Hai Tanahku Papua


Hai Tanahku Papua was an anthem of Netherlands New Guinea and of the unilaterally declared Republic of West Papua.

History

The anthem was composed by the Dutch missionary Rev. Izaak Samuel Kijne during the 1930s.
After the Dutch supervised election of a regional parliament, the Nieuw Guinea Raad, a group was formed on 19 October 1961 to elect a national committee. The committee drafted a Manifesto for Independence & Self-government, a national flag, state seal, selected "Hai Tanahku Papua" as a national anthem, and called for the people to be known as Papuans. The New Guinea Council voted unanimously in favour of these proposals on 30 October 1961, and on 31 October 1961 presented the Morning Star flag and Manifesto to Governor Platteel. The Dutch recognized the flag and anthem on 18 November 1961, and these ordinances came into effect on 1 December 1961. The anthem went out of public use after the military occupation of West Papua by the Indonesian Armed Forces in 1963.

Current status

The anthem is currently a prominent symbol of independence activists, including Organisasi Papua Merdeka, and use of the anthem within the province is prohibited. The song has also been proposed as a symbol of the province of Papua.

Lyrics