Izaac Hindom

On 3 August 1982, Busiri Suryowinoto, the Governor of Irian Jaya, went to Japan to undergo an operation for his cholelithiasis.[13] However, Busiri died on his way from the Narita Airport to the Jutendo Hospital[14] the day after.[13] Hindom, as the most powerful person in Irian Jaya after Busiri's departure, automatically assumed office as the acting Governor of Irian Jaya following Busiri's death.[15]

A gubernatorial election was held several months later to elect a definitive governor. The election, which was held on 16 October 1982, saw Hindom winning with 29 out of 39 votes cast.[16] Hindom was sworn in as the governor by ad interim Minister of Internal Affairs Sudharmono on 12 November 1982.[15]

Hindom was a keen supporter of the transmigration program. Under his rule, the central government shifted the transmigration focus from Sumatra to Papua.[18] Hindom believed that transmigration would break the isolation of remote tribes and provide technology, education, and electricity to remote tribes in Irian Jaya.[17] In an interview, Hindom planned to resettle 700,000 transmigrants at the end of his term,[19] far more compared to the 58,000 transmigrants[20] resettled prior to Hindom's term.[21] The resettlement program was organized by the local and central governments, although sometimes it involved companies operating in the region.[22]

Minister of Defence Poniman handing over the list of the five-year development projects in Irian Jaya to Governor Izaac Hindom.

To optimize the transmigration program, Hindom divided the province into four development regions. Each region was centered in a city. The first region was centered in Jayapura, the second was centered in Biak, the third was centered in Sorong, and the fourth was centered in Merauke. The government claimed that the formation of the development regions managed to alleviate isolation from remote places and helped to build new villages and transport hubs.[23]

Hindom, a Papuan himself, viewed the transmigrants (mostly Javanese) as more superior physically and morally compared to the ethnic Papuans, whom he described as backward and self-centered.[24] Hindom actively promoted the assimilation between Papuans and Javanese, and stated that a mixed marriage between Papuans and Javanese will give birth to a mixed race and "sowing the seeds for greater beauty". Hindom also did not share the fear that the Muslim-majority Javanese would convert the Christian-majority Papuans to Islam, and stated it as "God's will" if it ever happened.[25] He predicted in 1984 that in fifty years, the natives of the region would look similar to the Javanese.[26]

The implementation of the program was criticized by the transmigrants. Complaints from transmigrants focused on practical difficulties, such as bad site selection, inadequate land preparation, poor water supply, lack of good roads and transport, and pests.[27]

The first governor of Irian Jaya, Eliezer Jan Bonay, expressed his disapproval of Hindom's transmigration policy. He stated that the transmigrants were forcing their religion on Papuans and that transmigration caused Papuans to have only very low and clerical jobs.[28] Similar criticism was delivered by Western environmentalists and human rights groups, which requested the World Bank to halt the funding for the transmigration program.[27] Tapol, a non-governmental organisation which monitored human rights issues in Indonesia, described Hindom as "the mouthpiece of the Indonesian colonial government in Jakarta" and as "wanting to hasten the process of obliterating the Melanesian people and culture" through his transmigration programs.[29]

Aside from disapproval by NGOs, the transmigration policy was also criticized by Indonesian officials. The commander of the Irian Jaya Military Region during Hindom's term, Raja Kami Sembiring Meliala, pointed out that the effects of the program might "prove counter-productive" and advised the government to "drastically revise the program" because it made the Papuans "...feel like strangers in their own land".[19]

Under Busiri Suryowinoto, Hindom's predecessor, the proposal to split the province of Irian Jaya had been widely discussed amongst Papuan bureaucrats. As a vice governor, Hindom was asked by Busiri to assist him in formulating the proposal.[30] After Busiri's death, Hindom continued the discourse about the proposal.[31] The proposal was delivered to Suharto in 1982[32] and was approved in July 1983.[33] The proposal resulted in a division of the province into three semi-official region on 11 January 1984.[34] Each semi-official region was headed by an assistant governor. The assistant governors was given the task of preparing the transformation of the semi-official regions into provinces.[33]

During his term, Hindom promoted exploitation of Papua's forest resources. Hindom's promotion attracted companies such as Hanurata company, which was owned by Probosutedjo, brother of President Suharto. Hanurata received concessions from the local government to exploit Irian Jaya's forest resources, but the company did not support local populations as most of the workers were brought from outside the province.[35]

Hindom continued the anti-koteka campaign, which had begun since the Acub Zainal administration in 1973. The campaign was part of an attempt to gradually abolish koteka in the region.[36]

In accordance to the law, Hindom's term as the governor of Irian Jaya would end on 12 November 1987. Thus, the Regional People's Representative Council of Irian Jaya — the region's parliament — prepared a parliamentary election to elect a new governor. Three candidates ran in the election. The first candidate was Hindom himself, while the second and third candidates were S.H. Gultom, Hindom's assistant,[33] and S. Samiyana, a Javanese bureaucrat who worked in Irian Jaya.[37][38]

Hindom's nomination sparked protests from various groups in Irian Jaya. On 2 September 1987, the eight major tribal chiefs of Papua delivered a letter to President Suharto which demanded Hindom to resign.[38] The protests continued up until the elections on 26 September when a group of students from the Cenderawasih University went to the office of the Regional People's Representative Council and protested against Hindom.[39] Hindom later won the election with 35 votes, while his opponent Gultom and Samiyana only obtained six and four votes each.[40]

However, on 12 October, Hindom stated his withdrawal from the elections, citing polygamy — which violates Government Regulation No. 10 of 1983 — as his main reason.[38] Hindom later met with the Minister of Internal Affairs Soepardjo Roestam to elaborate on his withdrawal. Soepardjo explained that Hindom cited his inability to cope with the burden of governorship and the succession of the governorship by a younger generation as his other reasons.[41] After his withdrawal, Gultom and Samiyana also withdrew, thus annulling the results of the election.[38]

The second election which was intended to replace the results of the first elections could not be held before Hindom's term expired. Thus, on 18 November 1987, Soepardjo inaugurated Hindom for an extension of his term.[42] A second election was done on 13 February 1988. Barnabas Suebu, the Speaker of the Regional People's Representative Council of Irian Jaya, won the election with 35 votes.[43] Hindom handed over his office to Suebu on 13 April 1988.[44]