The Indonesian president, Joko Widodo, told reporters on Saturday that the government would lift decades-old reporting restrictions for foreign journalists in West Papua and a group of political prisoners in the insurgency-hit eastern province would be released.



The moves signalled that Widodo, who took office last year, is easing the tight grip that Jakarta has long kept on the mineral-rich province, where poorly armed fighters have for years fought a low-level insurgency against the central government.

Widodo has taken a keen interest in West Papua, pledging to improve livelihoods in the heavily-militarised area which lags behind other parts of Indonesia in terms of development.

The five political prisoners – convicted over a 2003 raid on an Indonesian military weapons arsenal – were granted clemency by Widodo in a ceremony at Abepura prison, in the provincial capital Jayapura.

Dozens of West Papuan separatists are in jail for committing treason for acts such as raising the pro-independence Morning Star flag and taking part in anti-government protests.

Widodo shook hands with the five Melanesian prisoners at the prison, presenting each with a letter confirming the remainder of their sentences was being waived.

“Today we are releasing these five detainees to stop the stigma of conflict in Papua,” he told reporters at the prison. “We need to create a sense of peace in Papua. This is just the beginning.”

The release marks a change in approach from previous governments. During the 10-year rule of president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, only one political prisoner in West Papua was granted clemency, according to Human Rights Watch.

Freed West Papuan political prisoner Numbungga Telenggen, left, is hugged by a supporter after his release. Photograph: Romeo Gacad/AFP/Getty Images

However Andreas Harsono, a researcher with Human Rights Watch, called on Widodo to go further by offering all prisoners amnesty. Prisoners have to request clemency and admit guilt before it is granted, but this is not a requirement for an amnesty.

Widodo also revealed in an interview with a group of reporters in Abepura that foreign journalists would be allowed full access to the province.

“Tomorrow I will declare it,” he said. However, implementing the change could prove tough.

Harsono predicted there would be resistance from some quarters, including the foreign ministry which currently oversees the visa issuing process.

He said there would also be “a lot of pressure to implement it” in the coming months.

Indonesia has long been deeply sensitive about foreign journalists covering Papua. Applying for permission to go there is complex, and it is rarely granted.

Punishments for foreigners caught illegally reporting can be harsh – two French journalists were given short jail terms last year for trying to make a documentary on the separatist movement without authorisation.

There are still regular flare-ups of violence in West Papua, where insurgents are fighting on behalf of the mostly ethnic Melanesian population.

Indonesian troops are regularly accused of abusing West Papuan villagers in the name of anti-rebel operations, but Jakarta denies allegations of systematic human rights abuses.

Jakarta took control of West Papua, which forms half of the island of New Guinea, between 1963 and 1969 from former colonial power the Netherlands, after a much criticised process dubbed the Act of Free Choice.