1) Military could only arise trauma among locals

2) Solidarity of Lamentations of Humanity Alguru Asked Apparatus Withdrawn from Nduga

3) Indonesia’s Papua Coverup Reflex Prompts Police Dormitory Raid

4) Freeport’s one percent fund cannot guarantee Kamoro’s future

5) Palm Oil From Indonesia's Shrinking Forests Taints Global Brands: Report

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http://tabloidjubi.com/eng/military-could-only-arise-trauma-among-locals/

1) Military could only arise trauma among locals

                         Student activists from BEM Uncen and PMKRI speak during press releases. -Jubi / Doc

Published 8 hours ago on 19 July 2018 By admin

Jayapura, Jubi – Chairman of Student Executive Board of the Cenderawasih University (BEM UNCEN) Paskalis Boma asks Papua Police to withdraw officers from Nduga District to prevent people from trauma.

He said the attack by the police officers occurred in Langguru and Kenyam on 11 July 2018 was very violent. “Nduga is part of Indonesia. If the police want to attack the National Liberation Army and Free Papua Movement (TPN/OPM), they shouldn’t harm the civilians,” he told Jubi on Wednesday (19/7/2018).

Further, he said the military’s attack in Nduga District was excessive as they attacked unarmed people whereas they were well-equipped. “People don’t carry weapons; they can’t fight back. They can’t do it because they are the citizens of Indonesia. This incident remains a scar and is rooted in the hearth of the local Nduga community. It only arises a fear.”

Meanwhile, Benediktus Bame, the Chairman of the Catholic Students Association of Indonesia (PMKRI) St Efrem Jayapura, the government could apply some human approaches towards the TPN/OPM. “The action taken by the government officials was very excessive. It would only arise a fear among the local people,” he said. (*)

Reporter: Hengky Yeimo

Editor: Pipit Maizier

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A google translate. Be-aware google translate can be a bit erratic.

Original bahasa link at

https://www.papuatoday.com/2018/07/19/solidaritas-ratapan-kemanusian-alguru-minta-aparat-ditarik-dari-nduga/

2) Solidarity of Lamentations of Humanity Alguru Asked Apparatus Withdrawn from Nduga

Penulis Redaksi - 19 Juli 2018

JAYAPURA (PT) - Dozens of students who joined in Alguru's Humanitarian Solidarity Solidarity in Nduga staged a peaceful demonstration at the Papua Parliament Office on Thursday (19/7/18).

They asked the security forces to withdraw from Nduga after the invasion of Alguru village.

In fact, they also urged the government to be responsible for the victims of Alguru civilian shootings.

"The governmt is immediately responsible for the restoration of civilian security conditions in Nduga," he said

Coordinator of action, Remes Ubruangge when delivering speeches before the Speaker of Papua House, DR. Yunus Wonda, SH, MH accompanied by Ruben Magai, Nason Utty, Laurenzus Kadepa, Elvis Tabuni, Gerson Soma, Emus Gwijangge and John Ronsumbre and representatives from Komnas HAM RI Sandrayati Moniaga, SH.

In addition, the demonstrators also urged the government to immediately open access for the establishment of the Fact Finding Team and immediately withdraw non-organic and organic troops from Nduga.

It is said, people just want to live in the country without terror and now the people of Alguru grieve.

"We will boycott Presidential Election 2019 if President Jokowi can not solve the problem of human rights violations that occurred in Papua," koar one of the student representatives when delivering his oration.

In his statement, the demonstrators conveyed three things namely, urging Jokowi to stop military operations in Nduga.

Then urged the President to remove the Chief of Police, Chief of Police of Papua, Commander of the TNI, Pangdam XVII / Cenderawasih because they are considered to have committed human rights violations against civilians in Nduga.

In addition, urging the Presdien to open access for independent human rights workers to Nduga to obtain facts, as well as to open access to humanitarian aid in Nduga, and to urge the Australian, British, Dutch and other governments to immediately stop military assistance to TNI / Polri to Indonesia.

