The Government of Indonesia awarded the title National Hero—from Aceh to Papua—to people who made important positive contributions in fighting and defending the independence of Indonesia. There are national heroes from Papua whose names are not famous, but have been designated in a lifetime honor and will be memorialized forever.
They have led and fought in an armed struggle, politically, or in other fields to achieve, seize, and defend independence. They were able to generate some great thoughts to support the development of their nation and produce great works that rewarded the welfare of society. Here are some of them:
Silas Papare
Silas Papare was a native Papuan, born on December 18th, 1918 in Serui. On March 7th, 1978 in his birthplace, he passed away. The Indonesian national hero was awarded to him in 1993. As one of the national heroes from Papua who had great service, these are his prominent services for NKRI:
- He was a fighter for the unification of Irian Jaya (Papua) into Indonesian territory. He often dealt with Dutch colonialism and was imprisoned in Jayapura for leading the Papuan Battalion to rebel.
- He dedicated as a front liner for helping the government in West Papua integration by establishing a political party and organization.
- He was one of Indonesian’s delegation for the New York Agreement in 1962.
To commemorate Silam Papare’s services as one of the most prominent national heroes from Papua, his name was eternalized as one of the Indonesian Navy War boats. One monument after his name was also built near the Serui seaport.
Johannes Abraham Dimara
Johannes Abraham Dimara raised the flag of Indonesia for the first time in Buru Island, Maluku in 1946. He was a Bible teacher on the island. He was born on April 16th, 1916 in Korem, Biak Utara. He passed away on October 20th, 2000 in Jakarta. These are the great service of Dimara, one of the national heroes from Papua:
- He joined APRIS—a Pattimura Battalion—to defeat RMS in 1949, just right after the colonial hand over East Indies to Indonesia.
- In 1950, during the integration process of West Irian to the Republic of Indonesia, he was appointed as the chief of Organisasi Pembebasan Irian Barat (OPI).
- In 1954 he was exiled to Digul by the colonial due to his dedication in the Indonesian national army and was released in 1960.
- During the announcement of Trikora in Yogyakarta, he was stood with President Soekarno along with the other prominent people.
- He was persisted to convince West Papuan people that Papua was a part and the rightful territory of Republic Indonesia.
His contribution in Independence of Indonesia and as one of the most influential national heroes from Papua is recorded in a 2000 book: Fai Do Ma, Mai Do Fa, Lintas Perjuangan Putra Papua J.A. Dimara.
Marthen Indey
The national hero title was awarded to Marthen Indey on September 14th, 1993. He was born on March 14th, 1912 in Doromena, Papua.
Far before he became one of the national heroes from Papua, he was a policeman for the government of colonial. He made up his mind to participate in the fight for Indonesian independence after he met some of the prominent Indonesian political prisoners in Digul; one of them is the director of the School of Administration at Nica City, Sugoro Atmoprasojo.
His participation in one of the political parties named Partai Indonesia Merdeka was his first movement in Indonesia’s politics. He was also active in the Trikora operation in 1962. In the same year, he pioneered Piagam Kota Baru—stated that the citizens of Papua were willing to remain loyal to Indonesia. Marthen Indey was also appointed as one of the members of MPRS (1963-1968)
Frans Kaisiepo
Frans Kaisiepo was born on October 10th, 1921 in Wardo, Biak, Papua. He passed away at the age of 57, on April 10th, 1979 in Jayapura, Papua. He is one of the national heroes from Papua. These are his services to the independence of Indonesia:
- In 1846, he joined the Malino Conference and proposed the name Irian, originally from Biak language meaning steamy place.
- Three days to the Proclamation (August 14th, 1945), he played the national anthem, Indonesia Raya, in Kampung Harapan Jayapura along with his comrades.
- On August 31, 1945, after the Proclamation, they held a ceremony by raising the flag of Indonesia and sang the national anthem as well.
- He was also appointed as governor of Papua (1964-1973), and the Papua referendum (1965) was held under Kaisiepo’s administration.
On December 19th, 2016, the Bank of Indonesia released the IDR 10,000 banknote with the image of Kaisiepo on the front side.
These are the four National Heroes from Papua that fought for the independence of Indonesia. We ought to appreciate and remember their services. Despite all the difficulties and challenges, there are still many heroes from Papua who never tire of free West Papua from the colonial governments and show the world that West Papua is a rightful territory of Indonesia.
