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Alleged destruction of property and intimidation of a Papuan Pastor amid escalating security operations in Dekai, Yahukimo Regency

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19 March 2026 / 5 minutes of reading

Between 12 December 2025 and February 2026, a series of incidents of alleged shooting, vandalism, robbery, intimidation and continued harassment were reported at the home of Rev. Victor Kobak in Jalan Gunung, Dekai District, Yahukimo Regency, Papua Pegunungan province. Rev Kobak leads the Evanhastia congregation, belonging to the Evangelical Church in Indonesia (GIDI). The events occurred in the context of security force raids in response to the deteriorating security situation in the Yahukimo Regency. Authorities reacted with intensified military deployments, restrictions on civilian activities and a series of reported arbitrary arrests in Dekai Town. Rev Kobak reportedly suffered material losses, psychological distress and ongoing intimidation, while the wider community experienced heightened fear and insecurity linked to escalating armed conflict dynamics in the area.

Security forces came to Rev Kobak’s house, opening fire at his house, damaging parts of the property, and seizing personnel belongings. On 12 December 2025 joint security forces reportedly opened fire at the house belonging to Rev. Victor Kobak. Bullets struck walls and roof sections at both the front and rear of the building, causing structural damage and material losses. On 22 January 2026, security personnel again entered Rev Kobak’s house without showing a warrant and devastated the interior. The doors were kicked in and damaged. After the house search, personal belongings were missing. On 31 January 2026, security force personnel again came to Rev Kobak’s house, dismantling parts of the house and removing items, including his Starlink communication equipment, four sleeping bags or mats, and work-related equipment. Four doors were dismantled.

Following the circulation of video documentation of the incidents, Rev. Kobak received anonymous threatening phone calls and hostile social media posts in February 2026. The acts of intimidation included attempts to stigmatise him as a member of the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) in social media posts. These actions increased fear for the safety of the Rev Kobak and his family.

Deteriorating security situation and series of arbitrary detentions in Dekai

The harassments and intimidation of Rev Kobak occurred amid a significant escalation of security operations across Yahukimo Regency in early 2026, particularly in the Dekai District. Reports indicate the establishment of additional security presence, expanded patrols and increased surveillance of civilian movement. Statements by security officials during meetings with business operators on 17 February 2026 suggested that civilians remaining in public spaces beyond designated curfew hours could be warned, detained overnight or otherwise subjected to enforcement measures. Such policies reportedly contributed to fears of arbitrary detention, racial profiling and collective stigmatisation of indigenous Papuans as potential supporters or members of armed groups.

The deteriorating situation also had humanitarian consequences. Healthcare workers at the Yahukimo Regional General Hospital and community health centres publicly stated on 20 February 2026 that they felt unsafe while performing their duties amid the presence of armed personnel near medical facilities. They demanded explicit security guarantees from both Indonesian security forces and armed Papuan groups, emphasising their neutral humanitarian role protected under International Humanitarian Law. Reports further indicated temporary closures of healthcare facilities and disruptions to essential services due to security fears, affecting civilian access to medical treatment.

Church leaders similarly expressed alarm at the militarisation of civilian spaces. On 21 February 2026, Rev. Atias Matuan, Chair of the Yahukimo Churches’ Fellowship (PGGY), urged security forces not to station personnel at hospitals, warning that their presence had traumatised patients and undermined public trust in essential services. These developments reflect a broader climate of insecurity in which civilian institutions such as churches, schools and healthcare facilities have become increasingly entangled in conflict dynamics.

Human rights analysis

The reported shooting at a civilian residence, vandalism and removal of property raise concerns regarding arbitrary interference with the home and unlawful destruction of civilian objects, particularly if conducted by state security forces without lawful basis or judicial oversight. Such conduct violates the right to privacy, family life and property, as well as abuses of authority under domestic criminal law.

The intimidation of a religious leader and the dissemination of personal identity data without consent may amount to harassment of a human rights defender and interference with freedom of religion, expression and association. In conflict-affected contexts, religious figures often play key humanitarian and mediation roles; targeting them risks undermining civilian protection mechanisms and community resilience.

More broadly, the imposition of curfews combined with threats of detention for civilians present in public spaces may engage international human rights standards relating to freedom of movement and protection from arbitrary arrest or detention. Where security operations result in the closure of hospitals or intimidation of healthcare workers, this may also violate obligations to respect and protect medical personnel and ensure access to essential services.

Under International Humanitarian Law applicable to non-international armed conflicts, parties must distinguish between civilians and combatants, respect the neutrality of medical personnel and religious institutions, and refrain from pillage or destruction of civilian property unless imperatively required by military necessity. The reported developments in Dekai suggest a shrinking humanitarian space and increasing risks to civilians not directly participating in hostilities.

On 31 January 2026, security personnel again searched Rev Kobak’s house without warrant and devastated the interior

On 12 December 2025 joint security forces reportedly opened fire at the house belonging to Rev. Victor Kobak. The bullets struck walls and the roof.

Social media post accusing Rev Kobak of affiliation with the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB)

Detailed Case Data
Location: Dekai, Yahukimo regency, Highland Papua, Indonesia (-4.8638158, 139.4837298) 
Region: Indonesia, Highland Papua, Yahukimo, Dekai
Total number of victims: 1

#Number of VictimsName, DetailsGenderAgeGroup AffiliationViolations
1.1 Victor Kobak

maleadult Indigenous Peoplescriminalisation, intimidation

Period of incident: 12/12/2025 – 11/03/2026
Perpetrator: , Indonesian Security Forces
Issues: indigenous peoples, security force violence

TAPOL September-November Quarterly Update 

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https://tapol.org/publications/tapol-september-november-quarterly-update

 

28 November 2025

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As Indonesia marked its 80th birthday with much fanfare, pomp and ceremony, it has been clear that the country sits at an uncomfortable crossroads, with underlying challenges further buffeting Prabowo’s year in office. Mass protests exploded across the country, calling out the hypocrisy of the political elite, the worsening economic situation and then security force violence. This culminated in the death of motorbike delivery driver Affan Kurniawan, which led to an outpouring of grief and rage and then mass arrests of civil society actors. Internationally, Indonesia has been trying to flex its muscles to present an intermediate path in the Israel-Palestine conflict, but its intervention at an event during the UN Human Rights Council in Geneva shows its complete lack of sympathy for international understandings of indigenous peoples and their fight for recognition. This continues to be made manifest in the Indonesian government’s policy in West Papua, with prisoner transfers and expanding food estates showing the Government’s desire to pacify and make economic gains in the region at the expense of the actual welfare of the people. 

