JAKARTA: Indonesia’s top court on Friday rejected an appeal by an Indigenous tribe in its lawsuit against a palm oil firm, leaving it at risk of losing vast swathes of ancestral forest, rights groups said.
The Awyu tribe, whose roughly 20,000 members rely on the land for their subsistence, had sought to freeze the operations of PT Indo Asiana Lestari (PT IAL) in the eastern Indonesian province of West Papua.
But Indonesia’s Supreme Court rejected their final appeal, according to a document published on its website Friday, upholding the company’s 36,000-hectare (89,000-acre) government concession, more than half the size of the Indonesian capital Jakarta.
“I feel heartbroken because I am left with no other legal avenue to protect the land and the people of my ancestral homeland,“ said Awyu tribe plaintiff Hendrikus Woro.
“I am shattered because throughout this struggle, there has been no support from the government, local or central. Who am I supposed to turn to, and where should I go now?” he said in a statement released by the Coalition to Save Papuan Customary Forests, made up of 10 environmental NGOs.
A supreme court spokesperson declined to comment when contacted by AFP about the ruling.
The Awyu tribe’s case drew attention in Indonesia earlier this year after a campaign called ‘All Eyes on Papua’ spread on social media.
“Both the government and the legal system have failed to stand with Indigenous peoples,“ said Sekar Banjaran Aji of the Save Papuan Customary Forest advocacy team.
“The struggle to protect Papua’s customary forests has become all the more challenging.”
In November, a Papuan court had ruled that PT IAL’s permit was valid, rejecting the Awyu tribe’s argument that the concession had been granted based on a flawed environmental impact assessment.
The tribe and environmental NGOs also claim opponents of the palm oil firm’s plans have faced intimidation.
PT IAL did not respond to an AFP request for comment.
Palm oil is a billion-dollar industry in Indonesia, which is the world’s largest producer and exporter of the commodity used in everything from chocolate spreads to cosmetics.
Indonesia produces about 60 percent of the world’s palm oil, with one-third consumed by its domestic market.
Papua lost 2.5 percent of its tree cover between 2001 and 2023, according to Global Forest Watch.
An indigenous human rights activist has asked Jakarta to reconsider the transmigration program in Papua region as bringing in non-Papuans to the country’s easternmost region will only create new problems and challenges for the native inhabitants.
“My question is very simple, will President and Vice President guarantee the safety and living rights of the transmigrants in conflict area? When they are brought from Java, the Presiden will say that he guarantees their security as the president will deploy military personnel to Papua in huge number,” Papuan human rights activist, Theo Hasegem, spoke to Indonesia Business Post on Wednesday, October 30, 2024.
In reality, there have been a lot of non-Papuan businessmen, ojek (motorcycle taxi) drivers, teachers, and healthcare officials killed or shot by members of the West Papua National Liberation Army (TNPB) despite the presence of thousands of non-organic security personnel in Papua.
“As a human rights defender, I hope the (central) government will seriously consider the security issue in Papua,” Theo noted.
He was of the opinion that transmigration is not what native Papuans need.
“Papuans need justice, honesty, and the government’s readiness to solve the alleged human rights violations through dignified and authoritative dialog facilitated by a neutral third party,” he said.
Theo underlined that the main problem in Papua is human rights violations that have become an international issue.
He said the Indonesian government should be embarrassed that they used to be put under spotlight and criticized in United Nations (UN) meetings.
“The President and Vice President of the Republic of Indonesia know that there is a threat of humanitarian crisis in Papua that is difficult to overcome, such as murder, torture, extrajudicial arrests, and arbitrary detention allegedly carried out by Indonesian military and police personnel against indigenous Papuans,” he cited.
At the same time, the West Papua National Army continues to assassinate non-Papuan Indonesians, whom they suspect of being spies or intelligence agents deployed in Papua.
“Without solution of the humanitarian crisis, violent armed conflicts will continue to happen in Papua,” Theo said.
Upon his inauguration as President on October 20, 2024, Prabowo Subianto told the Minister of Transmigration that he is willing to send transmigrants to the eastern part of Indonesia, including Papua, saying that transmigration program is a solution to Papuan issues.
They do not find anything good in President Subianto’s plan to send non-Papuans to the easternmost region
By UCA News reporter Published: October 31, 2024 11:43 AM GMT
Catholic leaders have warned against the transmigration program of new Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto in conflict-stricken Papua, saying bringing in non-Papuans to the easternmost region will result in problems for the ethnic people.
