AFP Jakarta   ●   Wed, October 18, 2023 The National Police said on Tuesday that armed rebels had gunned down seven civilians when they opened fire on a gold mine in Papua. Authorities said assailants fired shots at mining workers on Monday afternoon in the remote, mountainous Yahukimo district.  Police claimed The West Papua Liberation Army (TPNPB) separatist group led by Egianus Kogoya was behind the shootings.

“We will chase the perpetrators and we will take legal action against the separatists and Egianus Kogoya,” Faizal Ramadhani, head of Cartenz Peace Taskforce, a special group formed to handle the Papua separatists, said in a statement Tuesday.

Faizal said a police unit sent to retrieve the bodies and rescue survivors was fired on by the rebels. “As soon as we arrived at the location, our personnel were attacked and the gunfire lasted 1.5 hours,” he said. Seven bodies have been retrieved from the location while 11 other people were rescued alive, police said. Most of the dead were migrants from the South Sulawesi. 

The rebels also burned down excavators, trucks and the workers’ camp, police added. The rebels claimed responsibility for the attacks, saying that they had warned the migrants to leave the region and all Papuan areas. “(Indonesia) must immediately open a negotiation with the Papuan nation to find a solution,” said the group’s spokesperson Elkius Kobak in a statement. The group is also responsible for the February 2023 kidnapping of a New Zealand pilot from the Papuan highlands.  Papua has seen several deadly attacks linked to the insurgency in recent years. Ten people were killed in July last year when a group of rebels attacked a truck full of civilians transporting goods.  In March 2022, eight telecommunications workers were shot dead while installing communications towers in Puncak district.

Papuan DPR members say illegal gold mining has a high potential for conflict

I feel sorry for the seven mine workers who were killed. May the family always be given strength. Second, Papua is very rife with illegal gold mining activities

News Desk – Illegal Gold Mining

October 19, 2023

Jayapura, Jubi TV– The potential for conflict in illegal traditional gold mining areas in a number of districts in Tanah Papua is considered quite high. However, the government seems to be neglecting it. The government is considered not serious about controlling illegal gold mining areas, even though conflicts often occur in the area.

This statement was made by a member of the Papua DPR’s Commission for Government, Politics, Law, Human Rights and Security, Laurenzus Kadepa.

Kadepa stated that this was related to the attack and murder of seven traditional gold miners in Kali I, Seradala District, Yahukimo Regency, Papua Mountain Province, on Monday (16/10/2023).

The West Papua National Liberation Army or TPNPB also stated responsibility for the attack.

“I feel sorry for the seven mine workers who were killed. May the family always be given strength. Secondly, Papua is very rife with wild or illegal gold mining activities, but it seems that the government is just ignoring it. “In fact, if you look at the potential for conflict in this mining area, it is very high,” said Kadepa when contacting Jubi via telephone, Thursday (19/10/2023).

According to him, apart from the potential for conflict, illegal gold mining also causes serious damage to nature and forests.

“I have always been vocal about closing all illegal mines in Papua,” he said.

He said, in 2018, he urged the Acting Governor of Papua at that time, Soedarmo, to go directly to Korowai, Boven Digoel Regency, which is now part of South Papua Province, to look at illegal mining activities there.

This was based on the aspirations of the Korowai people at that time through Pastor Trevor. At that time, the Papua Province regional government communications forum came to the location.

“Unfortunately, these steps were not followed by the governors and regents in Papua. “For me, the presence of illegal mining like this has many negative impacts, so it must be closed,” he said.

Laurenzus Kadepa also asked the security forces and TPNPB involved in the armed conflict not to continue killing civilians for various reasons.

“Stop killing civilians for whatever reason. I’m surprised that all this time there have been civilians shot by the TPNPB because it was part of the intelligence apparatus. On the other hand, if the TNI/Polri shoot civilians, they say they are part of the TPNPB, OPM and others. This is very dangerous. “If the government doesn’t find a solution, it will be dangerous for the lives of people in Papua,” said Kadepa.

Previously, TPNPB spokesperson, Sebby Sambom, said that the TPNPB Special Forces Kodap III Ndugama and Kodap XVI Yahukimo were responsible for the attack on the mine in Kali I, Seradala District, Yahukimo Regency, Papua Mountain Province.

“The Free Papua Organization TPNPB is responsible for the murder,” said Sambom.

Sambom stated that the gold mine in Seradala District was an illegal gold mine. He also conveyed accusations that there were TNI intelligence workers working in the mine at Yahukimo.

According to Sambom, his party has repeatedly warned civilians to leave areas of armed conflict, because the TPNPB will not compromise and shoot them.

Sambom stated that his party again demanded that the government immediately open a space for dialogue to find a solution to the armed conflict in the Land of Papua.

“We, TPNPB, ask the state to immediately open a space for negotiations with the Papuan people, to find a solution. “Once again, we TPNPB are not playing around,” he said. (*)

This article has been published on jubi.id with the title: Kadepa: Illegal gold mining has the potential to cause conflict