Picture : Solidarity action to support ULMWP to become full member of MSG in Honiara, Solomon Islands.
Westnoken – The Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) is a regional organization consisting of countries in the Melanesian region, including Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, Fiji and New Caledonia. The MSG aims to promote economic, political and cultural cooperation between its member countries. The Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) has once again refused to merge with the group led by Benny Wenda, the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP). The leaders of the MSG member countries stated in a Joint Communique issued on 24 August 2023 that the ULMWP does not meet the MSG membership criteria. The MSG Summit reiterated that MSG membership is limited to sovereign countries only. In his statement on Saturday (26/8), Abdul Kadir Djaelani, Director General for Asia, Pacific and Africa of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs of the Republic of Indonesia, stated that the refusal showed that ULMWP had no place as a member of the MSG. The refusal of the Papuan separatist group to become a member of the MSG is the second after the same rejection occurred in 2016.
The MSG stated that it respects the principle of territorial integrity and sovereignty of every country. This decision was made even though the Indonesian Delegation for the MSG Summit, led by Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs Pahala Mansury, was firmly against MSG’s use of ULMWP propaganda. The Republic of Indonesia delegation has taken conventional diplomatic actions to show their refusal, such as leaving the room when the ULMWP submitted false information about the situation in Papua. ULMWP has misused the MSG forum to justify acts of violence committed by groups affiliated with it, which have committed various crimes such as taking hostages, burning schools, to killing Indigenous Papuans (OAP). Indonesia welcomes the decision of the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) to reject the application for membership of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) to join the group because Papua is a legal part of the Republic of Indonesia from various aspects, so Papua will forever and forever remain a legal part of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia.