Asked by: Alex Sobel (Labour (Co-op) - Leeds North West)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what assessment he has made of the accuracy of the statement in the communique of the 50th Pacific Islands Forum that the root causes of the conflict in West Papua relate to the violation of West Papuan’s right to self-determination and the conduct of the 1969 Act of Free Choice.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
The UK fully respects the territorial integrity of Indonesia, including Papua. Within this framework we support the efforts of the authorities and civil society to address the needs and aspirations of the Papuan people.
In August 2019, I attended the Pacific Island Forum in the UK’s capacity as Dialogue Partner (an observer). The UK notes the communique issued at the Pacific Island Forum but we have no plans to respond to it. We regard Papua and West Papua provinces as being part of Indonesia and consider dialogue on territorial issues in Indonesia to be a matter for the Indonesian people.
UK Officials at the Embassy in Jakarta, including the Ambassador, visit Papua regularly. Our Officials also press the Indonesian authorities to address legitimate human rights concerns. This includes upholding the right of all citizens to peacefully protest, and ensuring the sustainable and equitable development of the province through political dialogue.
Asked by: Jonathan Edwards (Independent - Carmarthen East and Dinefwr)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, with reference to the communique of the 50th Pacific Islands Forum, whether the Government will take steps to help tackle the root causes of the conflict in West Papua.
Answered by Heather Wheeler
The UK fully respects the territorial integrity of Indonesia, including Papua. Within this framework we support the efforts of the authorities and civil society to address the needs and aspirations of the Papuan people.
In August 2019, I attended the Pacific Island Forum in the UK’s capacity as Dialogue Partner (an observer). The UK notes the communique issued at the Pacific Island Forum but we have no plans to respond to it. We regard Papua and West Papua provinces as being part of Indonesia and consider dialogue on territorial issues in Indonesia to be a matter for the Indonesian people.
UK Officials at the Embassy in Jakarta, including the Ambassador, visit Papua regularly. Our Officials also press the Indonesian authorities to address legitimate human rights concerns. This includes upholding the right of all citizens to peacefully protest, and ensuring the sustainable and equitable development of the province through political dialogue.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Department for International Development:
To ask the Secretary of State for International Development, what funding his Department has allocated to programmes to support internally displaced people in West Papua.
Answered by Harriett Baldwin
The Department for International Development (DFID) does not have a traditional bilateral aid programme in Indonesia. DFID established the UK Climate Change Unit (UKCCU) in 2011 to work with the Government of Indonesia to reduce greenhouse gas emissions. DFID Indonesia has not allocated any bilateral funds to non-climate related programmes in West Papua.
Asked by: Anneliese Dodds (Labour (Co-op) - Oxford East)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations he has made to the Government of West Papua on the displacement of civilians and children from the Nduga area following military violence in that country.
Answered by Andrew Murrison - Parliamentary Under-Secretary (Ministry of Defence)
The UK fully respects the territorial integrity of Indonesia, including Papua. Within this framework we support the efforts of the authorities and civil society to address the needs and aspirations of the Papuan people.
Officials at our Embassy in Jakarta, including the Ambassador, visit Papua regularly. Officials press the Indonesian authorities to address legitimate human rights concerns, including upholding the right of all citizens to peacefully protest, and ensure the sustainable and equitable development of the province, through political dialogue. We have condemned the attack on construction workers by armed separatists in December 2018 in Nduga district. We have called on the authorities to ensure a proportionate security response.
Asked by: Tulip Siddiq (Labour - Hampstead and Kilburn)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what representations his Department has made to the Government of Indonesia on the humanitarian situation in West Papua; and what assessment his Department has made of the merits of West Papua becoming an independent state.
Answered by Mark Field
The UK Government follows the situation in Papua closely. Officials at the British Embassy in Jakarta visit regularly. I met the Indonesian Ambassador in January and raised Papua with him.
The UK fully respects the territorial integrity of Indonesia, including Papua. Within this framework we support the efforts of the authorities and civil society to address the needs and aspirations of the Papuan people.