After his inauguration on Oct. 20, Subianto announced the program in which transmigrants will be sent to the eastern parts of Indonesia, including Papua province.
The program is intended to realize welfare equality across regions, according to the newly created transmigration ministry, separate from the ministry of villages.
The plan also includes starting 1 million hectares of new rice fields in Papua province.
The program was unveiled by transmigration minister Iftitah Sulaiman Suryanagara at a meeting of the House of Representatives – the upper house – on Oct. 29.
“Papua is not empty land. This is land owned by the people,” said Melianus Asso, head of the Papuan Catholic Youth.
“We, the Papuan Catholic Youth, do not need a transmigration program,” added Asso.
We need education, health, access to clean water, electricity, and other basic facilities, he demanded.
In a statement on Oct. 30, the Papuan Catholic Youth asked the government to review the new plan, which is part of a national strategic program.
Tino Mote, a member of the Papuan Catholic Youth, said the transmigration program and the rice field project are not in line with “the needs of the local community.”
As a Catholic organization based on the values of Pope Francis’ Laudato si (praise be to you), “we are responsible for preserving the environment,” he said.
He stressed the need to protect indigenous people in Papua.
Stefanus Asat Gusma, the chairperson of Papuan Catholic Youth, said he will “bring this issue to the attention of the president, the ministry and the military which is currently serving in the troubled province.
Augustinian Father Bernard Baru said the migration of non-Papuans has made indigenous people a minority in Papua.
“This [transmigration program] will only worsen the marginalization of indigenous Papuans,” he told UCA News.
He said the program is another way to control Papua.
“In urban areas, immigrants now dominate, while indigenous Papuans live in remote areas,” he said.
Papua has a population of 4.3 million and Christians make up 85.02 percent – Protestants 69.39 percent and Catholics 15.63 percent.
Due to the prolonged conflict, the former Dutch colony is one of the poorest provinces in Indonesia. In March, the province recorded a poverty rate of 17.26 percent, almost double the national average of 9.03 percent.
Studies by University of Sydney academic James Elmslie have shown that the indigenous Papuan population has dwarfed at 1.84 percent compared with the non-Papuan population which stands at 10.82 percent in the province.
The Papuans want to free their region from Indonesian control, but Indonesia looks to suppress it militarily. The region is home to the world’s largest gold mine, as well as extensive sources of natural gas, minerals, timber and palm oil.
The struggle, ongoing since 1962, is estimated to have killed up to 500,000 people. At least 300 people have died in the last decade.
It took less than a week for the reality to be exposed. Even Deputy PM Richard Marles must now acknowledge that the nation next door he praises for its moderation and democracy is now a military dictatorship and a serious threat.
Proof absolute was presented on Friday, five days after his inauguration, when new Indonesian President Prabowo Subianto issued orders. His 48-member ministry together with 59 vice ministers, and five heads of state agencies had to present themselves in US-style camouflage uniforms at the army’s training camp at Magelang in Central Java.
Three days of exercises, parades and marches followed as the ministers moved like confused conscripts to martial music, camped in 120 tents and shuffled into lines.
They obeyed orders screamed by swaggering officers who in a real democracy are supposed to be subservient to the voters and their elected representatives. They were flown to the site packed in the sides of a Hercules that landed at Adi Sucipto Air Force Base in Yogyakarta.
In the 1970s as a young recruit, Prabowo trained at the camp south-east of Jakarta. In a speech to the rigid ranks, he said: “I prioritise working together as a team. We will have coordination in Magelang. I think it will bring many benefits.”
Indonesia brags of its 300 ethnic and religious groups speaking 200 distinct languages and dialects spread across more than 17,000 islands but all have been dissolved into sameness with the Magelang circus.
In my-way-or-the-highway threats Prabowo has shown that although he was cashiered in 1998 for disobeying orders and his troops disappearing dissident students before fleeing to exile in Jordan, he’s now back in total charge and with the biggest bureaucracy in the Republic’s history.
Two of his predecessors – second president Soeharto (Prabowo’s previous father-in-law) and sixth president Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono – were former generals but never showed such a blatant way to stamp authority and crush civilian rule.
If there was any disquiet expressed by the ministers snapping selfies of their adventures – particularly those like civilian Vice President Gibran Rakabuming who normally abhor strutters and foot-stampers – it was well hidden.
