The Australian Prime Minister has discounted an opinion poll, which shows that more than three quarters of Australians support independence for the Indonesian province of Papua.
John Howard says the last thing Australia would want is a fragmenting of Indonesia.
And, the Foreign Minister Alexander Downer has again reassured the Indonesian
Government that the Australian Government won't back any push for Papuan separatism.
But the Australian businessman who commissioned the poll, Ian Melrose, has started campaigning for Papuan independence.
The opinion poll shows that over 75 percent of those questioned support self determination and the option of independence for the Indonesian province of Papua.
Mr Melrose says it shows most Australians don't support the Federal Government's position.