Meanwhile, Speaker of the Papua House, Yunus Wonda who received the aspirations of the students said, since the incident in Nduga his side had taken a stand and demanded the withdrawal of all troops in Nduga.

"We will continue to urge people's lives back to normal. We've done what we have to do, "explained Yunus Wonda.

"All security forces must be withdrawn from Nduga," he said.

According to him, not only the responsibility of the House of Representatives of Papua Nduga, but all members of the House of Representatives of Papua.

"Whatever the reason, all the security forces must be withdrawn from Nduga, because there is not a military operation area," he asserted.

In the same place, Komnas HAM RI, Sandrayati Moniaga who attended the demonstration to convey deep sorrow to the people who are victims of the case teraebut.

Both Nduga victims and victims occurred in other areas of Papua.

"For Komnas HAM, all human beings are equal, whether he is Papuan or not, for us all the same," he explained.

Admittedly, the problem in Nduga is not just happening in Papua but in other areas such as Aceh, Maluku, Kalimantan and Java are also experiencing the same thing.

"Until now thousands of victims have not received justice. So the government is responsible for solving this problem, "he said.

"We are an independent institution will continue to encourage the government to follow up. A statement from our listeners we hear and we will continue to convey, "he concluded. (fig / dm)

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https://www.hrw.org/news/2018/07/19/indonesias-papua-coverup-reflex-prompts-police-dormitory-raid

3) Indonesia’s Papua Coverup Reflex Prompts Police Dormitory Raid

July 19, 2018 2:26PM EDT

Michelle Winowatan Intern, Asia Division

Dozens of Indonesian military and police personnel raided a student dormitory in Surabaya on July 6 to stop the screening of a documentary about security force atrocities in Papua. It’s the latest example of the government’s determination not to deal with past abuses in the country’s easternmost province.

Authorities Cite ‘Hidden Activities’ to Cancel Screening of Papuan Film 

Security forces carried out the raid following social media postings about the planned screening of “Bloody Biak.” The film documents the security forces opening fire on a peaceful pro-Papuan independence flag-raising ceremony in the town of Biak in July 1998, killing dozens. They said the dorm raid was necessary to prevent unspecified “hidden activities” by Papuan students.

The raid is emblematic of both the Indonesian government’s failure to deliver on promises of accountability for past human rights abuses in Papua and its willingness to take heavy-handed measures to stifle public discussion about those violations. The government of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo has not fulfilled a commitment made in 2016 to seek resolution of longstanding human rights abuses, including the Biak massacre and the military crackdown on Papuans in Wasior in 2001 and Wamena in 2003 that killed dozens and displaced thousands. Meanwhile, police and other security forces that kill Papuans do so with impunity.

Media coverage of rights abuses in Papua are hobbled by the Indonesian government’s decades-old access restrictions to the region, despite Jokowi’s 2015 pledge to lift them. Domestic journalists are vulnerable to intimidation and harassment from officials, local mobs, and security forces. The government is also hostile to foreign human rights observers seeking access to Papua. Last month, the United Nations high commissioner for human rights, Zeid Ra’ad Al Hussein, said he is “concerned that despite positive engagement by the authorities in many respects, the Government’s invitation to my Office to visit Papua – which was made during my visit in February – has still not been honoured.”

The raid in Surabaya signals the government’s determination to maintain its chokehold on public discussion of human rights violations across Indonesia. This suggests that the government’s objective is to maintain Papua as a ”forbidden island” rather than provide transparency and accountability for human rights abuses there.

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http://tabloidjubi.com/eng/freeports-one-percent-fund-cannot-guarantee-kamoros-future/

4) Freeport’s one percent fund cannot guarantee Kamoro’s future

Published 8 hours ago on 19 July 2018 By admin

Jayapura, Jubi – The Secretary for the Government, Politics, Law and Human Rights Commission of the Papua House of Representatives Mathea Mamoyao, who is also a Kamoro native, said ‘one percent fund’, 1% of Freeport’s gross revenues go to the local tribes, does not guarantee the sustainable future of those tribes.

