On 28 February 2024, around 10:30 pm, members of the Indonesian National Army (TNI) command Yonif 330 reportedly shot down the two indigenous Papuans, Selli Maiseni, 16, and Mr Mikalon Yoani, 18, in Titigi Village (see satellite image on top, source: European Space Imaging), Sugapa District, Intan Jaya Regency, Papua Tengah Province. Selli Maiseni sustained a gunshot wound on the arm, while Mr Yoani was shot in the thigh (see photos below, source: WPCC). The incident occurred during the vote count for the Indonesian Legislative and Presidential elections. The circumstances of the shooting are currently being investigated and verified. The XVII/Cenderawasih military command spokesperson, Colonel Candra Kurniawan, denied the allegations, saying there was no shooting in Suagapa on 28 February 2024 .
The case highlights a disturbing pattern of violence perpetrated by the TNI in Intan Jaya, citing many instances of shootings resulting in extrajudicial killings or injuries among civilians, including school children. The armed conflict in West Papua is a driver of internal displacement and prompted not only the indigenous population. but also teachers and health workers to leave the conflict areas. Accordingly, military members have become more involved in providing fundamental government health services, teaching in schools, and engaging in public activities such as burials and joint garden work. This is also part of the new Government strategy to tackle the armed conflict in West Papua with ‘Smart Power,’ a combination of soft approach, hard approach, and military diplomacy.
Many indigenous Papuans are traumatized by the presence of the military in their communities. Many are concerned that this exposes the community to increased potential risk of armed attacks by the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) near indigenous settlements and human rights violations. Human rights observers call for immediate action, demanding the withdrawal of all TNI Yonif 330 members operating there.
Mr Mikalon Yoani (left) and Selli Maiseni (right) sustained bullet injuries after military members bullet injuries opened fire in Titigi on 28 February 2024
Security forces raided the villages Manggume and Aminggaru, Omukia District, as well as in the villages Yenggernok and Agiyome in the Gome District, following the theft of an automatic firearm by members of the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) on 1 February 2024. According to information received, on 3 and 4 February 2024, security force members burnt houses in various villages to the ground (see images, source independent HRDs) and arbitrarily tortured villagers.
One Papuan villager reportedly died because of the injuries he sustained due to the torture. At least three other civilians were injured after being tortured, including one pastor named Rev Eriak Waker. The torture occurred during his interrogation in the Yenggernok Village. The other two victims sustained more severe injuries and were hospitalised. The Military later claimed that all victims were associated with the TPNPB. The relatives and the victims themselves underlined that they were civilians and not affiliated with the armed resistance.
According to information received, security force members carried out a raid in the Manggume Village, Omukia District, on 4 February 2024, around 10.00 am. Mr Andinus Murib, 21, and Mr Devius Wanikbo, 19, were fixing the roof of a house when the security forces came to the villages. Villagers panicked and fled to the forest while Mr Murib and Mr Wandikbo were trapped on the roof. Security force members were temporarily detained and beaten.
Mr Murib and Mr Wandikbo were admitted to the public hospital after losing consciousness due to the pain they experienced during the torture. On 5 February 2024, military members suggested transferring both patients to Timika, where the hospital was better equipped. However, the relatives rejected the offer. Instead, they brought Mr Murib and Mr Wandikbo back to the village and treated them with traditional medicine because they feared further violence or criminalisation by the authorities.
During the raid in Manggume on 4 February 2024, security forces encountered Mr Werinus Murib, 20, in the forest near the village around 11.15 am while collecting firewood. After being arrested, security force members reportedly tortured Mr Murib until he succumbed to the injuries he sustained. The pattern of injuries indicated that the security force member beat and kicked the victim’s head and body using bare hands and blunt objects. The body also had stabbing and slashing injuries. Witnesses saw joint security forces tying Mr Murib’s feet to a car and dragging him for a distance of 1 kilometre. Mr Murib died on the way to the hospital as a result of the injuries he sustained.
