PAPUA – Spokesperson of the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB), Sebby Sambom, asserted regarding the direction of the Papua nation's struggle which he assesses needs to be united immediately.

​Sebby highlighted that the main obstacle at this time lies in sectoral ego among the fighters, whether in the political, civil, or diplomacy realms.

​He emphasized that the initial goal of activating the West Papua National Committee (KNPB) to the formation of diplomatic coordination body was to unite the vision for the sake of accelerating independence, so that the older generation who have fought for a long time can witness the results of their struggle before they pass away.

​In his statement, Sebby explained that this unification effort is a strategic step to revive the dignity of the Parliament that was once formed by indigenous Papuans in 1961. However, he regrets the existence of factional and tribal interests that began to enter the body of organization since 2016.

​"It is not anyone's fault, but it is the responsibility of the Papuan people who become fighters in politics, civil, and diplomats to unite. We have conceptualized from the beginning to reactivate the 1961 Parliament which was a pure formation of the Papuan people, not the Dutch. Diplomats abroad must enter international lobbies so that independence can be achieved quickly," asserted Sebby Sambom.

​Responding to these internal dynamics, Sebby stated that since 2017 in Vanuatu, TPNPB has taken an official stance to stand as an independent military wing and is not involved in political factions within the ULMWP.

​TPNPB is now focusing itself on the agenda of total revolution through two paths, namely the legal path and the war path.

​According to him, the military escalation on the ground is not merely an act of violence, but a conflict management tactic to drive the Government of Indonesia to the international negotiating table to discuss the recognition of independence or a referendum.

​Sebby also strongly denied the labeling of terrorists or criminal groups often pinned by the Government of Indonesia on the fighters in the forest.

​He asserted that what TPNPB is doing is a pure struggle of a nation that wants to be sovereign on its own land.

​"We are not terrorists, we are not criminals. We are fighting for our rights and our land like other nations. This war is our way to force Indonesia to sit at the negotiating table. A peaceful solution or peace solution recognized by the international world is sitting at the negotiating table, there is no other reason. So if anyone is allergic to negotiations, whether the government or the people, then they are mistaken because every political or armed conflict always ends at that table to find a complete solution," he concluded. ***