Mass Protests

The protests in August drew some comparisons to the 1998 mass protests and extended to every region in Indonesia. It resonated with the public’s worry about the Government’s strict austerity programme, the cutting of state subsidies and parliament increasing the housing allowance for its members. The protests then escalated across the country as a response to the murder of motorcycle delivery driver, Affan Kurniawan, who was run over by a tactical police car as he was trying to make a delivery during some of the initial protests.    

Within a few days, riotous acts had also occurred in some of the big cities. Mobs targeted the houses of government ministers and the local parliament building in Makassar was burnt down and led to the deaths of those trapped inside. More than 3,000 people including prominent young pro-democracy activists were arrested, on charges of inciting violence in riots, among others. At least 11 people died.    

Compared to other countries in the region like Nepal, where protests kept going until the government had been toppled, the momentum of protests has since died down in Indonesia. It was more spontaneous in Indonesia and it was not led by any political party. In some cases, the riots and attacks were aided and abetted by the military, with plainclothes personnel arrested, doing nothing to stop the riots, and in one case, handing out drinks and cash to those taking part in the rioting.   

The uprising and riots have exposed internal conflicts within Prabowo’s inner circle. These are mainly between civilian politicians, like Dasco Ahmad, Prabowo’s right-hand man for political affairs in Gerindra, and those from the military, such as Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin, Prabowo’s old aide who is now Minister of Defence, and with a history of human rights violations in Aceh, East Timor and Jakarta. In addition to this political dimension, there is also the conflict between police and military, with the military pushing for speedier prosecutions.    

Beyond this power struggle, the underlying cause of the protests is a series of long-term issues, so there would only need to be a further spark for it to rekindle into a mass movement, like that which toppled Suharto. The government response is not addressing the core problem. The cabinet was reshuffled, including moving some infamous ministers in corruption cases, but economic policy has remained the same. There has been a discrepancy between independent observations and government reports in the health of the economy. Government figures claimed ongoing economic development hit the highest ever-record of six per cent, while economists say four per cent, and the unemployment rate was also claimed to be the lowest in 20 years. This has not resonated with people’s felt reality. 

Prabowo’s first anniversary highlights contradictory, increasingly authoritarian, policies

20th October 2025 marked the first year of Prabowo’s administration. There’s been a noticeable attempt to keep in balance both populist policies and consolidating the repressive tools of militarism, or Prabowo’s desire for a powerful state and a desire to be liked. Like in his response to protests, Prabowo has been keen to try and sugarcoat a more hardline policy with gimmicks designed to appease people.   

In stark contrast to the granting of amnesty for Papuan political prisoners we covered in the June-August Update (which is available on our website), four Papuan political prisoners were sentenced to seven months in prison for treason on 19th November, then released on the 23rd, having already served their time in pre-trial custody. Known as the Sorong Four, these members of the Federal Republic of West Papua (Negara Federal Republik Papua Barat – NFRPB) had been arrested whilst distributing leaflets calling for peace in several government departments, and then were accused of treason, before being transferred from Sorong to Makassar for the trial and sentencing, violating their human rights (Full background in our statement from August). The case received a lot of attention due to vocal support for the prisoners, leading to the arrest of at least 23 people, one shot and dispersals when they were transferred from Sorong to Makassar, and more on the day of the indictment.   

One example of mixing gimmicks with Prabowo’s attempts to re-write history has been the declaration of former President Suharto as a national hero of Indonesia on 10th November. Despite shadows over his regime, including the mass killings of 1965 and 1966, invasion of Timor-Leste, and repression and crony capitalism, the declaration indicates the desire of his former son-in-law, President Prabowo Subianto to emulate the New Order in his own government. Protestors have called the declaration a ‘distortion of history’. It has also been sugarcoated with the simultaneous declaration of former Reformasi-era President Abdurahman Wahid (also known as Gus Dur) and labour activist Marsinah as national heroes. This is despite the fact that both faced repression from Suharto’s government, with the latter even being murdered by his regime.    

Finally, in late September, two ministers (the Coordinating Minister for Food Affairs and Minister of Agrarian Affairs and Spatial Planning) designated 481 thousand hectares of land in Merauke Regency (Papua Selatan Province) for a Food Estate project. It was claimed that this had been done in line with the national food resilience program, one of President Prabowo’s priority policies. The Ministers also said that the land belonged to the state and not to local indigenous peoples. However, the designation was fiercely resisted by the indigenous communities of the area, and started a string of protests. 

Indonesia’s fundamental misunderstanding on the UN and indigenous peoples

On 22nd September, Indonesia voted in support of the two-state solution for Israel and Palestine at the UN General Assembly, where the motion was passed. However, Indonesia did not condemn the genocide and war crimes committed by the Israeli Government. Indonesia has historically supported Palestine, but Prabowo seems to be softer on Israel than previous administrations. His stance towards Donald Trump’s government is also friendly, as can be seen from a leaked personal chat at a conference in Egypt with Trump where he asked for access to Trump’s sons for business reasons.   

On the same day as the General Assembly vote, an event was held at the United Nations in Geneva (the full recording of which is accessible online), on indigenous rights in Indonesia. The Indonesian representative defended the National Strategic Projects (PSNs), claiming that the relevant customary law communities were consulted, and boasted about recognition of customary territory and economic growth from the projects. However, what was very enlightening was the following statement:   

‘The term Indigenous peoples… simply cannot be applied and more than semantic hurdles [exist], simply due to our country’s unique history of colonialism and anthropological context [sic]’   

Referencing his visit to West Papua in July, the UN Special Rapporteur for Indigenous Rights, Albert Barume, noted that the biggest issues highlighted in his consultation with indigenous groups was the ‘lack of recognition of indigenous people’. This, as Barume pointed out, is an issue that is widespread among Asian and African states. Indigenous peoples have faced injustices grounded in historic and continuing perceptions that they are uncivilised, savage and not modern, so are forced to abandon their culture and way of life. Indigenous peoples and groups have suffered degrading and dehumanising acts including forced assimilation by states that refuse to recognise them.    

West Papua continues to be hidden away from international scrutiny, pointing to a lack of desire by the Indonesian government to recognise indigenous rights. The stalling of the full legal recognition of indigenous peoples in Indonesia for more than a decade in Parliament shows that this is not being taken seriously by the Government.   

Due to this approach and mindset, indigenous groups face gastrocolonialism, involving a forced change of diet from indigenous to foreign foods, land dispossession and a lack of recognition. Their land has been cleared for the Food Estate in Merauke. The Indonesian government’s repeating of the same lines regarding economic opportunity shows this fundamental disconnect in clear relief.   

