Indonesia’s West Papua Special Autonomy Day is celebrated on November 21. West Papua Special Autonomy Day was established by Former Governor Lukas Enembe in early 2017.

The purpose of establishing Special Autonomy Day for West Papua is to remind that granting Special Autonomy status to the Papuan people is not a gift but the result of the struggle of all components of the people to obtain the essence of independence within the framework of the Republic of Indonesia.

However, the local government highlights that Law Number 21 of 2001 of the Republic of Indonesia concerning Special Autonomy for West Papua is no longer in accordance with the social and political dynamics in Papua.

Therefore, it is hoped that adjustments to the Special Autonomy Law can be made to suit the conditions of the West Papuan people.

What is West Papua’s Special Autonomy?

In 2001, Papua Province was given special autonomy based on Law no. 21 of 2001 as last amended by Law no. 2 of 2021 and also the enactment of Law no. 1 of 2022 concerning Financial Relations between the Central Government and Regional Government.

West Papua Special Autonomy is a special authority recognized and given to Papua Province, Indonesia.

The aim is to organize and manage the interests of the local community according to their own initiative based on the aspirations and basic rights of the West Papuan people.

The granting of special autonomy to Papua Province refers to the 1945 Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia which states that “the State recognizes and respects special or special regional government units”.

The granting of special autonomy to the province of Papua includes the granting of broad authority in all areas of government accompanied by the provision of revenue sources including Profit Sharing Funds, General Allocation Funds and Special Allocation Funds, special autonomy funds and additional Special Autonomy funds.

There are several objectives for granting West Papua Special Autonomy, namely:
1. Overcoming conflicts and demands for separation from the Republic of Indonesia
2. Accelerate development and improve the quality of public services
3. Uphold the dignity and protection of the basic rights of Indigenous West Papuans.

The Amount of the West Papua Special Autonomy Fund
In the area of regional finance, the specificities given regarding Special Autonomy are:

1. Special Revenue Post in the framework of implementing special autonomy, the amount of which is equivalent to 2% (two percent) of the ceiling of the Indonesian General Allocation Fund for 25 years, which is mainly intended for financing education and health.

2. Post Additional Infrastructure Funds in the context of implementing special autonomy, the amount of which is determined between the government and the regional Parliament based on the Province’s proposal in each fiscal year, which is mainly intended for financing infrastructure development.

Achievements and Problems of Papua’s Special Autonomy
Even though it has been running for twenty years, the implementation of special autonomy for West Papua has improved the welfare of the Papuan people but is not yet satisfactory.

Papua Province is still relatively behind and there are still gaps compared to other provinces in Indonesia, for example:

1. Life expectancy in Papua Province, in 2002 the average was 65.2 years and in 2020 the average was 67 YEARS, there was an increase but it was still below the national average life expectancy, in 2002 it was 66.2 years and in 2020 71 years old.

2. The illiteracy rate in Papua Province in 2003 was 25.5% and in 2020 22.1%, this shows improvement, however this condition shows that the illiteracy rate is still quite high compared to the national average, at the national level, namely 10% in 2003 and 4% in 2020.

3. The poverty rate in Papua Province in 2007 reached 40.8% and in 2020 21.7% shows improvement, but is still relatively high compared to the average poverty rate in other regions of Indonesia, namely 16.6% in 2007 and 10, 2% in 2020.

4. One of the problems with implementing Special Autonomy for Papua is that the majority of districts/cities in the two provinces are classified as underdeveloped areas, 75% in Papua and 61% in West Papua.

This is due to geographical factors which cause high construction costs, indicated by a very high Construction Cost Index.