“Under an agreement of 15 August 1962 between Indonesia and the Netherlands, the opinion of the indigenous population was to be heard in an "Act of Free Choice" five years after integration. This took place in 1968 [ sic ].

At the Twenty-Fourth Regular Session of the General Assembly of the United Nations, in 1969, Resolution 2504 ( XXIV) on the Agreement between the Republic of Indonesia and the Kingdom of the Netherlands concerning West New Guinea ( West Irian ) was adopted by 84 votes in favour ( including Ireland ), none against, with 30 abstentions.

This Resolution recalled specifically the Agreement of 15 August 1962 between Indonesia and the Netherlands and acknowledged the role of the UN Secretary-General in this Agreement; recalled the report of the UN Secretary-General on the completion of the United Nations Temporary Executive Authority in West Irian; and further recalled that the arrangements for the Act of Free Choice were the responsibility of Indonesia with the advice, assistance and participation of a special representative of the UN Secretary-General as stipulated in the 1962 Agreement; and stated that both parties to the Agreement ( Indonesia and the Netherlands ) had recognised the results of the Act of Free Choice and abided by them. Finally, the Resolution took note of the fulfilment by the UN Secretary-General and his representative of the tasks entrusted to them under the 1962 Agreement.

I have received a request to raise with the United Nations the validity of the Act of Free Choice and I have also taken note of the Resolution of the Joint Oireachtas Committee on Foreign Affairs of 31 January 1996; however, in the light of UN General Assembly Resolution 2504 (XXIV) it is difficult to see how this matter can be raised with the United Nations, at this remove, with any expectation of success.

The human rights' situation in Irian Jaya continues to be monitored closely.”

“I regret to have to express my reservation regarding the implementation of article XXII of the Agreement, relating to ‘the rights, including the rights of free speech, freedom of movement and of assembly, of the inhabitants of the area’. In spite of my constant efforts, this important provision was not fully implemented and the Administration exercised at all times a tight political control over the population.”

“Four soldiers received 1- to 3- year prison terms in February as a result of the killing of three civilians in Irian Jaya in the spring of 1995. These convictions resulted from reports by the National Human Rights Commission, the Catholic Church, and NGO’s about the killings of 16 or more civilians in Irian Jaya between mid-1994 and mid-1995. However, these convictions resulted from one case only, and the military court addressed only charges of murder and did not address charges of rape of indigenous women”. .... “In practice...legal protections are both inadequate and widely ignored, and security forces continued to employ torture and other forms of mistreatment, particularly in regions where there were active security concerns, such as Irian Jaya and East Timor. Police often resort to physical abuse, even in minor incidents.”

“Special permission is necessary for foreign journalists to travel to East Timor, Aceh, and Irian Jaya.” ....

“While the law provides for academic freedom, constraints exist on the activities of scholars. Political activity and discussions at universities, while no longer formally banned, remained constrained. Some scholars displayed caution in producing or including in lectures and class discussions materials that might provoke government displeasure.”

.... “Special permits are required to visit certain parts of Irian Jaya.”

“Sources in Irian Jaya claim that the Government has obstructed NGO and church efforts t investigate ABRI [ the Indonesian armed forces ] actions in the Mapenduma are, where hostage taking had occurred early in the year, which, according to unconfirmed reports from government critics, had resulted in losses among the civilian population. The Government claims that it has limited access to the area for all nonresidents as a security measure.” ....

“Of six cases of indigenous people in Irian Jaya identified by the Commission [ on Human Rights, Indonesia ] in September 1995, only one had led to court action by year’s end.” .... “The Government considers the term “indigenous people” to be a misnomer, because it considers all Indonesians to be indigenous”. ....

“Critics maintain that the Government’s approach is basically paternalistic and designed more to integrate indigenous people more closely into Indonesian society than to protect their traditional way of life. Human rights monitors criticize the Government’s transmigration program for violating the rights of indigenous people.” ....

“Most civil servants in local governments in Irian Jaya and other isolated areas continue to come primarily from Java, rather than from the local indigenous population.” ....

“the Netherlands was the colonial power in West Papua ( Dutch New Guinea ), before it was taken over by Indonesia: thus, it has special responsibilities and needs to be reminded of these. The Irish Government must use the unique opportunity which now presents itself, as part of the EU Troika with the Netherlands, to ask the Netherlands Government to join the Irish Government in raising its concerns with both the United Nations and with the Indonesian Government.”

“We’re operating in a very primitive country so we have to continue to try to bring the largest gold mine in the world, the third largest copper mine, onto production and expand it and do it in a very primitive society. It’s a challenge every day.”