Irian Jaya Travel Guide

Western New Guinea is the Indonesian western half of the island of New Guinea and consists of two provinces, Papua and West Papua. It was previously known by various names, including Netherlands New Guinea (1895–1 October 1962), West New Guinea (1 October 1962–1 May 1963), West Irian (1 May 1963–1973), and Irian Jaya (1973–2000). The incorporation of western New Guinea into Indonesia remains controversial with human rights NGOs, including some supporters in the United States Congress and other bodies, as well as many of the territory's indigenous population. Many indigenous inhabitants and human rights NGOs refer to it as West Papua.
Western New Guinea was annexed by Indonesia under the 1969 Act of Free Choice in accord with the controversial 1962 New York Agreement. During the rule of President Suharto from 1965 to 1998, human rights and other advocates criticized Indonesian government policies in the province as repressive, and the area received relatively little attention in Indonesia's development plans. During the Reformasi period from 1998 to 2001, Papua and other Indonesian provinces received greater regional autonomy. In 2001, a law was passed granting "Special Autonomy" status to Papua, although many of the law's requirements have either not been implemented or have been only minimally implemented. (...) more....

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