“I don’t know whether this compensation is still there or not. I don’t want certain people took advantages on it, while people are still living under the poverty,” she told Jubi on Wednesday (18/7/2018).

Further, she said what she wants is a guarantee for the Kamoro tribe to live in a better condition in the future. But the fact is the education and health services in the Kamoro region is still poor. “For all the times, I’ll keep talking about it, because as a native, I don’t want the young generation of my tribe not to survive in the future,” she said.

Meanwhile, the board of Meepago Customary Council John NR Gobai said indigenous peoples as the tenure landowners collect the promise of the Indonesian Government on the bargain involved Freeport, the Central Government and the landowners on 4 September 2017.

“At that time, the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources Ignatius Jonan agreed to accommodate the request of Amungme tribe asking Freeport to give a reimbursement of 1% fund which they received as the Corporate Social Responsibly funds into larger value shares,” he said. (*)

Reporter: Arjuna Pademme

Editor: Pipit Maizier

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http://jakartaglobe.id/business/palm-oil-indonesias-shrinking-forests-taints-global-brands-report/

5) Palm Oil From Indonesia's Shrinking Forests Taints Global Brands: Report

By : Fergus Jensen and Bernadette Christina Munthe | on 6:01 PM July 19, 2018

Jakarta. Palm oil sourced from illegally cleared rainforest areas in Indonesia has flowed through traders to major consumer goods brands despite widespread commitments to cease purchases of non-sustainable oil, a new report says.

Palm oil companies Royal Golden Eagle (RGE), Wilmar, Musim Mas Group and Golden Agri Resources sold oil from 21 "tainted" mills to more than a dozen global brands including Nestlé and Unilever, according to the report by Eyes on the Forest (EoF), a coalition of environmental nongovernmental organizations, including WWF Indonesia.

In spot checks since 2011, EoF used GPS tracking to follow trucks carrying palm oil fruit, known as fresh fruit bunches, to mills from plantations within Tesso Nilo National Park and the Bukit Tigapuluh protected forest areas in central Sumatra.

"All companies bought directly or indirectly from at least some of the 21 implicated mills," according to the report, which calls for traceability on palm oil to be improved and to be extended to plantations that supply mills.

Forest cover on Sumatra Island, home to endangered tigers, orangutans and elephants, had declined by more than half to 11 million hectares in 2016 from the 25 million hectares it had in 1985, as palm oil and other plantations have expanded and encroached on protected areas.

Nestlé said in an emailed response it was "committed to tackling" deforestation. A company spokeswoman said the firm was working with partners to transform the palm oil industry "further down the supply chain."

Unilever said by email it publicly disclosed suppliers and mill details and was committed to increasing traceability in the palm oil supply chain "and to working with our suppliers and partners to resolve issues."

Unilever also said it was examining "details behind the investigation to determine the right approach and next steps."

Environment Ministry spokesman Djati Witjaksono Hadi said smallholders, "not companies," owned plantations in national parks.

Hadi referred further questions on the mills to the ministries of agriculture and industry, which did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

Similar issues were highlighted in earlier EoF reports including in 2016, but a lack of strict supervision by traders has led to more forest clearing and illegally grown palm oil entering global supply chains despite their commitments to improve traceability and stop deforestation, the report said.

Traceability

"We acknowledge that it's really challenging to get traceability beyond the mill and going right down to the plantation source," Elizabeth Clarke, WWF global palm oil lead, told Reuters. "But it's absolutely paramount that they do this."

Among those mentioned in the report, Wilmar International was accused of buying palm oil from Citra Riau Sarana (CRS) whose three mills were found to have bought fresh fruit bunches from Tesso Nilo in 2011, 2012, 2015 and 2017, even though Wilmar sold its 95 percent stake in CRS in 2014.

