By Sushil Patel
Pohnpei , Jubi – 16 Pacific civil society representatives will breakfast with the Forum Troika this morning to highlight issues of concern to the sector and across the region.
Pacific Islands Association of NGOs (PIANGO) Executive Director, Emele Duituturaga said that the 16 are expected to highlight issues that came out of the Regional CSO Forum in Suva last month and the Micronesia Roundtable Forum held in Pohnpei, FSM earlier this week.
“Issues arising from the Pohnpei meeting include youth unemployment, gender based violence, disability, decolonisation and self -determination,” Duituturaga said.
“West Papua was already on our agenda as CSOs to highlight with TROIKA leaders and the Pohnpei CSO roundtable held earlier in the week agreed that the human rights violations in West Papua are a concern for the whole of the Pacific,” she said.
She said civil society leaders in Micronesia are deeply concerned about the atrocities and killings of West Papuans and will today call for Pacific Leaders to take a united stance against the blatant disregard for human dignity of their Pacific brothers and sisters including seeking United Nations intervention.
“In the roundtable, Micronesian civil society leaders present agreed that the North Pacific is uniquely placed to change the dynamics of the West Papua issue because of their special political relationship and connections with the United States of America.
“The North Pacific’s experiences dealing and negotiating with the USA can really solidify the regional solidarity that is growing around the Pacific for the case of West Papua.”
Out of the 16 CSO representatives attending the Troika breakfast, 10 are from the Micronesia sub region.
Also in the 16 member delegation is Peter Arndt, the visually impaired author of the shadow fact finding mission report on West Papua, “We Will Lose Everything”, who is expected to share copies of his report with Leaders present at the breakfast tomorrow.
Arndt earlier presented his findings to Micronesian CSO leaders at the Roundtable meeting which was organised by PIANGO with the support of the Pacific islands Forum Secretariat and European Union. (*)