Background
The pattern of attacks involving killings, torture, the destruction of houses, and the killing of livestock was also observed in the regencies Intan Jaya,Nduga, and Pegunungan Bintang, all located in the central highlands. This pattern indicates that these procedures are part of the security forces’ counterinsurgency strategy against guerrilla fighters. Armed resistance members hide among civilians and need the villages to supply their members with food and other essentials. The fighters are indigenous locals. Many are related to civilians living in the conflict areas. However, the presence of combatants among civilians is not sufficient reason to justify indiscriminate attacks directed against civilian settlements. Particularly in the case of air raids against small villages, a clear separation between civilians and targets can no longer be guaranteed. Strategies involving the deliberate destruction of civilian settlements and livestock cannot be justified under international law.
The use of extra-judicial execution, torture, and forced displacements during such raids amount to crimes against humanity as defined under the Rome Statue. While Indonesia has not yet been willing to become a party to the Rome Statute, the definitions provided in it are internationally recognised legal norms. An investigation by the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) into allegations of crimes against humanity is necessary and mandated by Indonesian law to reveal command structures, determine who authorised the attacks, and what security force units carried out the raids. Houses burnt to the ground during the raid in Puncak Regency, Papua Pegunungan Province, on 3 a
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – Australian Ambassador to Indonesia Penny Williams PSM visited Jayapura in Papua province on February 26 and 27. While in Jayapura, Ambassador Williams met with the chairman of DPR Papua Jhony Banua Rouw, Papua Province Acting Governor Dr. M. Ridwan Rumasukun, and the Papua Chief of Police, Insp. Gen. Mathius D. Fakhiri.
Ambassador Williams also visited the Regional Development Planning Agency in Jayapura to see in person how Australia and Indonesia are working together for better development planning in Papua.
“I am very pleased to visit Jayapura and to see firsthand the cooperation between the province of Papua and Australia,” Ambassador Williams said.
One of the highlights of Ambassador Williams’ visit to Jayapura was a dinner with prominent Australian Alumni women leaders in Papua. Ambassador Williams also met with the Rector of Cenderawasih University, Dr. Oscar Oswald O. Wambrauw.
Ambassador Williams is a senior official in the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT). Prior to her appointment as the Australian Ambassador to Indonesia, Williams served as the Deputy Secretary of DFAT. She has also served as the Australian Ambassador to Malaysia and was Australia’s first Ambassador for Women and Girls. Williams is the first female Australian Ambassador to Indonesia.
Williams is fluent in Indonesian due to her educational background in Bachelor of Asian Studies (Honors) with a focus on: He holds a Bachelor of Asian Studies (Honors) with a focus on Indonesia, as well as a Masters in Applied Anthropology and Participatory Development.
Sabrina Asril, Jakarta — The Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) has condemned the arrest of nine palm oil farmers in the area of the new capital city Nusantara (IKN) who were opposing the construction of the VVIP Airport in North Penajam Paser, East Kalimantan, on Monday February 26.
“The YLBHI condemns the actions of the East Kalimantan regional police who carried out the inhuman and arbitrary arrests, because it was done without showing an arrest warrant and did not clearly notify them of the reason they were arrested”, said YLBHI Chairperson Muhammad Isnur said in a written statement on Monday.
Isnur said that the arrests can be categorised as a systematic act against communities defending their right to life. According to Isnur, the arrest of nine farmers by the police as a case of using the law to coerce the community.
“The police for the umpteenth time have used this method, in securing national strategic projects (PSN)”, said Isnur.
Isnur said that the same thing had happened at the Rempang Eco-City project in the Riau Islands and in the case of a land dispute in Seruyan, Central Kalimantan.
“The actions of the East Kalimantan regional police violated the law and human rights, where any person who is arrested has the right to be told the reason why they were arrested and the police are required to show an arrest warrant”, said Isnur.
Earlier, nine members of the Saloloang farmers group in North Penajam Paser (PPU) were arrested by the police on Saturday evening, February 24. The arrests were related a land dispute between a group of farmers and the IKN VVIP Airport national strategic project.