Asked by: Helen Goodman (Labour - Bishop Auckland)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask the Secretary of State for Foreign and Commonwealth Affairs, what steps the Government is taking to tackle the political and conflict situation in West Papua as part of its role as the UN Security Council penholder on peacekeeping and protection of civilians in armed conflict.
Answered by Mark Field
The British Government follows the situation in Papua closely. We respect the territorial integrity of Indonesia. Officials at the Embassy in Jakarta, visit Papua and West Papua provinces regularly. I met the Indonesian Ambassador in January and raised Papua with him, and I addressed a parliamentary debate on the issue on 8 May.
We fully support efforts by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) and her officials to arrange a visit to Papua at the invitation of the Indonesian government. Officials in our Embassy in Jakarta have discussed the proposed visit with the Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and encouraged Indonesia to agree dates as soon as possible.
Asked by: Lord Harries of Pentregarth (Crossbench - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made, or intend to make, to the newly elected president of Indonesia, when the result is announced, regarding access to West Papua for journalists and non-governmental organisations.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The British Government regularly raises the situation in Papua with the Indonesian authorities and presses them to address the legitimate concerns regarding access. In January 2018, I raised my concern about this issue with the Indonesian ambassador to London, and our officials in Indonesia also raised this when they visited Papua in February this year. The Minister of State for Asia and the Pacific acknowledged at a Westminster Hall Debate on 8 May that transparency and media access are important. We continue to encourage Indonesian journalists to write openly and frankly about Papua to ensure that local perspectives are properly heard and are part of any debate, and will do so with the next President and their team when the election results are announced in due course.
Asked by: Lord Lexden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what funding they are providing for the Indonesian police unit deployed in West Papua.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The British Government does not provide any funding for police units deployed in Papua or West Papua provinces. We follow the situation in Papua with close interest. Officials from the British Embassy in Jakarta visit Papua regularly.
Asked by: Lord Lexden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what representations they have made to the government of Indonesia about lifting the ban on foreign journalists visiting West Papua.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
President Jokowi made clear his intention to allow free access for foreign journalists to Papua when he announced the lifting of the ban in May 2015. A number of foreign journalists have since gained access to report on the region. Unfortunately it seems some elements of the Government have been slow to respond to President Jokowi’s wishes. We continue to receive reports that journalists face difficulties in securing visas and restrictions on free reporting.
In January 2018, I raised my concern on this issue with the Indonesian ambassador to London, and officials in Indonesia also raised this when they visited Papua in February 2019. The Minister of State for Asia and the Pacific acknowledged at a Westminster Hall Debate on 8 May 2019 that transparency and media access are important. We continue to encourage Indonesian journalists to write openly and frankly about Papua to ensure that local perspectives are properly heard and are part of any debate.
Our Embassy in Jakarta is very active in promoting press freedom. To mark World Press Freedom Day on 3 May 2019 the Embassy arranged a full programme of activities to celebrate the work of journalists, media organisations and regulators. Indonesia will also be invited to the global Media Freedoms event in July, which the UK is co-hosting with Canada, which will promote the importance of media freedom and aim to adopt a more co-ordinated approach to securing the safety of media professionals.
Asked by: Lord Lexden (Conservative - Life peer)
Question to the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office:
To ask Her Majesty's Government what discussions they have had with the government of Indonesia to ensure that British-supplied arms are not used for internal repression in West Papua.
Answered by Lord Ahmad of Wimbledon - Minister of State (Foreign, Commonwealth and Development Office)
The UK takes its arms export responsibilities seriously and operates one of the most robust arms export control regimes in the world. All export licence applications are assessed on a case-by-case basis against the Consolidated EU and National Arms Export Licensing Criteria, taking account of all relevant factors at the time of the application. We do not export equipment where we assess there is a clear risk that it might be used for internal repression.
We follow the situation in Papua closely. The Minister of State for Asia and the Pacific set out our concerns about violence in Papua and reports of alleged human rights violations by the security forces at a Westminster Hall debate on 8 May. The Minister raised concerns about the situation in Papua with the Indonesian Ambassador earlier this year. We will continue to press the Indonesian authorities to strengthen their human rights protections.