Instead, TV news footage showed the supposedly elected individuals behaving more like giggling pre-teens allowed a few days away from Mummy.
Before the ‘red and white (the colours of the Indonesian flag) retreat’ Indonesian law expert Professor Tim Lindsey of Melbourne Uni wrote: “It is clear enough that Prabowo has no enthusiasm for democracy. He has said, for example, that it is ‘very, very tiring’ and ‘very, very messy and costly’.
“Many activists now speak openly of their fear of being targeted and intimidated by government trolls or even the intelligence agencies.”
Opposition in Parliament is negligible as Prabowo has about 80 per cent of members in his coalition.
By the weekend the regiment of polis had received drill training that had nothing to do with running departments in finance, education, health, religion and all other matters of state.
More appropriately, they got “sessions on anti-corruption, development planning, budget structuring, and bureaucratic planning.” It is not known whether these courses were delivered by soldiers trained in ethics and professional administration apart from their everyday skills in stripping down AK-47s,
Despite their uniforms, fatigues, gaiters and big combat boots – everything apart from rifles – many were too old, better used to fighting head colds and unfit to have ever been sought for military service. That included the plump president who has just turned 73.
“I am not here to make you militaristic; that’s a misconception. Many governments and corporations have adopted the military way,” he reportedly said without naming states and corporations that eschew consultation and consensus.
Russia, North Korea and Hungary come to mind.
Journalists were not allowed to ask questions. “The core values are discipline and loyalty—not to me, but to the Indonesian nation and people,” Prabowo added. Why such pledges needed the respondents to be in battledress was not explained.
In a Trump-style comment clearly at odds with the observable facts from streaming TV, Prabowo’s PR man Hasan Nasbi reportedly explained “This activity in Magelang is to galvanise the ministers – this is not militarism. This is for togetherness.”
PM Anthony Albanese’s decision to stay in Australia with his King rather than attend Prabowo’s inauguration was correct. His presence in Jakarta would have been seen as endorsing authoritarianism to the point of fascism. Sending Defence Minister Marles was the right tactic.
Duncan Graham
Duncan Graham has been a journalist for more than 40 years in print, radio and TV. He is the author of People Next Door (UWA Press). He is now writing for the English language media in Indonesia from within Indonesia. Duncan Graham has an MPhil degree, a Walkley Award, two Human Rights Commission awards and other prizes for his radio, TV and print journalism in Australia. He lives in East Java.
October 2, 2024 20:00 GMT+700 Jakarta (ANTARA) – Commander of the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) General Agus Subiyanto on Wednesday inaugurated five infantry battalions (Yonif) to support the government’s food resilience program in Papua region.
The battalions will be dispatched to five regions of Papua to collaborate with the Agriculture Ministry and local residents to cultivate essential crops, including rice, he said.
“These battalions are specialized in different aspects, such as construction and production. We will carry out agricultural programs in Papua with their help,” he told journalists after the inauguration in the National Monument (Monas) area, Central Jakarta.
The battalions include Yonif 801/Ksatria Yuddha Kentswuri, which will be stationed in Keerom, Papua Province; Yonif 802/Wimane Mambe Jaya, which will be posted in Sarmi, Papua; Yonif 803/Nduka Adyatma Yuddha, which will be sent to Boven Digoel, South Papua; and Yonif 804/Dharma Bhakti Asasta Yudha, which will work in Merauke, South Papua.
Meanwhile, Yonif 805/Ksatria Satya Waninggap will be based in Sorong, Southwest Papua.
Based on data obtained by ANTARA, each infantry battalion consists of 691 personnel drawn from different regional military commands (Kodam) across the country.
Kodam I/Bukit Barisan has dispatched 150 soldiers, Kodam II/Sriwijaya 150 soldiers, Kodam III/Siliwangi 450 personnel, Kodam IV/Diponegoro 400 officers, Kodam V/Brawijaya 230 personnel, and Kodam VI/Mulawarman has fielded 25 officers for the battalions.
Furthermore, Kodam IX/Udayana has contributed 306 soldiers, Kodam XII/Tanjungpura 43 officers, Kodam XIII/Merdeka 157 personnel, Kodam XIV/Hasanuddin 225 soldiers, Kodam XVI/Pattimura 294 officers, Kodam XVII/Cenderawasih 100 soldiers, and Kodam XVIII/Kasuari has sent 20 personnel.