East Kalimantan regional police public relations head Senior Commissioner Artanto said that the nine farmers were arrested because it was said that they had threatened the IKN VVIP Airport construction project.
Artanto explained that on Friday February 23, a group of people approached VVIP project workers and threatened them so they would stop working.
The next day, on Saturday at around 8.30 am, the group returned to stop the construction of the VVIP Airport. The incident occurred on the northern side of Zone 2 when they brought Mandau (a kind of sword made in Borneo) and the operators immediately stopped work.
“On the basis of the incident, field supervisors at the location of the planned VVIP Airport made an official police report with the PPU regional police on that day as well”, Artanto said on Monday.
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was “YLBHI Kecam Penangkapan 9 Petani Sawit di Wilayah IKN”.]
A leaked document circulating on the Internet detailing the reasons behind the dismissal of presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto from military service on Aug. 21, 1998, has cast doubts on the former general’s suitability to serve as president, if elected on July 9.The document, which was a scanned copy of the official letter signed by members of the Indonesian Military’s (TNI) Officer’s Honorary Council (DKP) tasked with hearing the cases of Prabowo’s complicity in the kidnapping of pro-democracy activists in 1998, revealed that the former Army’s Special Forces (Kopassus) commander was also fired from his position due to insubordination.Signatories in the document include then Lt. Gen. Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, the current President; then Army chief of staff Gen. Soebagyo Hadi Siswoyo; Lt. Gen. Fachrul Razi; and Lt. Gen. Agum Gumelar.If the authenticity of the document is verified, it could deal a blow to Prabowo’s credibility as a military man and presidential candidate.The document states Prabowo, as Kopassus commander, overstepped his authority by ordering the Mawar and Melati units to ‘arrest and detain’ the activists of the radical People’s Democratic Party (PRD).Mawar and Melati are military units under the command of Kopassus, which answer to the commander of the TNI.However, the document reveals the Mawar unit did not act on its own initiative, like Prabowo’s campaign team have repeatedly claimed.The document suggests the Mawar unit carried out the kidnappings after Prabowo reassured them that it ‘had been reported’ and that the operation was based on ‘a direct order from on high’, when in fact a report was never made by Prabowo to then Indonesian Armed Forces (or ABRI, as the TNI was then known) commander Gen. Wiranto.The kidnapping was only reported in April 1998 after pressure from then head of the Armed Forces Intelligence Body (BIA) Maj. Gen. Zacky Anwar Makarim.The document, which was uploaded on the website indonesia-2014.com, is the first document made public that details how Prabowo was dismissed from the military.The document states the DKP not only dismissed Prabowo on charges of human rights violations in relation to the abductions, but also on a number of other actions that demonstrated his insubordination and disregard for the military code.Among the other charges brought against him in the DKP hearing were that Prabowo had carried out or had taken over several operations that were under the authority of the ABRI commander, including the involvement of military forces in East Timor (now Timor Leste) and Aceh; the release of hostages in Wamena in then-Irian Jaya; and Kopassus’ involvement in securing president Soeharto’s visit to Vancouver, Canada in 1997, shortly before the strongman was ousted from power.In conclusion, the DKP said Prabowo had disgraced and disregarded the military system and committed a criminal offense.In response to the circulating document, the leader of the Prabowo-Hatta Rajasa election campaign team, Mahfud MD, reiterated that Prabowo was honorably discharged from the military.’Pak Prabowo did receive his marching orders, but take note that he was discharged with respect,’ Mahfud told reporters at Polonia House in East Jakarta.’There is no problem with this document circulating, I want to emphasize it [the dismissal] was done with respect. It would only be a problem if he were dishonorably discharged,’ the former Constitutional Court chief justice said. (tjs)
Jakarta — Scores of civil society organisations have expressed their opposition to President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s decision to award Defense Minister Prabowo Subianto with an honorary rank of four-star general.
The Coalition believes that the policy is a transactional electoral political move and that Widodo wants to annul Prabowo’s involvement in past gross human rights violations.
