeting will wrap up with a fancy closing ceremony and dinner at an exotic five star place where delegates and leaders will have fine wine and be merry.

That’s okay. They’ve got to have a bit of fun too, don’t you think?

You see, today in those meetings, we guarantee you that they will already be preparing for the next meeting. It’s just the way these things work. And it’s not confined to the Pacific.

The talkfests have become a way of life and you really have to wonder when it will end. If saving the planet is the goal, can you imagine the amount of carbon footprint these guys are burning in the process?

But then who cares?

The point is that somewhere somehow somebody is going to have to justify the need for one meeting after another meeting to prepare for another meeting to analyse the last meeting.

Please don’t get me wrong; we support the cause and we should never deride the value of talking about these issues. Talking about them is a lot better than not acknowledging them at all.

A line should be drawn
But we should also be mindful that a line should be drawn where talking stops and actions begin.

From our standpoint, actions are lacking. And when it comes to the Pacific islands, the reality is that a lot of so-called problems discussed during these meetings are deteriorating while our leaders are still talking.

You can pick any one of them issues whether it’s health, education, environment, governance, justice, gender and you will find that progress has been very slow, if any at all, and yet the poor taxpayers are still forking out for those beers and fine meals dished out in the name of officialdom and the pursuit for progress.

Let’s make the Apia experience a meaningful one, shall we? And tell me please that there is method in thy madness with all these meetings. Have productive Thursday Samoa, God bless!

Mata’afa Keni Lesa is editor of the Samoa Observer. This editorial coinciding with the 48th Pacific Islands Forum leaders meeting has been republished by Asia Pacific Report with permission.

Pacific Media Centre Newsdesk

Transparency International Papua New Guinea (TIPNG) says its work will continue despite a break-and-entry incident that occurred at their Boroko premises earlier this week.

Staff were assaulted and close to K20,000 (almost NZ$9000) worth of goods stolen from the property. Transparency just recently moved there to a new office.

“We are a local non-governmental organisation fighting an important battle against destructive corruption and dependent on financial support from concerned citizens and donor agencies” said TIPNG chairman Lawrence Stephens.

“While we cannot say for certain that the theft was as a result of our work against the corrupt, we will obviously continue to fulfil our mission of speaking up for Papua New Guineans, even though we are now challenged by the loss of our project equipment.”

The Criminal Investigations Division of the Royal Papua New Guinea Constabulary (RPNGC) is investigating Monday’s break-in.

The organisation is appealing to the public for any information that will help in investigations.

EMTV News items are republished with permission.