"Whatever action they've been taking, it hasn't fixed that particular mill, and this is what we're asking these particular individuals to do," the WWF's Clarke said.

Responding to the report, Wilmar said it had "continued to engage with CRS and to monitor their traceability system" from 2014. "While there was progress made on traceability, we have stopped purchasing from them since June 2018 for other reasons," Wilmar said in an emailed statement.

But Wilmar said it had not received "a clear confirmation from the authorities which companies are illegal in the landscape" despite making a request to the Environment Ministry.

CRS could not immediately be reached by phone for comment.

Sime Darby Plantation, also named in the report, said it had 94 percent visibility of its supply chain "which provides key customers access to traceability information that can help them make informed choices about the palm oil products that they purchase."

It also said it was working with nongovernmental organizations to eradicate deforestation for the remaining 6 percent.

Daniel A. Prakarsa, head of downstream sustainability at Sinar Mas Agribusiness and Food, a subsidiary of Golden Agri, said the company considered 39 percent of its output to be fully traceable, and was targeting full traceability from the 427 mills of its suppliers by 2020.

"Our policy is to help suppliers to comply. Not just [saying] 'this is our standard, you must comply, otherwise we stop [buying],'" he said.

Musim Mas Group did not immediately respond to a written request for comment. On its website, the group says it is working with smallholders and other stakeholders along the supply chain to achieve sustainable palm oil production.

Clarke from the WWF said trading firms "need to make it very clear to the mills that they won't buy from them until they can provide assurance that it is 100 percent legal."

Reuters

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1) Tommy Soeharto Listed for the Papua Legislative Candidacy

2) Indonesia, PNG foreign ministers to discuss border issues

3) Answers by Dutch Foreign Affairs Minister Stef Blok to questions on the Amnesty International  article 

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https://en.tempo.co/read/news/2018/07/18/055920054/Tommy-Soeharto-Listed-for-the-Papua-Legislative-Candidacy

1) Tommy Soeharto Listed for the Papua Legislative Candidacy

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Berkarya Party Chairman and late-Soeharto’s youngest son, Hutomo Mandala Putra or Tommy Soeharto declared that he has listed himself as a Papua legislative candidate (caleg) for the 2019 general elections.

Tommy’s name was registered to the General Elections Commission (KPU) together with Berkarya Party’s 575 soon-to-be legislative candidates on Tuesday night.

The party’s secretary general Priyo Budi Santoso revealed the reason behind Tommy Soeharto’s candidacy in Papua. He claims that the people of Papua has a sense of enthusiasm and nostalgic towards Soeharto’s past administration under the country’s New Order.

“The enthusiasm of people in rural areas were outstanding, they welcomed (Tommy) with the spirit and memories of President Soeharto’s administration,” Priyo claimed.

Other than Tommy Soeharto, legislative candidates that Berkarya Party enlisted are actors Andi Arsyil and senior actress Paramitha Rusady.

Priyo said that there are many former Golkar Party members that chose to jump ship and join Berkarya Party for the 2019 legislative elections. “From the 575 names that we registered, 30 percent of them are former members of other political parties,” said the Berkarya Party secretary general.

DEWI NURITA

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https://en.antaranews.com/news/116702/indonesia-png-foreign-ministers-to-discuss-border-issues

2) Indonesia, PNG foreign ministers to discuss border issues

Reporter: Yashinta Difa Pramudyani  11 hours ago

    Jakarta  (ANTARA News) - Indonesian Foreign Minister Retno Marsudi will have a bilateral meeting with her Papua New Guinea (PNG) counterpart Rimbink Pato on Thursday (July 19) afternoon to discuss several border issues.

    "PNG is one of Indonesia`s close neighbors; it is natural that both countries have a high intensity of relationships. PNG is not only a big country in terms of size but also in terms of economy," Foreign Ministry`s spokesperson Arrmanatha Nasir told journalists during a press briefing in Jakarta on Wednesday.