“With regard to this decision, the Civil Society Coalition condemns giving an honorary promotion in rank (HOR) of four-star general to Prabowo Subianto. This is not right, but also injures the feelings of the victims and betrays the 1998 reformasi [process]”, said the groups in a written statement on Wednesday February 28.
The Coalition is making five recommendations. First, that Widodo cancel giving the honorary rank to Prabowo.
Second, that the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) must seriously investigate the cases of crimes and gross human rights violations committed by Prabowo. Third, the Attorney General must conduct a criminal investigation into and prosecute cases of gross human rights violations in 1997-98.
“The government, in this case the president and his officials, must pursue the DPR’s [House of Representatives] 2009 recommendations, namely forming an ad hoc Human Rights Court, finding the 13 abduction victims that are still missing, rehabilitating and providing compensation to the families of the missing victims and ratifying the Convention Against Enforced Disappearances”, said the Coalition.
Fifth, the TNI-Polri (Indonesian military-Indonesian police) must maintain neutrality and not be involved in political activities.
The opposition to Prabowo’s honorary rank was conveyed by 22 organisations. They are the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras), Indonesian Human Rights Watch (Imparsial), the Indonesian Association of the Families of Missing Persons (IKOHI), Asia Justice and Rights (AJAR), the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) and the Community Legal Aid Institute (LBHM).
Then the Institute for Public Research and Advocacy (ELSAM), the Human Rights Working Group (HRWG), the Indonesian Legal Aid and Human Rights Association (PBHI), Centra Initiative, the Lokataru Foundation for Human Rights, Amnesty International Indonesia, Public Virtue, the Setara Institute for Peace and Democracy and Migrant Care.
The Institute for Ecosoc Rights, Greenpeace Indonesia, the Public Interest Lawyers Network (Pil-NET Indonesia), Kontras Surabaya, the Banten Legal Aid Foundation for Justice (LBH Keadilan), the Institute for Legal Development and Human Rights (LPSHAM) and the Kontras Federation.
President Widodo has denied that awarding Prabowo with an honorary rank of four-star general is a reciprocal move and a form of transactional politics.
“Yeah, if was transactional politics we would have given it to him before the elections”, said Widodo after attending a TNI-Polri leadership meeting in Cilangkap, East Jakarta, on Wednesday February 28.
“This is after the elections, right, so there wouldn’t be any suspicions like that”, he added.
Widodo explained that giving the honorary rank to Prabowo was a proposal from the TNI commander which did not come out of the blue but rather through various processes. (dhf/pmg)
Notes
In 1997-98 as many as 23 pro-democracy activists were abducted by members of the Army’s Special Forces (Kopassus). After extended periods of detention — in many cases the victims were severely tortured — most were released although 13 remain missing and are presumed dead. Former Kopassus commander Lieutenant General Prabowo Subianto, who was at the time President Suharto’s son-in-law, has admitted to ordering the abductions but claims they were all released alive and well. He was subsequently dismissed from the military over the abductions but has never been tried in court.
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was “Ramai-ramai Tolak Pangkat Jenderal Kehormatan Prabowo”.]
Indonesia’s president-elect, Prabowo Subianto, has form. As the son-in-law of the former dictator, Suharto, he rose quickly through the ranks of the military to become head of the greatly feared Indonesian special forces, Kopassus. To put it bluntly, in 1983 he was involved in one of the biggest massacres in Indonesian-occupied Timor-Leste, in Kraras in the south of the country. His soldiers killed up to 300 men, women and children in the biggest mass killing in Timor-Leste’s 24-year war with Indonesia. He was also involved in the killing of the first president of Timor-Leste, Nicolau Lobato, whose body was taken by Indonesian forces and never recovered.
Prabowo was finally thrown out of the army in 1998 following the detention and disappearances that year of pro-democracy Indonesian activists in Jakarta, who were protesting against Suharto and calling for his overthrow. Thirteen of the activists disappeared and were never seen again, presumed killed by Kopassus troops who were under his command. Prabowo was given a travel ban to the United States, where he had previously trained in counterinsurgency with US special forces at Fort Benning and Fort Bragg, and to Australia. He has always denied his involvement in kidnapping, torture and killings, and has never been charged in relation to any of the allegations against him and his men.