Meanwhile, the Jaya Kodam of Jakarta and Iskandar Muda Kodam of Aceh have contributed 350 and 100 soldiers, respectively, to the special battalions.
Jakarta. The Indonesian Military has established five new infantry battalions to be deployed in conflict-prone areas of Papua, Armed Forces Commander General Agus Subiyanto announced on WednesdayThe primary mission of these battalions is to maintain security and support the government’s development efforts in the eastern region of Indonesia.“We have inaugurated five battalions to be stationed in vulnerable areas of Papua. Their goal is to assist the government in accelerating development and improving the prosperity of the Papuan people,” Agus said during a press briefing in Jakarta.These ground forces will help secure major government projects, such as the food security program covering over 1,000 hectares of crops in Merauke Regency, and key road construction projects across Papua.
The newly established units are:
Ksatria Yuddha Kentsuwri 801st Infantry Battalion for Keerom Regency,
Wimane Mambe Jaya 802nd Infantry Battalion for Sarmi Regency,
Nduka Adyatma Yuddha 803rd Infantry Battalion for Boven Digoel Regency,
Dharma Bhakti Asasta Yudha 804th Infantry Battalion for Merauke Regency, and
Ksatria Satya Waninggap 805th Infantry Battalion for Sorong Regency.
In recent years, Papua has seen an escalation in insurgent activity, with sporadic attacks on both civilian and military targets. The Free Papua Movement (OPM) has been responsible for abductions and killings, particularly targeting construction workers involved in key infrastructure projects aimed at improving connectivity in the region.
A notable incident involved the abduction of New Zealand pilot Philip Mark Mehrtens, who was held hostage by an OPM rebel group for nearly 20 months before being released last month.
Military-led project also risks stirring resentment in the easternmost Papua region, researchers say.
Stephen Wright
for RFA 2024.10.02 Bangkok
Indonesia’s military is taking a leading role in plans to convert more than 2 million hectares of wetlands and savannah into rice farms and sugarcane plantations in a part of conflict-prone Papua that conservationists say is an environmental treasure.
The military’s involvement has added to perceptions that it is increasingly intruding into civilian areas in Indonesia and prompted a warning that it would bring bloodshed to Merauke, a regency in South Papua province slated to become a giant food estate.
It’s an area of easternmost Indonesia that has largely avoided violence during the decades-long armed conflict between Indonesia and indigenous Papuans seeking their own state.
The plans are part of the government’s ambitions for the nation of 270 million people to achieve food and energy self-sufficiency. They highlight the tension globally between the push for economic development in lower-income countries and protection of the diminishing number of pristine ecosystems.
Taken together, the sugarcane and rice projects for Merauke represent at least a fifth of a 10,000-square-kilometer (38,600-square-mile) lowland known as the TransFly, which spans Indonesia and Papua New Guinea. Its name comes from the Fly River – a squiggle on the otherwise straight line on the map that marks the border of the two countries on New Guinea island.
The great expanse of wetlands, grasslands and pockets of tropical rainforest in the south of the island is “globally outstanding,” said Eric Wikramanayake, a conservation biologist who wrote about its significance for a book on conservation regions in Asia.
Researchers say it is home to half of the bird species found in New Guinea including about 80 that exist nowhere else and other endemic animals such as the pig-nosed turtle and cat-like carnivorous marsupials.
The World Wildlife Fund (WWF) has called it a “global treasure” and a proposed World Heritage listing says no other place in the region compares to it, including the famous Kakadu national park in northern Australia.
“If you were to convert a lot of the TransFly into agriculture then it’s going to change the conservation assessment, it will make it much more threatened,” Wikramanayake said.
“There is going to be some impact and those impacts, it’s like opening the can of worms” in paving the way for further development, he said.
For Ahmad Rizal Ramdhani, the major-general who heads Indonesia’s National Food Security Taskforce, the area targeted for development is swamps that should be converted to agriculture to realize their “extraordinary” fertile potential.
He told a 40-minute-long podcast with state broadcaster Radio Indonesia in August that the 1 million-hectare rice component of the agricultural plans was being funded by the government and overseen by the military and agriculture ministry. The sugar cane plantations and a related bioethanol industry are funded by private investors, he said.
Wearing an indigenous Papuan headdress, Ramdhani said he envisioned that Papuans would ask “Mr. TNI” – the initials of the name for the Indonesian military – for help with cultivating their customary lands.
