West New Guinea: A Contested Transfer

When the Netherlands recognized Indonesian independence in 1949, it kept West New Guinea, arguing its Papuan people were culturally distinct and should eventually decide their own future. Indonesia claimed the territory as part of the former Dutch East Indies. In 1961 the Dutch allowed a Papuan council to raise a Morning Star flag, while Indonesia increased military pressure. The United States, keen to keep Sukarno from moving closer to the Soviet Union, brokered the New York Agreement of August 1962.

The territory passed to a temporary UN administration and then to Indonesia in 1963, with a promise of an 'act of free choice'. In 1969 just over a thousand selected representatives voted unanimously to remain with Indonesia, and the UN General Assembly noted the result. Many Papuans and some scholars have criticized the process as not a genuine vote of the population, while Indonesia regards it as settled. The case highlights tensions between inherited colonial borders and self-determination.