Prabowo orchestrated the strategy of separating those fighting for independence and the population. In Timor-Leste, Aceh and West Papua, troops under his command carried out countless casual human rights abuses.
Coopting former resistance fighters into his own control was one of the lessons he learnt in America and he put it into effect firstly in Timor-Leste. He created auxiliaries called Hansips and later two notorious Indonesian-led but Timorese-staffed battalions, 744 and 745. Both were among the most brutal towards their own people. They killed civilians, students, nuns, priests and journalists, right up until the final Indonesian withdrawal in 1999. Prabowo orchestrated the strategy of separating those fighting for independence and the population. In Timor-Leste, Aceh and West Papua, troops under his command carried out countless casual human rights abuses.
Some acts, such as the prominent killing of West Papuan leader Chief Theys Eluay in 2001, were blamed on his subordinates, who were given brief and sometimes-ignored convictions and jail terms.
Prabowo rose quickly in the military. By the age of 32, he was a major. He was untouchable and powerful. When I spoke to Indonesian human rights workers, student activists, independence supporters, members of Timor-Leste resistance fighters Falintil in the mountains, or their civilian supporters in Fretilin and CNRT, Prabowo’s name always came up.
I remember talking to Munir, an Indonesian human rights leader who had come to Timor-Leste after the fall of Suharto in May 1998 to document the abuses of the Indonesian military there. In August 1998, he told me about Prabowo’s role in recruiting and organising the Indonesian-led and funded militias that were starting to form back then in Timor-Leste. Munir was later killed by a poisoned cup of orange juice on a Garuda flight to Singapore as he tried to flee Indonesia after reporting on Indonesian military abuses in Aceh. Kopassus was blamed.
In many ways August, September and October in 1998 were extraordinary times in Timor-Leste. The Indonesian military, unsure if it was allowed to shoot demonstrators as it used to under Suharto, stood aside as Timorese students mounted louder and more heavily attended rallies in the capital Dili and in regional centres such as Manatuto and Baucau.
The lid was off and they came in their thousands, chanting, singing and waving pro-independence flags. Apart from the occasional killing, the Indonesian military seemed to tolerate the speeches and calls for independence, but they were always there watching, taking photos and video, identifying those who spoke out. They always had guns and you never knew if that day was the day they would start shooting.
As the protests continued, I joined the students on a trip to Lacluta in the remote south-east of the island. The trip down there felt like a day off – sitting in an open-backed truck. The group sitting on the roof would sing the solo verse and the others the chorus. The villagers couldn’t believe their defiance. We got to Viqueque.
There had been trouble in the area: houses burnt, a few men killed by a new group of Indonesian soldiers. When we arrived for the rally the next day it was mostly the students from Dili and a few old people. Horrible things had happened in this area. On August 8, 1983, Indonesian soldiers from Battalion 501, who later trained in Australia, entered the town of Kraras and began rounding up the men. They killed them all in a group and threw their bodies in a swamp. They killed the children by swinging them against walls or stabbing them with knives. There had been 3000 people living in this village and only about 1300 escaped. The killings in that area went on until September.
Later, when the militia violence was in full swing, I went up into the mountains to interview the Falintil commander Falur Rate Laek. Things had cracked down and it involved lots of planning. There was a long drive and a long mountain walk in monsoonal rain, trying to be quiet to avoid Indonesian military patrols. It was hard and nerve-racking. In this sparse mountain camp of tarps with bush thrown over the top, the guerillas spoke in whispers. I had done this before and knew what to expect. The threat of being captured with them was ever-present. They were taking a risk to speak and I was taking a risk going up there.
Ostensibly I was there to interview Falur Rate Laek about the recent killings in the village of Alas. The Indonesian soldiers and militia had killed at least 50 men the previous November. I had walked there too and been run out of town by armed Indonesians troops and militia, who shot at me and my guide as we scrambled up the muddy hill to get out of that place.
