Western New Guinea

城市概覽

Papua consists of the six provinces of Papua (the traditional name is Tabi Saireri), Central Papua (Mee Pago), Highland Papua (La Pago), South Papua (Anim Ha), West Papua (Bomberai), and Southwest Papua (Domberai) in Indonesia.

History Like the rest of Indonesia, West Papua was part of the Dutch East Indies before World War II. However, after Indonesian independence, the region remained under Dutch rule for some time. Elections were held in the territory in 1959 and an elected council took office in 1961, in preparation for full independence from the Dutch. However, the Dutch handed the area over to a UN temporary administration, who in turned gave it over to Indonesia in 1963. A controversial plebiscite known as the Act of Free Choice, held in 1969, resulted in an improbable 100% vote in favor of joining Indonesia. The region, renamed first as Irian Barat (West Irian) and then Irian Jaya (Glorious Irian) has been under heavy Indonesian military control ever since, with the outgunned Free Papua Movement (Operasi Papua Merdeka or OPM) fighting for independence. The name Papua was restored in 2000 in a sop to the nationalists. The province was split into two in 2003 in a very controversial move, with the Bird's Head Peninsula and surrounding islands becoming West Papua (Papua Barat). A further split occurred in 2022, to create some new provinces, Central Papua province, Highland Papua province, South Papua province, and Southwest Papua province.

Culture Comprising the western half of the island of New Guinea, the world's largest and highest tropical island, Papua is incredibly diverse and different from the rest of Indonesia (or, for that matter, anywhere else in the world), with most of its inhabitants being Melanesians and hence, culturally similar to the indigenous peoples of Papua New Guinea, the Solomon Islands, New Caledonia and Fiji. Despite having a population of under five million, Papua is home to over 250 languages and retains many traditional culture

如何抵達

Travel permits (surat jalan) are required for all travel in Papua beyond the main coastal towns. The list changes randomly, but Jayapura and Biak are generally permit-free, and Sentani, Manokwari and Sorong are usually fine. Permits are most easily acquired in Jayapura and Biak, where they're usually obtainable in one day, although they are usually available in the other non-permit towns as well. Two passport photos and a token administration fee (Rp5,000 or so) are required. The permit must list all the places you're planning to visit, no changes are allowed unless you get a new one in the main town. Whenever you arrive in a new town in Papua, you have to get your permit stamped at the police station. Make lots of copies, you'll need them for hotels and such. Despite the claims of some embassies to the contrary, no permits are required for the travel to Papua. It's best not to mention Papua at all when applying for a visa.

By plane Although Papua can be accessed either by water or air, almost all travellers travel by air. The main gateway is Sentani Airport in Jayapura (DJJ IATA), but there are also frequent flights from some major Indonesian cities to Biak (BIK IATA), Manokwari (MKW IATA), Sorong (SOQ IATA) and Timika (TIM IATA). There are some direct flights to Papua from Jakarta, but for most destinations and carriers a stopover is necessary, usually in Makassar. Wamena Airport (WMX IATA) to the Baliem Valley.

By boat

PT. Pelayaran Nasional Indonesia (PELNI) operates boat services from other parts of Indonesia and within Papua, with serviced places on the island including Biak, Serui, Nabire, Sorong, Fakfak, Timika and Merauke. (Reports indicate it takes approximately 2 weeks from Jakarta to Jayapura; it takes 2½ days from Jayapura to Nabire) PELNI boats KM. Sinabung from Surabaya stop at Jayapura, Sorong, Manokwari and Biak. This is a relaxing and interesting way to arrive if you have the time. PELNI provides a 3-class service, consisting roughly of

當地交通

Most of Papua's main cities are not connected by road, but Trans Papua Sorong-Manokwari-Bintuni with almost 600 km length has been finished (the other sections of Trans Papua are being built). Cars can drive easily along the route but should bring tools to fix breakdowns and carry sufficient fuel. State-owned bus company, DAMRI serves some cities including Biak, Jayapura, Manokwari, Mimika, Nabire, Sarmi and Sorong. Flying is a practical option for covering longer distances. Boat charter for river travel is surprisingly expensive, the price going from US$50/day for a simple canoe to a whopping US$500/day (including gas) for a motorised outboard, but the price is downward gradually, because the subsidised fuel price nowadays is same in all over Indonesia since 2017. The problem in Papua is there are only limited formal fuel pumps, but private fuel vendors are available.

Since most cities which are scattered across the island, usually almost all travel within the Papua region is done by air. Big airlines such as Garuda, Sriwijaya and Wings Air (a subsidiary of Lion Air) hop between major cities in Papua. Smaller airlines including Trigana Air Service, Aviastar, Nusantara, Susi Air, and quite a few others do regional hops. Special charter flights to one of the more than 300 very remote villages can be scheduled with charter airlines such as Susi Air and Mimika Air or with flight organisations such as Associated Mission Aviation (AMA), based in Jayapura. If you are very lucky, you might be able to catch a cargo plane ride (no seat belts!) from Wamena in the Baliem Valley to Jayapura for a mere Rp50,000-100,000. But for safety, Wings Air and Trigana Air Service have scheduled flights between those two cities.

Susi Air to local destinations across Papua. +62 811 211 3080 Trigana Air. +62 967 535 666 Lion Air provides budget flights to and from various parts of Indonesia, and regional flights between major cities in Papua. +62 80 4177 8899

必看景點

See Australasian wildlife in the national park or conservation area including birds-of-paradise, cassowary, crowned pigeon, dingiso, dorcopsis, pig-nosed turtle, tree-kangaroo, waigeou cuscus, and so on.

Traditional houses of Papuan people, Honai, the traditional houses of the mountains Papuan, especially the Dani tribe. Rumah Tinggi of Korowai tribe, built on large and sturdy trees as the basis for the foundation. The tops of the trees are then deforested for further use as houses. All materials are of natural origin, logs and boards are used for the roof and floors, while the walls are made of sago bark and wide leaves. Jew, one of the traditional houses from the Asmat tribe. Mumi Papua (Papuan mummy), the mummification is done by fumigating the corpse with firewood. There are five tribes in Papua that have a tradition of mummifying corpses, including the Mek tribe in the Pegunungan Bintang, the Dani tribe in the Baliem Valley, the Moni tribe in Intan Jaya, the Yali tribe in Kurima, and the Mee tribe in Dogiyai. H