Sacred and conservation areas would be protected and the land would remain in the ownership of indigenous Papuans, he said.
“To the people of Papua, especially those in Merauke, there is no need to worry and doubt, there is no need to be afraid,” Ramdhani said.
In seemingly contradictory remarks, Ramdhani said the conversion to rice paddy needed to be carried out in three years to ensure food security, but rice would also be exported – to Pacific island countries and Australia because it’s too expensive to send it to Java, Indonesia’s most populated island.
Analysis of land-use maps shows areas designated for rice overlap with conservation areas, indigenous sacred places and ancestral trails and hunting grounds, said Franky Samperante, director of Indonesian civil society organization Pusaka.
Pusaka said in a report in September that more than 200 excavators had begun clearing wetlands, customary forests and other lands belonging to the Malind Makleuw indigenous people in Ilwayab, Merauke.
Members of the community protested against the rice project during a Sept. 24 reception for Indonesian officials, video shows.
Women with faces caked in white mud to symbolize grief wore cardboard signs around their necks that said “We reject the Jhonlin Group company” – an Indonesian conglomerate that is reportedly a key part of the agricultural projects.
Earlier government and military-led attempts to develop agriculture in Merauke, including in the last decade, led to land grabs and other problems.
‘Risk of resentment’
The military’s leadership of the rice program adds to perceptions it is increasingly intruding into civilian areas, according to three Indonesian security researchers.
The large agricultural projects could fuel pro-independence sentiment and grievances over environmental destruction, said military analyst Raden Mokhamad Luthfi at Al Azhar University Indonesia.
“There’s a real risk that the project could spark new resentment from OPM [Organisasi Papua Merdeka-Free Papua Movement], who may view it as further evidence of inequality, injustice, and environmental harm faced by Papuans,” he told BenarNews.
Justification for the military’s role in the Merauke project, Luthfi said, is based on the concept of food security outlined in Indonesia’s 2015 defense white paper.
Officers at the army staff college perceived a security threat from possible food shortages in the future caused by climate change and population growth, he said. However, the white paper also said food security efforts should be led by civilian ministries.
Hipolitus Wangge, a researcher at Australian National University, said the military had silenced discontent among Papuans during a failed program last decade to make Merauke into a major center of food production.
“We should expect more discontent, even bloodshed in Merauke in the next five years,” he told Radio Free Asia.
A side event to the 57th UN Human Rights Council entitled “Human Rights in Indonesia,” hosted by the World Council of Churches (WCC) and partner organizations on 1 October, will address the dire human rights situation in West Papua, with ongoing violations that include extra-judicial killings, internal displacement due to armed conflict, restrictions on civil liberties, and a growing number of cases of land grabbing.
This event will bring together grassroots representatives and experts to explore practical actions that the UN Human Rights Council and national and international actors could take to address the deepening human rights and humanitarian crises in West Papua.
The Permanent Peoples’ Tribunal will also present the findings of its July 2024 public hearings, during which it examined a body of evidence on the environmental impacts of development projects and related human rights violations in the region.
In the first six months of 2024, extra-judicial killings linked to the ongoing armed conflict between the Indonesian security forces and the West Papua National Liberation Army (OPM-TPNPB) have been recorded. A surge in armed conflict has been reported in the period April-June 2024 which has continued to drive internal displacement among the Indigenous Papuan people. As of September 2024, 79,867 people are internally displaced with no access to basic necessities such as food, healthcare services and education, and limited access to employment opportunities. If they return to their villages and homes, they are confronted with a heavy security presence, and constant intimidation and surveillance.
A growing number of cases of land grabbing have been reported from the regencies of Merauke, Mimika, Deiyai, and Sorong in the period April-June 2024, reflecting a growing trend of private investors capturing land and natural resources without obtaining free, prior and informed consent from Indigenous Papuans.
There is an urgent need for the Indonesian government to immediately address the conflict and associated human rights violations, abuses, and impunity through sustainable solutions based on the principles of human rights.
Peter Prove, director of the WCC Commission of the Churches on International Affairs (CCIA), will moderate the discussion.
“The Indonesian government provides very limited transparency regarding the situation in West Papua, and even less access to the region,” he said. “Accordingly, the WCC is grateful that through cooperation with its civil society partners we can bring information regarding the longstanding humanitarian and human rights crisis endured by the Indigenous Papuan people to the attention of the Human Rights Council, and to the wider international community. We continue to hope that by sharing this information, the long overdue concern of the international community may yet be galvanized.”
