The History of Papua in Forming Indonesia

Papua - From the start, Papua was like other ethnic groups in Indonesia who had the will to unite and have a state, to be independent and to have national sovereignty, and then to be free from foreign domination and imperialism. Papua and other ethnic groups then jointly unite in the name of the Republic of Indonesia, a nation state that stretches from Sabang to Merauke.

Papua is among the shareholder of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI). Long before independence, there was a site named Boven Digoel in Papua where Indonesian nationalism was blossomed. On the banks of the Digoel river, in the south of Papua, where the Dutch colonials had built a detention camp for hardline Indonesian activists since before 1930, the seeds of Indonesia's struggle for independence were sown.

Mohammad Hatta and Sutan Syahrir were once detained there. Hatta was the first Proclaimer and Vice President of the Republic of Indonesia, while Syahrir was the first prime minister of Indonesia. Other than those two, there was also the typist of the proclamation text, Sayuti Melik. Indonesia that is in their minds, was shackled there. As a result, Boven Digoel has become the anchor of Indonesian ideals in Papua.

While being detained there, on January 20, 1934, Bung Hatta wrote: 

 “Wherever fate leads us, wherever the oppressor threw us all over, every inch of Indonesia, is ours. Upon the land and water I live, I am happy. Wherever my feet stood on the land of Indonesia, there is where the hope and our dreams grew.”

Bung Hatta's words of contemplation are written eternally under the statue of the Proclaimer, which still stands today in Boven Digoel. Words that are firmly entrenched are like the spirit of Indonesian nationalism that is spreading in Papua. From the prison of the most dangerous tropical rain forest, the spirit of Indonesian nationalism penetrated the souls of the educated young Papuans at that time. One of them was the young Marthen Inday.

Marthen Indey was born on March 16, 1912 with the name Soroway Inday. Marthen is his baptismal name. He was the son of a prominent tribal chief. So, Little Inday was able to attend school in Ambon, Maluku, until he graduated from high school in 1930. At that young age, Marthen entered the Navy school in Makassar and graduated in 1932. However, after his first voyage, Marthen changed the course of his career, he entered the Police academy in Sukabumi in 1934 and graduated in 1935.

After serving in Ambon, Maluku, in 1940 Marthen served in Manokwari, Papua. In 1941, as a member of the colonial police, Marthen freely mingled with political prisoners from Boven Digoel, especially Sugoro Atmoprasodjo. It was his acquaintance with Sugoro that changed Marthen's outlook on life.

Soegoro is Digoelis who was a former teacher at the Taman Siswa College formed by Ki Hadjar Dewantara. He is also an activist from the Indonesian Party (Partindo). Soon, Soegoro became Marthen's teacher. From there, Marthen understood the meaning of Dutch colonialism and imperialism as well as understood the meaning of Indonesian nationalism. Marthen then became a very formidable fighter for Indonesian independence from the land of Papua.

The events that was happened in Boven Digoel is what makes Papua one of the rightful owners of the Republic of Indonesia. The existence of Boven Digoel, with thousands of prisoners, made the use of the Malay language, the forerunner of Indonesian, increasingly popular in Papua and increasingly became the lingua franca among the hundreds of tribes in Papua, each of which has its own language.

The development of the Malay language, which later turn into Indonesian, in Papua, made the 1928 Youth Pledge find its relevance in Papua. The Youth Pledge is a monumental moment of the Indonesian independence struggle movement that took place in Jakarta, on October 28, 1928.

At that time, youths from all regions in Indonesia, from various ethnicities, called for the Youth Pledge: One Nation, the Indonesian Nation. One homeland, the Motherland of Indonesia, and Upholding the Language of Unity, the Indonesian Language.

Toni Wanggai, a Papuan intellectual figure, emphasized that there were Papuan youths who took part in the momentum of the Youth Pledge, October 28, 1928.

The Papuan youth who attended the 1928 Youth Pledge were Aitai Karubaba, Abner Ohee, and Orpa Pallo. True, they did not come as a Papuan delegation. They came as part of the delegation from Tidore, Maluku. However, the fact that there are three Papuan youths in the Youth Pledge further shows that Papua was involved in designing the Republic of Indonesia from the start.