Madame Chairperson, We are all aware of the historical development of the province of Irian Jaya. This was based on the agreement of 15 August 1962 between Indonesia and the Netherlands and thereafter it was approved by the General Assembly of the United Nations in September of the same year. Since then the province has sufficiently progressed and developed, in particular under the National Five year Development Plan. As a result, efforts to revive the idea of creating an independent state as promised by the former colonial administration was illusory. Madame Chairperson, The promotion and protection of the cultural identity of all ethnic groups in Indonesia are guaranteed in Article 32 of the Constitution, which states that the government shall advance the national cultural heritage of Indonesia.
National culture expresses the personality and vitality of the entire people of Indonesia.
The ancient and indigenous cultures which form cultural peaks in all the regions throughout Indonesia are part of the national culture. In Irian Jaya the people's culture is fully respected. The objective of Indonesia's transmigration programme, which is a national endeavour already in existance for many years, is to expand development efforts and to evenly spread its benefits to the regions outside of the already overpopulated areas in order to achieve national balanced economic progress. The purpose is to utilize the surplus agricultural manpower available to develop land resources in the outer islands. It is aimed at improving the standard of living of the community in general, by increasing regional development and by assisting the people on the outer islands that demonstrate a relative lag in development.