Special status

In 2001 Jakarta granted Papua special autonomy status, giving local authorities more control over tax revenues, but there has been little improvement in poverty, and human rights groups report continued abuses by Indonesian security forces.

The province is rich in natural resources and is home to U.S. gold and copper mining giant Freeport McMoRan. Tensions there between workers and security forces have led to violence.

Widjojo says the peace conference held in July was an attempt to ease tensions and search for common ground. Both Papuan representatives and Indonesian officials attended the conference. Widjojo says his long-term goal is to get both sides to agree to a solution similar to the Aceh peace agreement signed in 2005. That agreement followed the devastation of the 2004 tsunami and ended 30 years of armed conflict in Northern Sumatra. It replaced the Indonesian military with local police to maintain security but kept the province as part of Indonesia.

Right direction

Widjojo says the conference was a step in the right direction. But the International Crisis Group, an independent conflict resolution organization, says in a recent report that the conference did not build any bridges. The report says government officials offered constructive yet vague assurances but were taken aback by Papuan demands for formal negotiations mediated by an international third party.