The Indonesian government needs to update their view of indigenous peoples and groups so that it aligns with international standards, and not hide behind claims of exceptions to duties.     

Other Big Stories

  • On 23rd September, the EU and Indonesia signed the Indonesia-European Union Comprehensive Economic Partnership (IEU-CEPA), covering trade, investment, environmental protection and sustainability, after almost a decade of negotiations. Primarily, many tariffs on Indonesian goods entering the EU have been slashed. This creates an opening for EU companies to invest in Indonesia. Despite all the positive pronouncements by the Indonesian government that it would add US$2.8 billion to the Indonesian economy and five million jobs, serious concerns have been raised as to how this will lead to an expansion of palm oil plantations and the increase in its products sold on the European market
  •  
  • On 6th August, the local Papua Province Election Commission (KPU Papua) repeated elections for Governor and Vice Governor of Papua Province, on the Constitutional Court’s (MK) order. This followed the posthumous disqualification of the victorious Vice Governor. The result was that the losing candidates (Mathius Fakhiri and Aryoko Rumaropen) in the first gubernatorial election won in the rerun. The result was upheld by the Constitutional Court’s decision in mid-September. During the campaign in Papua Province, there were reports of hate speech based on religion and ethnicity made by one of the sides; and allegations by the other side that public servants and police officials had been illegally mobilised. It was a close election, as the winning side only won by about 3,000 votes. Matthias was a former chief of police and was the candidate for Prabowo’s coalition, and was alleged by national news publications to have received support from the current provincial Chief of Police as well as public servants, including the previous acting Governor. Meanwhile, the other candidate was a former mayor of Jayapura, and was indigenous to the city, so received support from Papuan groups and support from the largest Protestant church. The campaign had been marred by reported political interference and hate speech, with the final winner being a Muslim convert, for the first time in Papuan history. 


  • In mid-September, media reported that the Australian Federal Police (AFP) had arrested two men and charged them with the trafficking of ammunition and firearms from Australia to the armed pro-Papua independence group, the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB, Tentara Pembebasan Nasional Papua Barat). The criminal investigation was initiated jointly with the New Zealand authorities as the result of the TPNPB’s hostage taking of New Zealand pilot Philip Mehrtens. One of the suspects is Australian, whilst the other is a New Zealander. 
  • In NGO news, Pusaka held a public discussion at Taman Ismail Marzuki, Jakarta, titled ‘Setahun Rezim Perang’ (A year of war regime) on 7th November 2025. During the first year of Prabowo’s presidency, three companies have continuously destroyed the indigenous landscape of West Papua, causing a total of 31,508 hectares of damage. Meanwhile, a group of Papuan women, together with the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation desk in Papua, launched a working group on 8th November 2025 in Jakarta. The rationale behind it stems from the numerous cases of human rights violations, particularly against women and children, that have occurred in Papua since 1963 and which continue to this day. In addition, other conditions such as the victims of PSN in Merauke and Maybrat have led to internal displacement on their own land.

TAPOL Publications

Further Links

  •  Centre for Climate Crime and Climate Justice at Queen Mary University of London releases a report, ‘Bringing it All Back Home: The Role of British Companies in the Destruction of West Papua’.
  • Pusaka press release, ‘Condemning the Serakahnomics Project Policy and the Tolerance of Human Rights and Environmental Violations in the Merauke National Strategic Project (PSN)’ (English translation)
  • Pusaka report on the first year of the Prabowo-Gibran government, ‘The First Year of the Prabowo-Gibran War Regime’ (English translation in second half of document)
  • Mongabay covers reopening of Raja Ampat nickel mine, despite concerns of environmental damage caused by the site.
  • The Kurawal Foundation launches report, ‘Democracy under Prabowo-Gibran: Year One’
  • Human Rights Monitor releases Q3 Report on human rights and conflict developments in West Papua.
  • Human Rights Monitor also releases update on the situation of Internally Displaced Peoples (IDPs) in West Papua, covering developments during October.
  • Human Rights Monitor’s Andrew de Sousa interviewed in a podcast regarding the recent trade deal organised between Indonesia and the EU and the situation in West Papua.
  • Academic Paper released by researchers at the University of Canterbury, New Zealand, on ‘Predatory Mining, Conflict and Political Spaces: The Case of Grasberg Mine in West Papua’
  • Unrepresented Nations and Peoples’ Organisation (UNPO) Academy releases an article covering the history of independence struggles in West Papua, Aceh and the South Moluccas.
  • Early Warning Project release a report looking at ‘Major Developments and Worsening Risks for Mass Atrocities in Papua, Indonesia’.

Annual Report 2025: Human Rights and Conflict in West Papua 

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Human Righrs Monitor

https://humanrightsmonitor.org/reports/annual-report-2025-human-rights-and-conflict-in-west-papua

1) Annual Report 2025: Human Rights and Conflict in West Papua 

Reports / Indonesia, West Papua / 13 March 2026

Executive Summary

The human rights situation in West Papua[1] throughout 2025 reveals a critical pivot point in the decades-long conflict between the Indonesian state and the indigenous Papuan population. While certain systemic patterns, such as the architecture of legal impunity and the suppression of peaceful political dissent, remain stagnant, 2025 has introduced a series of aggressive new patterns that represent a significant departure from the dynamics of 2024 and previous years. Case documentation by local human rights groups and independent activists indicates that the situation has transitioned from a localised highland insurgency into an extensive and modern tactics warfare across the central highlands.

Military members are pushing into remote areas, establishing military outposts in indigenous villages to gain control over remote areas. Military operations in these areas have been characterised by the use of anti-personnel landmines or booby traps and aerial warfare technologies, including weaponised drones and fighter planes.  The massive structural expansion of the Indonesian National Armed Forces (TNI) under the administration of President Prabowo Subianto opened new frontiers for systematic land grabbing in Merauke, Biak-Numfor, Intan Jaya, and other geographic areas of economic interest.   

The data indicate that the primary drivers of conflict-related human rights violations are no longer immediate responses to armed resistance, but a coordinated effort to secure territory for resource extraction and economic development in West Papua. Indonesia’s new administration under President Prabowo Subianto has pursued a security-based approach, introducing plans for up to 500 new battalions to secure and implement infrastructure and agribusiness projects. This marks the most significant peacetime military expansion in Indonesia’s modern history.  As the number of internally displaced persons (IDPs) continues to climb and the military presence keeps expanding, indigenous Papuans face an existential threat to their security, land and culture.