    The management of Indonesia-PNG border regions is among topics that will be discussed between the two ministers, in addition to the establishment of Indonesia-PNG joint border committee.

    "We have a fairly long border area with PNG, and we are aware of the economic potential that can be developed for the welfare of people living in the border area," Nasir added.

    In addition to discussing border issues, Marsudi and Pato will also talk about bilateral economic cooperation, especially efforts to improve trade and investment.

    The value of RI-PNG bilateral trade in 2017 reached US$208.89 million, increasing from $179.2 million in 2016.

   "The two foreign ministers expressed concerns for (strengthening) trade cooperation, including efforts to improve the interaction between businessmen of both countries," Nasir concluded.

  

Editor: Bambang Purwanto

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via regwestpapua list

3) Answers by Dutch Foreign Affairs Minister Stef Blok to questions on the Amnesty International  article ‘Indonesia : security forces have killed 100 peoples in Papoea’  by member of the house  Lilianne Ploumen (labour party). 17 July 2018.

Q1

Did you take notice of the Amnesty International article ‘Indonesia : security forces have killed 100 peoples in Papoea’ and the report ‘Don’t bother, just let them die: killing with impunity in Papua’ that was published on 2 July 2018?

A2

Yes

Q2

What is your reaction to the report?

A2

The Amnesty report refers to the situation in the Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua. With that, the report specifically focusses on the violence committed there by security-forces (police and military staff) and the lack of independent and criminal investigation to these incidents.

The findings in the report are perilous. Amnesty reports 95 casualties in the period between January 2010 and February 2018 by such violence. The pith of the matter seems to be between 2012 and 2015. In this period over 10 fatalities per year were identified. The past recent years the number of fatal incidents seems to decline.

In general the cabinet states it is important for government security staff to execute their violence-mandate within the boundaries of proportionality and that there is a possibility for thorough and independent investigation. 

Q3 (combined with 6&7)

Did you have contact with the Indonesian government regarding the violation of the right to demonstrate and other human rights violations when police and military are deployed against peaceful protesters?

Q6

Are you prepared to mention this report, and the necessity for an independent inquiry to the Indonesian government during your upcoming visit? If not, why not?

Q7

During you upcoming visit, will you urge the authorities to undertake initiatives to stop the killing in Papua, amongst others by readjusting the violence-instructions of the police and military so they are in line with human rights? If not, why not?

A3,6,7

The human rights situation in the Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua knows several areas of concern, amongst others incidents of violence against civilians, but also the freedom of speech and the position of human rights defenders and (local) journalists. The human rights situations in Papua are frequently discussed in diplomatic communications with Indonesia, as well as during political consultations between the Netherlands and Indonesia in November 2017 and during the European Union-Indonesia human rights dialogue in February 2018.

During my visit to Indonesia on 3 and 4 July, I spoke with civil society organizations amongst them Amnesty International and the Indonesian minister of Foreign Affairs Retno Marsudi regarding the human rights situation in Papua and the content of the Amnesty International report. In the conversation with my Indonesian counterpart Marsudi I mentioned the importance of transparent investigation on the proportionality of (police) violence. Minister Marsudi indicated being familiar with the content of the report and reaffirmed that the development of Papua is a priority to the Indonesian government. To ad to that, the Indonesian government is also in contact with NGO’s , amongst them Amnesty International. The embassy of The Netherlands in Jakarta remains to follow the developments in Papua closely.

 Q4

Do you share the findings of Amnesty International that the ongoing police violence and impunity are undoing the effects of the community policing program, supported by the Netherlands? If not, why not? If  so, do you support the call from Amnesty for an independent investigation into all murders committed by security forces?

A4

The Netherlands is supporting the community policing programme of the International Organisation of Migration (IOM) on Papua and the Mollucas. This programme has set as a goal to improve the relations between police and the local population on Papua and the Mollucas. The programme focusses exclusively on unarmed neighbourhood police officers, who live in the local community  and are active to serve the civilians. The target group of the programme therefore are not the armed police officers, who according to the Amnesty report, are involved in the alleged extra judicial executions.  

