Irianese congress rejects 1969 plebiscite

The first Papuan congress ended on Saturday with a unanimous rejection of the 1969 plebiscite that incorporated the former Dutch territory into Indonesia, The Jakarta Post reported on Monday.

The 500 congress participants said in a statement that the popular consultation the Indonesian government held it without involving eligible

voters.

The poll was conducted based on the 1962 New York Agreement between the UN,

Indonesia and the Netherlands.

"Only 0.8 percent of the 80,000 eligible voters took part in the so-called popular consultation," the congress' declaration signed by local leaders Theys B. Eluay and Tom Beanal said.

The poll, locally known as Pepera, the acronym for Penentuan Pendapat Rakyat (People's Self-determination Vote) was sanctioned after the transfer of power over the western part of the island from the Netherlands to Indonesia through the UN in May 1963.

The congress participants called the transfer of power invalid since it was decided without consulting local people.

Independence demands have been on the rise over the past two years in the province, the home to one of the world's largest gold and cooper mines, in response to past human rights violations and the unfair divisions of revenues earned from exploiting its natural resources.

"Tha's why we decide to separate from Indonesia and form a Papua nation," the statement said. (*)