As of December 2025, over 105,000 people in West Papua were internally displaced, with most IDPs having not returned to their villages due to ongoing conflict or heavy military presence.  The number of IDPs has risen from roughly 85,000 IDPs reported in 2024. The central government continues to deny the existence of conflict-driven internal displacement in West Papua, showing no signs of facilitating humanitarian access or withdrawal of security force personnel from the region. Many displaced families have lived in limbo since the armed conflict situation significantly deteriorated in December 2018, afraid to return to their militarised home areas. IDPs are sheltering in makeshift camps or remote forests with little to no aid, facing acute shortages of food, clean water, medicine, and shelter. Ongoing security operations impede humanitarian access to IDPs, whose vast majority consists of indigenous Papuans. They are disproportionately affected by these operations, which commonly target indigenous communities. Examples from Intan Jaya, Pegunungan Bintang, and other regencies illustrate that the increased presence of security personnel in previously unaffected areas fuels violence and suffering for the local civilian population, rather than establishing security and stability.

Extrajudicial killings, torture, and enforced disappearances persisted at alarming rates. Reported cases of torture and ill-treatment of Papuan civilians rose significantly in comparison to previous years. The year 2025 also saw a spike in the cases of extrajudicial executions, arbitrary detention, intimidation, and violations of the freedom of assembly. Civilians in conflict areas bear the risk of violence from both state and non-state actors, resulting in dozens of deaths, injuries, and at least 11 reported victims of enforced disappearance throughout the year. Like previous years, the militarisation of government administration under President Prabowo and the restriction of independent media impede the exposure of human rights violations to the Indonesian public and international community. Narratives about West Papua in the national media are often shaped by the military, which is often the only state institution present in conflict areas.

Freedom of expression and peaceful assembly continued to face heavy restrictions in 2025. Indonesian authorities cracked down on protests and political dissent in West Papua, often with arbitrary arrests and force. Journalists and human rights defenders also faced intimidation and violence, highlighted by the unresolved Molotov attack on the Papuan media outlet Jubi. A landmark Constitutional Court ruling in May 2025 offered a rare positive development. The constitutional court strengthened protections for free speech by barring government bodies and officials from using defamation laws to target critics.

Indigenous Papuans’ land rights and livelihoods came under increasing pressure in 2025. Government-driven natural resource projects accelerated without meaningful consent, leading to systematic indigenous rights violations. In the central highlands, military units occupied villages near the Wabu Block gold mining concession in Intan Jaya, prompting community mass protests. In the Papua Selatan Province, the Strategic National Project (PSN) in Merauke continued expansion. The massive agricultural project is implemented by military personnel without Free, Prior, and Informed Consent (FPIC) of the indigenous Marind people. Likewise, in Papua Barat Daya Province, the Indigenous Moi Tribe struggled against new palm oil concessions that threaten West Papua’s last intact forests. Large-scale agricultural projects, timber logging, and mining operations have led to massive environmental destruction and the erosion of indigenous culture.

The accessibility, quality, and adequacy of healthcare and education services in West Papua are poor, ranking among the lowest in the country. There are no signs of improvement, especially in conflict-affected areas. Hundreds of villages in the highlands do not have access to functional schools or clinics because teachers and health workers fled ongoing violence. Even in urban areas, public services have reached alarming low levels. Major hospitals faced staff strikes and corruption scandals. These failures, alongside significant special autonomy funds ostensibly allocated to West Papua, underscore a persistent gap in basic services and government accountability.

The 2025 Annual Report is organised in two main parts, following the 2024 report structure. Section I covers Civil and Political Rights, examining patterns of impunity, violence, restrictions on fundamental freedoms, indigenous peoples’ rights, and social rights (health, education). Section II addresses Conflict and Displacement, detailing the armed conflict dynamics and the internal displacement crisis. Statistical tables are included below to summarise key trends.

Papua police accused of protecting perpetrators behind Jubi media firebombing

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Suara Papua – February 2, 2026

Maria Baru, Sorong – The Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) is urging the Papua Regional Police (Polda Papua) to immediately solve the October 16, 2024 Molotov cocktail terror attack against the Jubi editorial office in Jayapura.

Fifteen months after the attack, the Papua police have again come under scrutiny after failing to publicly identify the perpetrators of the Molotov cocktail terror attack. The police’s silence is seen as a form of inaction, public manipulation and the protection of perpetrators of crimes against the press.

AJI Secretary General Bayu Wardhana emphasised that the case must be followed up seriously and the identities of the perpetrators made public immediately.

He said that allowing the case to drag on will only make it an “annual story” without legal clarity. According to Wardhana, the failure to thoroughly investigate the attack will further worsen the state of press freedom and democracy in Papua.

“This case must be resolved. If not, it will continue to be a recurring story each year”, Wardhana said during a public discussion titled “The silencing of the media and the press freedom crisis in Eastern Indonesia”, which held at the Swiss-Bell Hotel in Sorong city, Southwest Papua, on Monday February 2.

Meanwhile, Jubi editor-in-chief Jean Bisay openly accused the Papua Regional Police of being “con artists,” because despite knowing the perpetrator’s identity, they have yet to reveal it to the public.

Bisay emphasised that to prevent practices of impunity for crimes targeting journalists and the media, the perpetrators of the Molotov bomb terror attack must be identified and punished according to prevailing laws in Indonesia.

“If the perpetrators are not punished, impunity will continue to occur”, he said.

During the same discussion, Catholic rights activist Yuliana Langowuyo highlighted the role of the Press Council in ensuring that every media outlet has standard operating procedures (SOPs) to protect journalists, especially in high-risk reporting.

Langowuyo stated that journalists are human rights workers, so their work must be protected systematically and seriously.

Erick Tanjung, a member of the Press Council Working Group, revealed that many media outlets in Indonesia, including those in Jakarta, still lack adequate security protocols for high-risk coverage such as conflict, investigations and disasters.

“This is important homework for the Press Council and media companies to have security protocols for journalists”, said Tanjung.

Tanjung believes that the Molotov cocktail attack on the Jubi editorial office is a real test of the state’s commitment to protecting press freedom.

“Especially in Papua, which has long been under the shadow of intimidation and violence against the media”, he concluded.

[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was “Polda Papua Dituding ‘Tukang Tipu’, Pelaku Bom Molotov Jubi Belum Diumumkan”.]