I got Falur’s version of the killings, which his men had witnessed. After endless coffee and cigarettes in the night, our talk turned to Prabowo. I knew Falur had once been in the Indonesian army and had deserted back to Falintil. I asked him why. He told me he had been forced to join the Indonesian military in 1980 and deserted in 1983. He told me it was because of what he had seen in Kraras.
He wanted to talk and, with the rain pelting down on the branch-covered tarp, he spoke in a low voice. He told me he had never talked to a Western journalist about this before.
He told me he was forced to witness the killing of his own people in Kraras in 1983 – when the entire male population, including children, were killed by the Indonesian military. After that, he rejoined the guerillas in the bush. He told me the troops who carried out the killings were under the command of then Captain Prabowo Subianto, who was head of Koppasandha, later to become Kopassus, in the district at the time. Prabowo may not have been there on the day – but it was his men who carried out the killings.
Prabowo is now president-elect of Indonesia. Lieutenant General Falur Rate Laek is now commander of the Timor-Leste Defence Force.
John Martinkus first wrote for The Saturday Paper in October 2015.
This article was first published in the print edition of The Saturday Paper on March 2, 2024 as “Chasing Prabowo in Timor-Leste”.
Jayapura, Jubi – The Bishop of Jayapura, Mgr. Yanuarius Theofilus Matopai You, has expressed concerns over the deployment of Indonesian Military (TNI) and Police personnel from outside Papua to the region, stating that it instills fear and discomfort among the local residents. Bishop Yanuarius made these remarks during a discussion titled “Quo Vadis Papua Land of Peace?” organized by the Secretariat for Justice, Peace, and the Integrity of Creation of the Franciscan Papua in Jayapura City on Monday, January 29, 2024.
“The excessive deployment of security forces causes the community to live in fear,” he said.
Bishop Yanuarius argued that the deployment of security forces to Papua, under the pretext of maintaining sovereignty, has significant implications for the lives of civilians. According to him, the people of Papua are already traumatized by the presence of the TNI and police.
“The deployment of forces is making security in Papua increasingly non-conducive. Papua is not a military emergency area. Yet the people have to leave their villages, gardens, and businesses and go elsewhere. Their lives are very difficult, and it continues,” he said.
Bishop Yanuarius emphasized that the central government should create space for dialogue. Dialogue is a wise step to discuss and find solutions to the conflicts in Papua.
“If the dialogue space is not opened, we will continue like this. What have we done wrong? What sins have we committed that the central government and the president allow us to live in this situation?” the Bishop questioned.
A report from the Democracy Alliance for Papua (AlDP) in 2023 noted that at least 10,250 TNI soldiers and 1,416 police from outside Papua were sent and stationed in the region. These thousands of security personnel are involved in various tasks, including the Cartenz Peace Operation, border security operations between Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, territorial community operations, public order, security operations for PT Freeport Indonesia, and Susi Air pilot rescue.
The Director of the Secretariat for Justice, Peace, and the Integrity of Creation of the Franciscan Papua, Alexandro Rangga OFM, emphasized the need for all parties to honestly discuss the issues in Papua. This is crucial for those with interests in Papua to take sincere actions to realize a peaceful Papua.
“We need to talk honestly about our home [Papua],” said Alexandro on Monday.
Alexandro stressed the importance of advocating for a peaceful Papua as conflicts persist in the region. He expressed concern that armed conflicts could escalate and trigger dangerous horizontal conflicts or conflicts between residents.
“If not, the slogan Papua Tanah Damai (Papua Land of Peace) that started 22 years ago will remain just a slogan. Those experiencing the lack of peace in Papua are the people themselves, regardless of the decisions made by political elites. The pressure on the people is increasing, and it is dangerous because every reaction to anarchic actions has a comprehensive effect in Papua,” he added. (*)
Jayapura — The Papuan people and the West Papua National Committee
(KNPB) in the Meepago area have welcomed the acquittal of Haris Azhar and Fatia Maulidiyanti who were found not guilty by the East Jakarta District Court on Monday January 8.
