Basque reps in Ireland
Pernando Barrena and Jone Goreizelaia, elected representatives of
Herri Batasuna to the Navarran Parliament and the Basque Autonomous
Parliament, respectively, visited Dublin last weekend to ``bring to the
international community our point of view on recent developments of
the political process in the Basque Country.
``Representatives of Herri Batasuna have already visited Brussels,
where they addressed a group of MEPs and the media and we also
travelled yesterday to London and shortly we will be travelling to
Geneva and Rome.''
Herri Batasuna wanted to send ``a message of calm and responsibility''
and to avow that their commitment to the political process, ``which we
are sure will lead us to a scenario of full democracy and lasting
peace'' is as strong as it was 14 months ago when, in September 1998,
representatives of the majority of Basque political and civil society
adopted the Lizarra-Garazi Agreement as the framework document to
achieve peace and freedom. ETA's ceasefire followed shortly
afterwards. ``The conditions for dialogue were better than ever,'' says
Barrena. ``These were the best conditions in decades''.
``We are convinced that this scenario of democracy and peace can only
be built on the respect for the freely expresed opinion of the Basque
people. It is just about democracy. Only when the Basque people are
entitled to decide their own future will violence disappear from the
country.''
Just a week ago, ETA decided to end its ceasefire because of the slow
pace of the political process in the Basque Country. In its statement,
ETA blamed conservatives nationalist Basque parties for slowing the
peace process to serve their own electoral interests, and the Spanish
and French states for their continuous repression of Basque
pro-independence supporters.
Pernando Barrena feels that the Spanish government has decided to
ignore the Basque people's endorsement of the Lizarra-Garazi document,
an endorsement that could be measured through increasing electoral
support for those parties who were signatories of the Agreement.
``During these 14 months, the governments arrested ETA volunteers who
were involved in the negotiations with the Spanish government,'' said
Barrena. ``They do not respect the right of Basque people to decide
their own future and they still deny the political nature of the
conflict in the Basque Country. No proposal has been produced by any
of the governments.'' Barrena explained that Herri Batasuna does not
expect any change in the Spanish government's attitude as ``the Spanish
general elections take place next March''.
``The need for a change in attitude by the Spanish government is in our
opinion, very clear. So we are lobbying the international community
and we are asking the Irish authorities in particular to offer
information and advice to the Spanish authorities from their own
experience during the Irish peace process. What works in Ireland can
also work in the Basque country. We are convinced that a lasting peace
needs full democracy and respect for the wishes of the majority of
Basque people.
Barrena and Goreizelaia also referred to Herri Batasuna's close
relationship with Sinn Féin. ``We feel very close to the political
process taking place in Ireland, first of all, out of solidarity with
Sinn Féin and also for our own interest in a process the main
objectives of which are a lasting peace and full democracy. We are
very interested in the work that Sinn Féin is doing here in Ireland
towards achieving those goals.''
Also on Saturday 11 December, at a news conference in Irunea, the
Basque Country, Herri Batasuna presented its proposals for a united
and democratic Basque Country, including an election in which everyone
living in the Basque territories North and South of the Pyrenees would
be voting to elect a national parliament for the Basque Country.
Independence for West Papua
BY MARK DORIS
East Timor finally achieved independence from Indonesia in 1999. Not
so well known is the situation of the West Papuan people, who have
been struggling for independence under Indonesian rule since 1963.
West Papua, the western half of New Guinea island, now termed `Irian
Jaya province' under Indonesian control, is just under five times the
size of the island of Ireland and is immense in its tribal and
ecological diversity. It has some 240 different tribal peoples, each
with its own language and culture. About a million indigenous Papuans
speak some 15% of the world's known languages. West Papua, together
with the eastern half of the island of New Guinea, independent Papua
New Guinea, are the lungs of the Asia-Pacific region, with the last
great surviving virgin rainforest after the Amazon.
In 1883, New Guinea was carved up between the Dutch, the Germans and
the British. Eastern New Guinea, which was under the British and the
Germans, gained independence in 1975 as Papua New Guinea. The Dutch
began advocating independence for West New Guinea in the `50s, but
Indonesia wanted the territory for itself. The Dutch-Indonesia dispute
was an annual issue for discussion at the UN General Assembly from
1954-60. In 1952, the Netherlands recognised Papuan self-determination
as a right in accordance with Article 73 of the Charter of the United
Nations, and began preparing the nation for independence. The
territory was given a governor and an administration of its own,
directly under the Hague, and, had not Indonesia interfered, it would
have been `given' self-determination by 1970.
Unable to secure the territory for Indonesian control peacefully,
Indonesian President Sukarno chose armed conflict to force the issue.
On 15 January 1962, a minor naval battle took place between the
Netherlands and Indonesia. Pressure from the United States and
pressure from interest groups within the Netherlands who wanted to
keep friendly with their former colony mounted. The Dutch went into
secret negotiations with Indonesia, sponsored by the United States.
These negotiations, which excluded the Papuans, led to the 1962 `New
York Agreement' between the Netherlands and Indonesia, which led to
the transfer of West Papua to Indonesia on 1 May 1963.
Also under the terms of the Agreement, a so-called `referendum' was
engineered in 1969, which was ironically or cynically termed by the
Indonesian administration, an `Act of Free Choice'.
Only 1,025 hand-picked people out of a population of some 800,000 were
allowed to vote. Those who voted did so in a climate of fear and
intimidation and with only a derisory UN presence.
One reporter, Brian May, who witnessed it, called it ``The United
Nations fiasco''. Another, the journalist Hugh Lunn, said: ``I
witnessed that event ( the Act of Free Choice in 1969 ) and saw the
hypocrisy of world politics and felt the numbing sadness of a people
being taken over by another race.''
On 19 November 1969, the report of the Act of so-called Free Choice
was ``noted'', but not considered, by the UN General Assembly.
Tens of thousands of people have died in West Papua. The most recent
human rights abuses were in early December 1999 when thousands of
people came out to raise the Papuan national flag. The Indonesian
military opened fire with live rounds.
Indonesian President Wahid is due to visit West Papua (Irian Jaya) on
31 December.
Syria
Negotiations between Israel and Syria, aimed to finish the 50 year-old
conflict between these states are set to restart in Washington. It
will be the first official meeting between the two states since
February 1996. The Damascus administration's main objective is to
secure a promise from the Israeli government in relation to
demilitarisation and sovereignty of the Golan Heights, which were
occupied by Israel in 1967.
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