Source: https://suarapapua.com/2026/02/02/polda-papua-dituding-tukang-tipu-pelaku-bom-molotov-jubi-belum-diumumkan/

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Impunity update: Police officer sentenced for killing of Tobias Silak seen walking freely through Wamena

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Human Rights News / Indonesia, West Papua / 6 February 2026 

On 20 August 2024, Mr Tobias Silak, a civilian, was fatally shot and Naro Dapla sustained serious gunshot injuries on the Dekai mountain road, Yahukimo Regency, Papua Pegunungan Province. Following a criminal trial, a panel of judges at the Wamena District Court delivered verdicts against four Indonesian police officers involved in the incident in late October 2025. On 2 February 2026, credible information emerged that Second Brigadier Fernando Alexander Aufa, one of the convicted officers, was seen walking freely in Wamena (see videos below, source: independent HRD), raising serious concerns that he may have been released by the Jayawijaya District Police despite a five-year custodial sentence.

A solidarity activist saw ç walking in front oft he Jayawijaya police station, only three months after he had been sentenced to five years imprisonment. Following the encounter, the activist reported the encounter to the Jayawijaya District Police and the Wamena corrective facilty. According to the activist, neither police officers nor correctional officers took action, raising serious impunity concerns.

Background

On 28 October 2025, the Court convicted Chief Brigadier Muhammad Kurniawan Kudu (Gorontalo Police Mobile Brigade) under Article 338 of the Indonesian Criminal Code (murder) and sentenced him to 14 years’ imprisonment for shooting an unarmed civilian. Three additional defendants were convicted under Article 360 in conjunction with Article 55 of the Criminal Code and each sentenced to five years’ imprisonment. Evidence before the Court established that eight direct shots were fired at the victim without prior warning.

The victims’ legal team welcomed the sentence but condemned the leniency of sentences relative to the gravity of the crimes. Counsel argued that the evidence demonstrated premeditation, warranting prosecution under Article 340 (premeditated murder), which carries life imprisonment or the death penalty. The families further objected to the classification of the three co-defendants’ conduct as mere negligence, citing courtroom facts indicating coordinated actions and false reporting of a alleged shootout at Pasar Lama to cover-up the crime.

The verdict neither included dismissal from the Indonesian National Police, nor did the Court award restitution, compensation, or rehabilitation to the victims and their families. This is particularly concerning given that domestic law enables such remedies. Moreover, Naro Dapla was a minor at the time of the shooting. The trail also failed to establish command-level accountability, leaving those holding command responsibility free from prosecution.

Second Brigadier Fernando Alexander Aufa fleeing after being caught walking freely in Wamena

Military operations against indigenous village in Gearek District, Nduga Regency: One child killed, mother and sibling injured

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Human Rights Monitor

14 January 2026 / On 12 December 2025, Indonesian military forces (TNI) conducted a large-scale air and ground military operation against indigenous settlements in Woneworasosa village, Gearek District, Nduga Regency, Papua Pegunungan Province. The operation involved at least six military helicopters, aerial gunfire, and the deployment of mortar-type explosive ordnance in and around civilian homes, gardens, and livestock areas. The attack resulted in the killing of a seven-year-old child, serious injury to an indigenous woman, widespread destruction of civilian property, and the forced displacement of at least 539 civilians.

An investigation by the Papuan Foundation for Justice, Human Integrity (YKKMP) found no evidence of armed confrontation or resistance at the time of the attack. The military operation took place in a populated civilian area and caused severe humanitarian consequences.

On 10 December 2025, residents of Gearek District reported the presence of three military helicopters conducting surveillance flights over indigenous settlements without prior notification, coordination, or explanation. This activity caused widespread fear among the villagers. On 11 December 2025, the military presence escalated. Three helicopters and several drones again flew over Woneworasosa Village. Witnesses reported that helicopters dropped explosive devices near homes to facilitate troop deployment, while additional aircraft fired live ammunition from the air. Mortars reportedly exploded next to civilian houses, prompting panic among residents.

The operation reached its peak on 12 December 2025 at around 05:30 am, when six helicopters attacked from multiple directions. Mortar-type explosives were dropped near homes and gardens, and helicopters fired sustained gunfire onto residential areas. Roofs were perforated by bullets, walls were riddled with impact marks, livestock were shot, and solar panels and household interiors were destroyed (see photos below, source: YKKMP). The attack was carried out without warning and without prior armed hostilities in the area.

As residents attempted to flee, Arestina Giban, a seven-year-old girl (see photo on top, source: YKKMP), was shot in the back of the head while being carried by her mother, Mrs Wina Kerebea, 35. The child died instantly. Mrs Kerebea was injured by shrapnel from a mortar explosion, which became lodged in her right thigh (see photos below, source: YKKMP). Despite sustained gunfire from the air, she attempted to recover her child’s body while shielding her other child, who was reportedly also grazed by a bullet. Mrs Kerebea and her other child survived the attack but had to leave Arestina’s body behind.

Following the attack, residents fled into forests and neighbouring districts, including Pasir Putih and areas of Asmat Regency. Many spent days without food, shelter, or medical care. Military operations reportedly continued until 13 December 2025 at around 10:00 am. Searches for the child’s body between 14 and 16 December 2025 were unsuccessful, raising serious concerns about the enforced disappearance or concealment of remains.

As late December 2025, most residents remained internally displaced due to trauma, fear of renewed attacks, and the destruction of their homes.

Human rights analysis

The documented events indicate serious violations of international human rights law and international humanitarian law. The use of aerial bombardment, mortar explosives, and live ammunition in densely populated civilian areas constitutes a breach of the principle of distinction and the principle of proportionality, which prohibit attacks directed at civilians and civilian objects.

The killing of Arestina Giban amounts to an arbitrary deprivation of life as regulated under Article 6 of the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (ICCPR). The circumstances of her death, including firing from military helicopters during a non-combat situation, meet the legal definition of extrajudicial killing. The failure to recover, identify, and return the body of the deceased child raises grave concerns under international standards governing the duty to investigate potentially unlawful deaths, including obligations to preserve evidence and ensure the dignity of the dead. Likewise, the injury of Mrs Wina Kerebea constitutes serious bodily harm, potentially amounting to cruel, inhuman, or degrading treatment.

The destruction of homes, food sources, livestock, and essential infrastructure, as well as the contamination of gardens by explosive remnants, violated civilians’ rights to adequate housing, food, health, and livelihood. The forced displacement of more than 500 civilians without safety guarantees or humanitarian assistance constitutes arbitrary displacement and exposes vulnerable populations, including women and children, to further harm.