The Dutch lower house was informed by letter on the progress and results of the community policing programme on 18 June 2018. In this letter it was reported that the programme achieved several positive results. The programme resulted in a specially designed human rights module which has been added to the curriculum  for community policing officers throughout Indonesia. Such results remain, with the findings of Amnesty International in mind, as relevant as ever. 

Q5

Is this report reason for you to increase the effectiveness of the Dutch financed community policing programme? If so, what steps will you undertake?

A5

As stated in my answer to the house  on march 16 2018, the current Dutch contribution to the community policing programme lasts until June 2019. To strengthen the effects of the programme, the programme was extended in 2017 with an emphasis on decreasing external funding and increasing undertaking of activities by the communities and the police themselves.

The phasing out results are positive thus far. From august 2017 until April 2018 32,4% of the funding was raised by local sources. The goal is to eventually phase out completely  and letting community policing programmes run itself independently. I see no reason at this point of phasing out to take further steps to improve the effectiveness of the programme.

Please read or download the official press release here (Dutch):

https://www.rijksoverheid.nl/documenten/kamerstukken/2018/07/17/antwoorden-op-kamervragen-over-het-optreden-van-veiligheidstroepen-in-papua

Translation Pro Papua

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1) Papuan Liberation Movement wants dialogue

2) ULMWP opens offices in West Papua

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https://www.radionz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/362078/papuan-liberation-movement-wants-dialogue

1) Papuan Liberation Movement wants dialogue

11:12 am today 

The United Liberation Movement for West Papua supports the idea of dialogue with Indonesia as long as it is mediated internationally, the movement's secretary says.

Indonesia's government of Joko Widodo has recently made overtures to West Papuan customary and civil society leaders for dialogue over a range of issues in Papua region.

Secretary Rex Rumakiek said the push for dialogue was not a bad thing.

"But dialogue internationally, not Indonesian type of dialogue that resulted in 1969's Act of Free Choice. That's the type of dialogue Indonesia wants. We are not going to go back to that approach," Mr Rumakiek said.

"We want an international dialogue and the best place to dialogue is the United Nations general assembly. Let us vote on the issue."

The movement hoped to have questions over the legitimacy of the self-determination act under which West Papua was incorporated into Indonesia debated by the UN General Assembly in the next year or two, Mr Rumakiek said.

Since being admitted to the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) in 2015 with observer status in the regional grouping, the movement has had more opportunities to engage with Indonesia, which enjoys associate member status in the MSG.

The dynamic between the two parties, however, is clearly strained, as Indonesia's government has characterised the movement as a separatist group that does not represent Papuans.

The full MSG members - Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands, Fiji, Vanuatu and New Caledonia's Kanaks - have been working to facilitate dialogue between the movement and Indonesia

"We can talk direct to them with the MSG members as witnesses. That is what we call a third party" Mr Rumakiek explained.

"We cannot talk direct to Indonesia by ourselves, but with the MSG facilitating. We try to avoid other people speaking on our behalf. The MSG is trying to arrange for meetings (between the West Papuans and Indonesia's government)."

Meanwhile, the Australia-based Mr Rumakiek said the movement was disturbed by the reports from Papua's remote Nduga regency that Indonesian security forces and the West Papua National Liberation Army had exchanged gunfire in recent weeks.

Three people were killed in an attack on police at the local airport two weeks ago during regional elections. A faction of the Liberation Army - which is not directly linked to the United Liberation Movement for West Papua - claimed responsibility.

Following the attack, about a thousand extra police and military personnel deployed to Nduga as part of a joint operation.

They have been conducting an aerial campaign over the Alguru area in pursuit of the Liberation Army, with unconfirmed reports saying at least two Papuans have been shot dead and others injured in recent days.

