10.47313 SPECIAL AUTONOMY STATUS AND THE SELF-DETERMINATION ASPIRATION IN PAPUA: A CRITICAL EXAMINATION OF POLITICAL DYNAMICS

SPECIAL AUTONOMY STATUS AND THE SELF-DETERMINATION ASPIRATION IN PAPUA: A CRITICAL EXAMINATION OF POLITICAL DYNAMICS

Abstract

This paper attempts to critically examine the special autonomy status granted by
the State of Indonesia and of its practices in the Papua region. Within the broader context
of its historical trajectory as a colonized entity, the region itself is administered in division
of six provinces, Central Papua (Papua Tengah), Highland Papua (Papua Pegunungan),
Papua (Papua), South Papua (Papua Selatan), Southwest Papua (Papua Barat Daya), and
West Papua (Papua Barat). Meanwhile, in the context of selfdetermination movement
among the indigenous Papuans, the whole region referred to itself as West Papua,
encompassing a far larger area than its contemporary by the Indonesian state
administration; an adoption of a political stance that considers Papua as a colonized
region. As such the research delves into the implementation and effectiveness of such
circumstances through scrutinizing the roles of political institutions in the region
stemming from the special autonomy status, and also assessed the implications and
outcomes from such practices on the Papuan people selfdetermination, indigenous
representation, and political agency. In doing so, this research explores the tensions
between the pursuit of autonomy and the lingering legacy of colonialism, shedding light
on the complexities of political dynamics and power relations. Methodically speaking, this
paper utilizes literary review with historical and critical methods to assert the arguments
presented in the findings. Concluding this paper, it can be argued that the Special
Autonomy Status granted by the State of Indonesia in its practice through the political
institutions derived from it is a social hegemony which dismisses and discredited the
subordinated groups and the selfdetermination aspiration both in the political society and
civic society in the region. Additionally, the coercion and ideological domination
committed by these same institutions discriminate and hold back the political agency of
the self-determination movement to reach further audiences amongst the indigenous
populations. This paper suggests that there must be a change in strategy of the self
determination movement in such a situation in order to bring about higher consciousness
of the circumstances faced by the subaltern Papuan indigenous people. Through the claim
asserted in this research, the study aims to contribute to the discourse on decolonization,
indigenous rights, and political autonomy in the context of Papua specifically – and the
concept and practice of political autonomy in general, offering insights into the challenges
and opportunities that shape regional political landscape