Mrs Wina Kerebea (left) and her seven-year-old daughter Arestina Giban (right)

Photos showing the destruction of the military operation in the Woneworasosa village between 11 and 13 December 2025

Detailed Case Data
Location: Gearek, Nduga Regency, Highland Papua, Indonesia (-4.619625, 138.7794089) Woneworasosa village
Region: Indonesia, Highland Papua, Nduga, Gearek
Total number of victims: 3

#Number of VictimsName, DetailsGenderAgeGroup AffiliationViolations
1.1 Arestina Giban

female7 Indigenous Peoplesunlawful killing
2.1 Wina Kerebea

female35 Indigenous Peoplesill-treatment
3.1 

unknownIndigenous Peoplesill-treatment

Period of incident: 11/12/2025 – 13/12/2025
Perpetrator: , Indonesian Military (TNI)
Issues: indigenous peoples, security force violence, women and children

Indonesia’s election to the UN Human Rights Council was not due to human rights progress

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January 10, 2026 in Press Release Reading Time: 3 mins read

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Author: Jubi Admin – Editor: Arjuna Pademme

Jayapura, Jubi – Amnesty International Indonesia stated that Indonesia’s election as President of the United Nations Human Rights Council (UNHRC) was not due to human rights progress at home or abroad.

Amnesty International Indonesia’s Executive Director, Usman Hamid, said the Minister of Human Rights’ boast that Indonesia “succeeded in winning” the position of President of the UNHRC because of the “Ministry of Human Rights” was a false boast that was not based on the facts.

He said the position rotates according to region around the world. This year it is the Asia Pacific region’s turn. Coincidentally, Indonesia is the sole candidate for this rotating position.

“So it’s not accurate to say that Indonesia achieved this position because it ‘seized’ it, let alone because of the Ministry of Human Rights. It’s also not accurate to say that this position was achieved because of progress on human rights at home or abroad,” said Usman Hamid in a written press release on Friday evening (January 9, 2026).

According to Usman, Indonesia’s domestic human rights reputation has actually worsened. In 2025, more than 5,000 people were arrested for demonstrations, and 283 human rights defenders were attacked.

Ironically, the Ministry of Human Rights tends to justify human rights violations. Most recently, the Minister of Human Rights even praised the drafters of the new Criminal Procedure Code (KUHAP), which clearly threatens human rights.

Indonesia’s international human rights reputation is weak. Indonesia tends to reject recommendations from the Human Rights Council to improve the human rights situation. “In 2022, for example, Indonesia rejected 59 of the 269 recommendations in the Universal Periodic Review (UPR),” he said.

He said these two situations create an irony: as President of the Human Rights Council, Indonesia will lead the review of member states’ human rights in the Universal Periodic Review (UPR), especially since Indonesia will also be the object of the UPR review.

Furthermore, Usman continued, Indonesia’s UPR reports often differ from reality. In 2022, Indonesia only reported on Papua from the perspective of infrastructure and welfare, without mentioning the ongoing violence against civilians there.

Indonesia has shown little commitment to human rights and often advocates for permissive approaches such as dialogue or consensus with countries suspected of human rights violations.

He cited an example in 2022, after a report by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights concluded that human rights violations in Xinjiang, China, potentially constituted crimes against humanity.

At that time, Indonesia rejected a motion to discuss the report, arguing that it would “not yield meaningful progress” because the proposal “did not receive the consent and support of the countries concerned.”

“This rejection contributed to the failure of the motion by a narrow margin, 19 votes against to 17 in favor, and 11 abstentions. “Indonesia also has a poor track record in granting access to UN special rapporteurs to visit Indonesia to examine the human rights situation,” he said.

Furthermore, in 2023, Indonesia rejected a request from the Special Rapporteur on the Independence of the Judiciary to visit Indonesia. That year, Indonesia rejected a request from the UN Special Rapporteur on Slavery, and in 2024, Indonesia rejected a request from the UN Special Rapporteur on Truth, Justice, and Reparations.

Usman said, therefore, through the position of President of the Human Rights Council, we can test Indonesia’s seriousness by seeing whether Indonesia actively encourages members of the Human Rights Council, including Indonesia, to agree on firm action regarding alleged human rights violations, accepts the recommendations made, and facilitates requests for official visits from independent experts and UN special rapporteurs.

According to him, the position of President of the UN Human Rights Council will mean nothing to Indonesia and is merely a matter of pride without alignment of human rights concerns in its foreign and domestic policies.

Previously, Indonesia was elected President of the UN Human Rights Council on Thursday, January 8, 2026. The office of President of the Council is held by the Permanent Representative Indonesian Ambassador to the United Nations in Geneva, Sidharto Reza Suryodipuro, replaces the previous official, Jurg Lauber of Switzerland.

This is Indonesia’s first presidency of the UN Human Rights Council since its establishment 20 years ago.

As president of the UN Human Rights Council for a one-year term, Sidharto will preside over the proceedings of the forum, which is based in Geneva, Switzerland.

The Indonesian ambassador will preside over three sessions of the UN Human Rights Council, scheduled for late February, June, and September 2026.

He will also oversee the review of the human rights records of Council member states, known as the Universal Periodic Review (UPR).

Sidharto stated that Indonesia has been a strong supporter of the UN Human Rights Council since its inception 20 years ago, as well as of its predecessor, the UN Commission on Human Rights.

“Our decision to move forward is rooted in the 1945 Constitution and in line with the purposes and principles of the UN Charter, which mandates Indonesia to contribute to world peace based on freedom, peace, and social justice,” he told the attendees. delegation. (*)

IDP Update January 2026:  Humanitarian crisis deteriorates as Indigenous communities bear brunt of expanding security operations

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Human Rights News, Reports / Indonesia, West Papua / 7 January 2026 

Between November and December 2025, human rights defenders and local media covered new internal displacements in West Papua due to new security force raids and the ongoing expansion of military infrastructure in the central highlands. As of 1 January 2026, more than 105,878 civilians across multiple regencies remained internally displaced due to military operations and armed conflict (see table below). The vast majority of the internally displaced persons (IDPs) are indigenous peoples, as security force operations exclusively target areas that indigenous Papuans mainly inhabit. Incidents triggering new internal displacements reportedly occurred in the regencies Mimika, Nduga, Lanny Jaya, Intan Jaya, and Yahukimo.

On 21 November 2025, the Papuan Church Council, in collaboration with the STT Walter Post Jayapura Centre for Social and Pastoral Human Rights Studies, organised a Literacy and Resilience Festival titled “Caring for Memories Through Words” in Jayapura City. The event provided a platform for IDP representatives to share their experiences and brought together civil society stakeholders to document and raise awareness about the humanitarian crisis. The testimonies at the festival illustrated both the challenges faced by displaced populations and grassroots resilience efforts.

The humanitarian conditions across all displacement sites remain uniformly dire, characterised by acute shortages of food, medicine, clean water, and shelter. IDPs sheltering in forests face particularly harsh conditions with minimal humanitarian access, while those in evacuation camps struggle with severe overcrowding, inadequate resources, and the complete cessation of daily activities. The situation is further complicated by restricted humanitarian access due to security force controls and challenging geographical conditions. The militarisation of health access in conflict zones across West Papua has created fear and hesitation in seeking medical care, with fatal consequences for vulnerable populations.