Join this event live , Tuesday, 1 October, 13:00 CEST
(Meeting ID 3353 -CR25 “Human Rights in Indonesia”, Meeting number: 2744 604 7986 Password: ufTQvPJJ877)
On 14 August 2024, members of the West Papua National Committee (KNPB) in the Dekai District, Yahukimo Regency, Papua Pegunungan Province, experienced acts of intimidation and unauthorised search by members of the 1715 Kodim (military district command) and Brimob (mobile brigade corps). The operation was led by Yahukimo Police Chief, Commissioner Heru Hidayanto. Six KNPB members were present at their office when the security forces arrived, resulting in a tense confrontation and forceful entry into the KNPB office.
The incident began with surveillance activities on 13 August 20214, with two vehicles monitoring the KNPB office. On August 14, the surveillance intensified. At 3:20 pm, a large contingent of security forces, comprising nine vehicles including armoured cars and patrol vehicles from various units, arrived at the KNPB office. Despite attempts by KNPB members to negotiate and clarify that no demonstrations were planned for 15 August 2024, the security forces forcibly entered the office without providing a warrant. They searched the office and took photographs of the premises. The operation concluded around 3:40 pm when the forces withdrew.
The incident raises serious concerns about respect for civil liberties, freedom of association, and the use of intimidation tactics against political activists in West Papua, Indonesia.
Security force vehicles approaching the KNPB office in the Dekai District, Yahukimo Regency, on 14 August 2024
Detailed Case Data name of the location: Dekai (-4.874653772472966, 139.48856096842403) administrative region: Indonesia, Papua Pegunungan Province, Yahukimo Regency, Dekai District total number of victims: six period of incident: 14.08.2024 perpetrator: police, other security forces perpetrator details: 1715 Kodim and Brimob Issues: freedom of expression, freedom of peaceful assembly, indigenous peoples, intimidation Sources: Further HRM News:
Number
Name, Details
Gender
Age
Group Affiliation
Violations
6
unknown
unknown
unknown
indigenous, activist
freedom of assembly, freedom of expression, intimidation
The Jakarta District Court heard the case of alleged bribery and gratification against suspended Papua governor Lukas Enembe on Monday with evidence from expert witnesses saying that an audit showed records
to be “clean and accurate”.
The hearing was convened to hear the testimony of three expert witnesses on the allegations against Governor Enembe.
The panel of judges heard the testimony of two experts Dr Muhammad Rullyandi, SH, MH (a constitutional law expert and lecturer at the Faculty of Law of Jayabaya University) and
Dr Eko Sambodo, SE, MM, Mak, CFrA (an expert in state finance and losses), and the third witness was due to be heard today.
The experts concluded that nine reports provided by the country’s state financial audit board during Enembe’s tenure as a governor did not contain any irregularities, or misreporting.
It was all “clean and accurate” within the framework of regulations and procedures, the witnesses said.
Complied with admin law According to Dr Rullyandi (Indonesians often have single names), the state financial management complied with administrative law, which was supervised by a state institution known as the Badan
Pemeriksa Keuangan (BPK), the State Financial Audit Board.
“The BPK is the final step in the state management process, starting with planning, implementation, and before accountability, it is under supervision,” Dr Rullyandi said.
Among the BPK’s responsibilities were the supervision of procurement and service contracting. When the BPK found criminal elements under its supervision, it reported them to the authorised agency r
equired by law, he said.
Dr Rullyandi said that this was regulated in Article 14 of Law No. 15 of 2004 concerning the Examination of State Financial Management and Responsibility.
Article 14 of Law No.15 of 2004 states:
(1) “IF CRIMINAL ELEMENTS ARE DETECTED DURING THE EXAMINATION, THE BPK SHALL MAKE AN IMMEDIATE REPORT TO THE APPROPRIATE AUTHORITIES IN ACCORDANCE
WITH THE APPLICABLE LAWS AND REGULATIONS”.
Therefore, before the findings could be prosecuted as articles of bribery or gratification, they must first be tested by the BPK, which then reports them to law enforcement agencies.
Administrative rules That is the correct way of thinking, said the expert witness.
Law enforcement is not permitted to enter the administrative area while it is still in the administrative process. The law states that when administrative law enforcement occurs, law enforcement should not
enter before the BPK makes recommendations,” Dr Rullyandi continued.
