The Late Brigadier – General Richard Jouweni, Commander of the West Papua National Liberation Army or TPN/OPM: 6 Years Later

On Friday 16 October 2015, the Commander of TPN/OPM guerilla forces passed on.

He was the Invictus. The diplomatic option was galvanised to put the case for West Papua to the international community. According to him, the correct strategy to pursue was MSG membership by ULMWP.

It was the beginning of a final nail in the coffin to end Indonesian occupation of West Papua, the land of song and dance.

His motherland. The script did not change in his life time, never elastic, but cemented into the slogan he told this writer: ‘Berontal Total’. 

If translated, it would mean, ‘Give me liberty, or give me death’. His only guilt was being Melanesian. 

His pride is to die a Papuan freedom fighter. Least we forget!

Hormat, Bapah Komandan!

2021. PNG for the first time raised the West Papua issue at the UN General Assembly annual meeting.

Prime Minister James Marape spent 31 seconds, and 2 paragraphs, His speech was 46 minutes long. The 31 seconds dedicated to putting the case for West Papua redefined history.

And, changed the roadmap for freedom for West Papua. MSG membership for West Papua is a foregone conclusion, next.

(Photo caption: West Papua - the ' low level insurgency' fought by Papuan nationalists across the border has gone on for decades since 1960s; Late Richard Youweni, Commander of TPN/OPM, was the Invictus, in which the diplomatic option was pushed as Melanesian awakening kicked in to start the conversation in the MSG; Late Grand Chief Sir Michael Somare - he wanted both West Papua and Kanaky colonial context to be the basis for MSG involvement; UN General Assembly annual meeting - 76th Session, PNG Prime Minister James Marape raised the West Papua issue, 6 years after the TPN/OPM guerilla forces Commander Brigadier General Richard Youweni passed on)