Azhar and Maulidiyanti are human rights activists who were found not guilty in a case of defamation brought against them by Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs (Menko Marves) and Investment Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan.
The case began when Azhar and Maulidiyanti appeared in a YouTube podcast titled “There is Lord Luhut behind the Economic Relations-Military Operations in Intan Jaya!! There are also State Intelligence Agency Generals!! NgeHAMtam”.
“Myself along with the Papuan people in Meepago and Dogiaya, we welcome the news of the release of Haris and Fatia by the [East] Jakarta District Court which today decided to free them. We welcome this and we say this is a victory for the Papuan people, that what Haris and Fatia fought for in the conflict in Papua was something that was true”.
“Therefore this truth will continue to win anywhere and the people are together with Haris and Fatia”, said KNPB international spokesperson Victor Yeimo on Monday in South Kamu, Dogiya regency, Central Papua province.
“We convey to the government of the Republic of Indonesia, especially to Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan (Menko Marves). Stop the military businesses in Papua, especially in the Wabu Block. We convey that the people of Meepago, the people of Intan Jaya, Dogiaya and Deiyai firmly reject the Wabu Block project being developed in Papua, especially in Intan Jaya”.
Yeimo said that the Papuan people have suffered since the gold-and-copper mine PT Freeport was established in Papua.
“We, the people of Papua, have experienced suffering along with the presence of PT Freeport. Don’t let there be any more companies in the Wabu Block with military businesses that conduct massive exploitation of Meepago land”.
“We, the people of Meepago, firmly reject military projects, projects of the Oligarchic elite from Jakarta. We [stand] together with Haris and Fatia. The truth will always win out!”, Yeimo concluded.
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was “Vonis Bebas Haris dan Fatia Disambut Rakyat Meepago dan KNPB, Victor:
Jayapura, Jubi – In 2023, according to ELSHAM Papua’s Director, Rev. Matheus Adadikam, there were numerous instances of arbitrary arrests conducted by the Indonesian Military (TNI) and Police across various regions in Papua. These incidents occurred in Boven Digoel in January; in Wamena in February; in Puncak Regency in March; and in Nduga in April.
Additionally, there were internal displacements in Paro, Nduga in February following the Susi Air pilot’s abduction, the West Papua National Liberation Army’s (TPNPB) shootings in Ilaga in March, and civilian property looting allegedly by the TNI in the Kuyawage area in April.
Adadikam stated to Jubi on the eve of the new year that there were still numerous armed clashes and sweeps throughout 2023 that claimed the lives of civilians.
Reflecting on the human rights situation in Papua, he mentioned that ELSHAM Papua observed a continuous stream of events violating human rights in the region, including persistent conflict without resolution, the perpetuation of militaristic policies, favoritism towards capitalist investors, and practices of impunity.
“Moreover, the criminalization of activists, stifling of expression, extrajudicial killings, internal displacements, racist rhetoric, and animosity persisted, highlighting the ongoing human rights issues in Papua,” said Adadikam.
ELSHAM Papua viewed the promises made by President Jokowi regarding the resolution of past human rights violations in Papua in December 2014 and the establishment of the Human Rights Violation Settlement Team in 2022 and 2023, as merely gestures, and an insincere one.
Adadikam noted that these initiatives seemed more like attempts to improve Indonesia’s global image after scrutiny by the UN Human Rights Council, rather than genuine efforts to address human rights violations.
Considering the persistent conflict, ELSHAM Papua stressed the necessity for the state to earnestly work towards resolving ongoing conflicts in Papua, urging an end to militaristic approaches and the excessive use of force against civilians in conflict zones.
Furthermore, Adadikam highlighted the need for the state to ensure civilian safety in Papua and specifically appealed for the release of the Susi Air pilot, held captive since February 2023, as a humanitarian gesture. (*)
Australia West Papua Association Adelaide 