The BPK audit report indicates that there were no criminal indications of financial irregularities during the term of Governor Lukas Enembe in regional financial management, including no alleged irregularities in
procurement processes for goods and services, which indicates that the principle of legal certainty was met.
According to Dr Rullyandi, initiation of the investigation process into an alleged criminal act of corruption against Governor Lukas Enembe was not based on BPK’s recommendations.
This means, from the beginning of the investigation until it was transferred to the court, investigators ignored Law No. 15 of 2004, especially Article 14. To enforce the law of corruption, relating to criminal norms regulating
bribery and gratification, administrative law norms must be considered.
This is accomplished by referring to Law No 1 of 2004 concerning the State Rreasury, which states in section weighing letter c that state financial administration law rules must govern state financial management and
accountability.
According to Dr Rullyandi, there is also a provision in Law No. 15 of 2004 pertaining to the Responsibility of State Financial Inspection and Management, which regulates how state finances are handled and held
accountable in the fight against criminal corruption.
Abuse of office allegations “Regarding allegations of abuse of office, Dr Rullyandi said the defendant did not possess the qualifications to abuse his position through bribery and gratification as stated in Articles 11, 12A, and 12B of the Law.
Law No. 31 of 1999 concerning the Eradication of Corruption, as amended by Law No. 20 of 2001.
It was due to the authority or power associated with Enembe’s position, which allowed him to move in order to do or not do something related to the procurement of goods and services. This was given as a result of or
caused by something he did or did not do in his position that violated his obligations.
His position as Governor and as user of the budget had been delegated and handed over to the powers of budget users and officials authorised to carry out the procurement committee for goods and services in accordance
with Article 18 of Law No. 1 of 2004 concerning the State Treasury.
Particularly, anyone signing or certifying documents related to the letter of evidence that is the basis for the expenditure on APBN / APBD is responsible for its content and consequences.
According to Dr Eko Sambodo’s testimony, if a province [such as Papua] had been given nine times the Unqualified Fair Opinion (abbreviated WTP), administratively, all of them had been managed in accordance with
relevant regulations, accountability, and accounting standards.
“When it comes to managing finances, it has been audited, so there are no regulatory violations,” Dr Sambobo said.
Governor Enembe’s senior lawyer, Professor OC Kaligis, asked the witness whether this opinion of the WTP could be used as evidence, that corruption did not exist in the province.
The witness replied that in auditor terms, corruption was known as irregularities. Deviation causes state losses.
It means that everything has been done according to and within regulations, including governance, compilers, and reports. It also means that expenditures have been proven, clarifications have been made, all of which
contribute to its final report.
“This is all WTP offers,” said Dr Sambobo. Under the leadership of Governor Enembe, Papua province won the WTP opinion nine times consecutively.
Another expert opinion was due to be heard in court today.
Witness’s testimonies in Court The court completed hearing witnesses last week (Monday, August 21), who testified to their involvement or knowledge of the alleged bribery, gratification, and corruption scandal.
Out of 184 witnesses, only 17 were brought to court, and only 1 had any connection with Governor Enembe. Sixteen of these witnesses testified as to not have any connection to Enembe.
Only one witness linked to the governor’s name, Prijatono Lakka, a pastor and Enembe’s assistant, who sent Enembe one billion rupiah (NZ$105,000) to cover medical expenses through governor’s personal funds,
resulting in an array of allegations, his arrest, and the ongoing process.
To date, no witnesses have emerged to provide testimony or evidence concerning all the alleged wrongdoings and misconduct of Lukas.
Although the governor’s health has improved somewhat, his condition is still critical. The governor’s lawyers continues to ask the judge to detain him in the city for medical treatment and to allow medical specialists
outside of the control of Corruption Eradication Commission (acrynomed KPK) to treat him in a free environment.
However, these requests have not been responded to. Currently, the governor is confined to the prison cells of KPK.
He is secheduled to appear in court next week on Monday to bring the final stages of this protracted legal drama to closure.
Lukas Enembe’s term as Papua’s provincial Governor will end during early September — next week.
Yamin Kogoya is a West Papuan academic who has a Master of Applied Anthropology and Participatory Development from the Australian National University and who contributes to Asia Pacific Report.
From the Lani tribe in the Papuan Highlands, he is currently living in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
Australia West Papua Association Adelaide 