Voices and Noises: U.S. Influence, Indonesian Statecraft, and the Battle of Development Discourse in West Papua

Abstract

Assuming development interventions in West Papua are merely acts of state-making by the Indonesian government fails to apprehend the influence and involvement of transnational actors whose interests may either facilitate or obstruct Indonesia’s statecraft. This process involves collaborators, including the U.S., who help formulate and articulate development discourse. This rhetoric functions as a mechanism for controlling political and economic systems, shaping how power is produced, regulated, distributed, and exercised, thereby legitimizing their actions. This thesis examines how U.S. foreign investment and aid shaped development discourse in West Papua during Indonesia’s transition from the New Order to Reformasi (1997–early 2000s). It focuses on Freeport-McMoRan and USAID as key actors in embedding U.S. developmental ideas into Indonesian state-making and statecraft efforts. Using archival sources, including Tifa Irian newspaper articles, USAID reports, and the Amungme People’s Council meeting minutes, this study reveals how written discourse legitimized both U.S. interests and Indonesian state authority while silencing Papuan resistance. I juxtapose these written sources with non-written forms of grassroots knowledge from West Papua, including opinion articles in the media, music, documentary films, and everyday conversations with Papuan people. Through this approach, I seek to explore and analyze how narratives around development initiatives in West Papua have evolved. I argue that these initiatives have served as tools to maintain political control and reinforce power structures—operated by the U.S. as a key collaborator of the government of Indonesia.