This crisis reveals a systematic pattern of military operations that disproportionately affect civilian populations and violate principles of distinction between combatants and non-combatants. The long-term nature of these displacements, with some populations like those in Pegunungan Bintang displaced since 2021 and over 10,000 Nduga IDPs living in Jayawijaya since December 2019, indicates an entrenched humanitarian emergency requiring sustained attention. The IDPs refuse to return until military forces withdraw from their villages.

Mimika

On 31 October 2025, Indonesian military forces entered Jila District, Mimika Regency, and opened fire on villages without prior warning, despite no reported armed conflict with the TPNPB at the time. The operation reportedly resulted in the internal displacement of approximately 1,500 civilians. Some fled to Timika City while others remained sheltering in forests around Jila District without government assistance or humanitarian access. Restricted internet access in the area hampered the documentation of the situation.

The crisis escalated significantly on 10 December 2025, as military forces reportedly conducted aerial bombardments in Amuagom Village at approximately 5:00 a.m. The attack destroyed civilian homes, livestock, and property, with ammunition casings found in yards and bullet holes penetrating house walls. Hundreds of IDPs fled dozens of kilometres to the Jila District centre without adequate food or water. A dozen residents fled to Puncak and Puncak Jaya Regencies. Military operations reportedly continued on 11 December, expanding to ten villages with additional troops and helicopters deployed.

IDPs fleeing the Jila District after military operations began on 31 October 2025, without prior incident or notice

Full update

https://humanrightsmonitor.org/reports/idp-update-january-2026-humanitarian-crisis-deteriorates-as-indigenous-communities-bear-brunt-of-expanding-security-operations

Blood, silence and history: questioning Indonesia’s 1965 narrative

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Duncan Graham

 December 11, 2025 

As Indonesia prepares to release a new official national history, an Australian historian’s account of the 1965–66 mass killings threatens to reopen a long-suppressed debate about power, violence, and memory.Indonesia’s reputation for tolerance is about to be tested by an Australian academic. Queensland historian Greg Poulgrain says he isn’t seeking fame or notoriety, just “telling the truth”, but fears his name will be trashed and research shredded. That’s if the Indonesian government responds furiously to a foreigner challenging the official account of frenzied killings as “one of the darkest turning points in Indonesia’s modern history.”

The Indonesian government-approved version of the past six decades has a surprise Moscow-engineered Communist plot to take over the Republic. This was thwarted by the military and courageous General Soeharto, who was then rewarded with the presidency, a position he held for 32 years.

The US Central Intelligence Agency claimed: “The (1965-66 anti-Communist) massacres in Indonesia rank as one of the worst mass murders of the 20th century.”

In 1966, Australian PM Harold Holt callously quipped: “With 500,000 to one million Communist sympathisers knocked off, I think it’s safe to say a reorientation has taken place.”

This month Jakarta plans to launch a new official history of the world’s fourth largest nation by population (285 million) with 88 per cent Sunni Muslims.

US and UK-educated former journalist Fadli Zon is Indonesia’s Minister for Culture. He’s ordered the writing of his nation’s history in ten volumes by more than a hundred academics pounding laptops. The section dealing with the 1965 crisis should be on the streets before 2025 departs.

Also to be released this month by Kompas, the nation’s premier publisher, is Poulgrain’s Blood and Silence – the Hidden Tragedy 1965.

His account has the plot known ahead of time by Soeharto, who launched the genocide backed by Washington. He’s just been awarded National Hero status by his former son-in-law, current President Prabowo Subianto.

Nations tack together myths about themselves that become so embedded they morph into truths and resist scrutiny.

Ours is that we’re tough Ozzies, big on mateship and giving all a go, sturdy upholders of the Anzac spirit, larrikins who value independence.

Indonesia’s pride is a nation of friendly folk, humble and helpful, accepting those who follow different gods, values and opinions.

That’s the opposite of the ghastly reality that still stains memories and stirs fears of a repeat in the land next door, once red with the blood of executions. This writer has been shown bunkers on riverbanks, allegedly mass graves from the 60s, undisturbed lest they release vengeful ghosts.

The excuse for the slaughter is that the wee folk were impetuously aroused to slitting neighbours’ and relatives’ throats because the godless Communists were about to overthrow the government and ban Islam. They didn’t need encouragement.

Poulgrain’s account doesn’t follow that script. He has US capitalists and right-wing politicians in cahoots with Muslim big business, determined to rip out the land rights movement rooted in Marxism, not through legislation and debate but violence.

During his 20-year reign, founding President Soekarno had grown close to the Partai Komunis Indonesia and away from the West and foreign corporations. His home-grown ideology was Nasakom, a contrived blend of nationalism, Islam and Communism. No reference to the military.

“Nasakom remained illusory,” writes Poulgrain. “Soekarno’s political opponents took every opportunity to label him as a Communist, though (President) John Kennedy knew this was untrue.

“This worried the PKI’s fierce rivals, the Indonesian Army, whose power waned as the PKI grew.”

The story of Asia’s largest genocide is one that few Australians know and many Indonesians don’t want told. On the last day of September 1965, Indonesians woke to news that six generals had been seized from their homes by soldiers, shot, and their bodies dumped in a well at an air force base after being castrated and their eyes gouged by naked dancing women.

This was an embellishment to pique outrage – autopsies found no traces of torture and mutilation. Nor were there any nudies.

The killers were alleged to be Communists, and the mastermind was supposed to be Moscow. Russia and China were rivals seeking the support of the Partai Komunis Indonesia, then the world’s largest Communist party outside the Sino-Soviet Bloc.

That afternoon, the public was reassured by radio that the government of the first President Soekarno was intact, though the military was in charge through a ‘Revolutionary Council’.

This was led by General Soeharto, who later became the second president and held his job for 32 years. During this time, he and his family allegedly amassed US $35 billion of public money through widespread corruption.

In 1965, he ordered the nation cleansed of the ungodly PKI, so the military broke out its armouries for the killing squads. Modern weapons weren’t always necessary, as scythes and other farm tools were used to murder villagers the Army had labelled Reds. They helpfully distributed lists of those doomed to die.

Poulgrain quotes a distressed Soekarno saying: “Those people instigating the anti-PKI massacres, namely, the Army and the CIA, ought to be brought to trial.” That didn’t happen. Soekarno’s power was waning, and Soeharto’s narrative of a spontaneous and unstoppable grass-roots uprising prevailed.

