Tanah Papua, Asia-Pacific news blind spots and citizen media: From the ‘Act of Free Choice’ betrayal to a social media revolution

Abstract

For five decades Tanah Papua, or the West Papua half of the island of New Guinea on the intersection of Asia and the Pacific, has been a critical issue for the region with a majority of the Melanesian population supporting self-determination, and ultimately independence. While being prepared for eventual post-war independence by the Dutch colonial authorities, Indonesian paratroopers and marines invaded the territory in 1962 in an ill-fated military expedition dubbed Operation Trikora (‘People’s Triple Command’). However, this eventually led to the so-called Act of Free Choice in 1969 under the auspices of the United Nations in a sham referendum dubbed by critics as an ‘Act of No Choice’ which has been disputed ever since as a legal basis for Indonesian colonialism. A low-level insurgency waged by the OPM (Free West Papua Movement) has also continued and Jakarta maintains its control through the politics of oppression and internal migration. For more than five decades, the legacy media in New Zealand have largely ignored this issue on their doorstep, preferring to give attention to Fiji and a so-called coup culture instead. In the past five years, social media have contributed to a dramatic upsurge of global awareness about West Papua but still the New Zealand legacy media have failed to take heed. This article also briefly introduces other Asia-Pacific political issues—such as Kanaky, Timor-Leste, Papua New Guinean university student unrest, the militarisation of the Mariana Islands and the Pacific’s Nuclear Zero lawsuit against the nine nuclear powers—ignored by a New Zealand media that has no serious tradition of independent foreign correspondence.

Internet under threat?: The politics of online censorship in the Pacific Islands

“…In PNG, politicians (mainly Brian Kraemer and Garry Juffa) have also started leveraging Facebook to expose government corruption and calls for greater accountability and transparency. Robie (2017) and Titifanue et al (2016) demonstrate how Pacific Islanders have leveraged social media as a means to report on human rights issues in repressive media countries such as West Papua. Titifanue et al (2017) further demonstrate how local, national and regional groups and organisations in the Pacific concerned with, and striving to address, the issue of climate change are using platforms afforded by the internet for climate change advocacy both nationally and internationally.…”

“…However, an analysis of political trends within Nauru reveals a political culture of political dissent being stifled, and high visa fees hindering impartial media from entering the country-this is repetitive. In such a repressive media environment, social media plays a crucial role in disseminating information through citizen media and fostering activism (Robie, 2017;Titifanue et al, 2017;Titifanue et al, 2016). Blocking of Facebook when placed in Nauru's broader political context reveals a transparent attempt by the government to stifle dissent from opposition politicians and citizens, as well as limit the dissemination of information on the treatment of asylum seekers.…”

Internationalisation of the 'hidden' West Papua issue: A regional media matter for Melanesia and the Pacific

“…RNZ Pacific, Vanuatu Daily Post and Asia Pacific Report do what they can from afar. But mainstream media outlets have mostly appeared disinclined to bother trying (Robie, 2017b).…”

Climate change advocacy in the Pacific: The role of information and communication technologies

“…Singh (2017) notes how in Melanesia, citizen journalism is now picking up pace. ICT platforms such as social media are now being employed as a means to report on human rights issues in media repressive countries such as West Papua (Robie, 2017;Titifanue et al, 2016). The potential power of these tools is formidable, and as Macleod (2016) noted, social media has started influencing the opinion of heads of state, with Pacific leaders such as Gordon Darcy Lilo, former prime minister of Solomon Islands, and Peter O'Neill of Papua New Guinea acknowledging social media's role in highlighting human rights issues in West Papua.…”

“…This is evidenced in the Free West Papua campaign. In this case, ICT tools were employed to garner interest throughout the region in the issue of West Papua (Robie, 2017). Through ICT tools such as social media, activists from around the Pacific region communicated and organised to articulate messages of protest against human rights violations in West Papua (Titifanue, Tarai, Kant & Finau, 2016).…”