Poulgrain’s research has Soeharto well prepared ahead of the coup. “At no time during his two decades in the military (prior to 1965) did Soeharto acquire a reputation of being anti-PKI … (he was) more concerned with business than politics.”

Poulgrain claims the unarmed Communists allegedly threatening the State were in reality “landless rice-farmers (petani) whose very existence depended on getting some land to grow rice. They comprised the bulk of PKI membership … supporting legal land reform in the hope of securing a small patch to grow their own food.

“On the other side were Muslim landlords for whom land reform was seen as a threat to their livelihood, wealth and status, their very existence.

“Most petani had no land at all … 60 to 70 per cent were pursuing subsistence-based agriculture.”

Sixty years on, land reform and inequality remain weeping wounds. In the 2024 presidential election campaign, The Jakarta Post commented: “Economic inequality, notably in income and wealth ownership, should have been discussed vigorously because of its connection to economic instability and political unrest.

“(There’s a) correlation between economic inequality and slow economic income disparity; last year was the worst in the last five years … remaining among the highest in Asia.”

If this gulf isn’t bridged, sociologists fear another volcano of violence could erupt.

G30S remains a compulsory annual national holiday with all flags at half-mast, including those on residents’ gates.

There are sickening dioramas in a special Jakarta museum celebrating the horrors, influencing school kids on compulsory visits. There’s a huge statue of the six murdered generals looking formidable. Doubts voiced by outsiders get ridiculed with the easy slur that critics are Fellow Travellers.

Poulgrain’s 122-page book is based on years of research and interviews held with key participants in Indonesia and overseas for his PhD in the last century, when many witnesses were alive. He writes:

“Australia’s biggest contribution to the Army’s anti-communist campaign was broadcasting and supporting Indonesian Army propaganda.

“The Army seized control of virtually all of Indonesia’s media after the attempted coup. It began an aggressive and pervasive anti-PKI campaign, spreading dangerous disinformation to discredit and dehumanise the Communists.  The party and its principles are still banned.

“Radio Australia fed the Indonesian population an Indonesian Army-approved political narrative that Ambassador Mick Shann said ‘should [be thumped] into Indonesians’ as much as possible.”

Those words are the advice of Australia’s then leading diplomat in Jakarta.

The first edition of Blood and Silence will be in English. Whether Kompas will be forced to abandon its promise to publish in Indonesian will be a test of the nation’s tolerance for dissenting views, a pillar of democracy.The views expressed in this article may or may not reflect those of Pearls and Irritations.

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.

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How UN betrayal of West Papua led to genocide, step by step

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by Julie Wark 24th October 2025

The United Nations has recently come under attack from the Trump Administration and, much as it goes against the grain, it’s difficult to argue with real-estate-developer-cum-ambassador-representative for UN Management and Reform [sic], Jeff Bartos:

“Over 80 years, the UN has grown bloated, unfocused, too often ineffective, and sometimes even part of the problem. The UN’s failure to deliver on its core mandates is alarming and undeniable.”

Yet the problem isn’t really the UN. One notable symptom of its malaise is the Security Council and its five veto-playing permanent members — the US, UK, France, China and Russia — representing the world system that assist and cover up for their allies who commit human rights violations, war crimes and genocide, and that also outsource such crimes. But lèse-humanité is the crime par excellence of the international system. It’s a basic principle of colonial “development”. So what follows isn’t about kicking the UN when it’s down, but about how the rulers of this system use any institution, democratic or otherwise, to achieve their own diabolical and white supremacist ends.

I’m sorry — in more ways than one — that this article is long.

It’s long because the list of UN (when I refer to the UN, I’m basically referring to the world system) offences against the people of West Papua is hideously long. Sadly, my list is by no means complete because there’s lots of “classified” material I don’t know about and many, many secrets, but I hope it gives a glimpse of how the international system works when it wants to get whole encumbering peoples out of its way.

I’m taking it as given that Indonesia is committing genocide in West Papua. It’s done stealthily but there’s plenty of evidence (for example, see here, here, and here) for it. However, the facts show that, in this six-decade-plus crime against humanity, Indonesia has been the tool of other interests, that the role of the United Nations (by which I mean some of its dominant powers and personalities) has been particularly egregious, and this is surely one of the reasons why the West Papua genocide has continued sub rosa, deliberately silenced, for more than 60 years. There are many aspects of the UN betrayal because they belong to big-power politics and they’re convoluted because of the secrecy that surrounds them.

This isn’t about an isolated instance of genocidal violence. It fits into a world system where white supremacist brutality, going back at least to the period of early modern European overseas expansion from the 15th century, the so-called Age of Discovery (a quintessentially Eurocentric concept), turned into a “scientifically-based” system with the Enlightenment and didn’t end with decolonisation. I’d suggest, after reading documents from the time when West Papua was gifted to Indonesia, that the latter was less the West’s darling than a mere instrument unscrupulously used to favour the economic and geopolitical interests of white supremacy and its destructive notions of “progress and development”. It’s not only the various Indonesian regimes that are responsible for mass murder in West Papua, but also and especially their enablers in the international political system represented by the UN and the big powers.

I can only partially list the crimes committed against West Papua (and, here, I’m indebted to painstaking research by Julian McKinlay King, John Saltford, Greg Poulgrain, and others). But even an incomplete list gives an idea of the magnitude of this lèse-humanité, this core crime of international law. I’m not interested in “speaking truth to power” because I agree with Pankaj Mishra that this is a naïve exercise. Those in power know and control the truth. I studied politics and am not an expert in international law so I hope I don’t misinterpret some aspects of it. In any case, the hard facts are enraging for any decent human being. Experts in international law are often too invested in, or too occupied with, other aspects of the corrupt system to inquire into the evidence of Indonesia’s daily genocidal actions in West Papua, and too demoralised to try to stop them through the shoddy institutions at their disposal. Yet any non-expert person who cares to look at the documents can see quite plainly that, in the last almost 65 years of West Papua’s history, the UN has played a shameful role, not only allowing this to happen but deliberately colluding with it. The very forum that has the power to stop the genocide is complicit in it.

It was only recently that the UN finally acknowledged that Israel is committing genocide in Palestine, and I can’t help wondering whether all this fudging about the word is somehow related with fear of disclosure of the UN’s active role in abetting and silencing the West Papua genocide. I list 43 aspects of this below.

For the full article please see below.

The article in CounterPunch does list 43 separate paragraphs which are a real work of research and worthwhile reading editors note

Republished from CounterPunch, 24 October 2025

The views expressed in this article may or may not reflect those of Pearls and Irritations.