The Indonesian aerial operations over Alguru echoed previous military operations in the area, which devastated the livelihoods of Papuan villagers, Mr Rumakiek said.

"They are applying the same strategy that they bomb villages and chasing the people who live in the bush, so the after effects are much more serious than the actual destruction itself," he said.

"Those people, when they come back to their village there will be nothing left for them to return to because the schools and clinics are destroyed and the churches are destroyed."

But in a statement, Indonesia's military said reports that security forces were conducting airstrikes or dropping bombs in Nduga were a hoax.

Military forces were working with police in "law enforcement activities" in Alguru, it said.

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http://dailypost.vu/news/ulmwp-opens-offices-in-west-papua/article_837c88b6-9554-5073-9d8e-2ab15d9516aa.html

2) ULMWP opens offices in West Papua

• By Len Garae
 
• 10 hrs ago

“We are ready and we want the world to know that we are not separatists as Indonesia calls us, we have our Executive, our Judiciary and our Legislative Arms in place.”

The Executive Committee of the United Liberation Movement of West Papua (ULMWP) makes the above statement also to the Government and people of Vanuatu that they are ready to officially operate from their West Papua International Headquarters in Port Vila.

Speaking from Grand Hotel yesterday, ULMWP London-based Chairman Benny Wenda says the last six months have been transitional. In his latest announcement, the Chairman confirms the opening of three new ULMWP Offices in West Papua to be followed by four more shortly also in West Papua.

“I wish to confirm that what is happening within West Papua now regarding the opening of our offices in our home country goes to confirm that ULMWP is both an international and national organisational structure for the eventual freedom of the people of West Papua.

“It goes to prove that the claim by Indonesia that ULMWP is only for exiles is false,” he says.

Asked if those who operate the new offices should be fearful of reprisals by the Indonesian Military, the Chairman replies, “Our offices are owned and operated by our own people. Last year, our offices in Wamena and Fak Fak were targeted and it remains to be seen with the new openings.”

He says the Executive Director of ULMWP on the ground in West Papua is Marcus Haluk. He will be responsible for the seven offices when they all operate in the seven regents of West Papua.

Asked if it is a risk, he replies, “What is happening in West Papua now is as a result of what are taking place in other parts of the world. Look at what is happening in Palestine. People are not afraid anymore.

“It has come to a stage where if I have to die, I die but the cause will never die.”

Asked to comment on reports of the killing of three West Papuans, shooting at civilians by the Indonesian military from a helicopter gunship, and burning of houses, the ULMWP Chairman emphasises the importance for the world to sit up to the hypocrisy where Indonesia has been appointed a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council, while its military has increased its presence in Nduga by 1,000 soldiers and police since last month, to hunt down members of the West Papua Liberation Army. The Chairman says history is repeating itself in the same regent after the present candidate for the next President of Indonesian, General Wiranto, allegedly led a massive operation in the area involving scores of West Papuans killed in the 1980s. ULMWP says the tactic currently deployed by Indonesia in West Papua reflects a nervousness on its own part that at long last, it is losing its historical stranglehold on West Papua.

“They even want to blame OPM guerrillas for the killing of the three civilians which is truly absurd as they cannot kill their own people in pursuit of freedom,” Chairman Wenda says.

“The fact of the matter is that Indonesia has been appointed to become a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council and we ULMWP, oppose a terrorist state to become a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council. Using a military gunship to shoot into villages, burning homes and chasing people into the bush defeats logic to allow Indonesia to sit as a non-permanent member of the UN Security Council.”

Leaked information from West Papua to Port Vila claims Indonesia is also nervous that a forty-kilo heavy booklet comprising 1,800,000 West Papuan signatures complete with individual IDs, which was presented to the UN General Assembly last year calling for freedom, will be debated by UN General Assembly in September this year.

“We are also relisting West Papua to the UN Decolonisation Committee and we hope that Vanuatu will also endorse our stand. This is why Indonesia has adopted a terror and trauma strategy with a shooting spree into any gathering of West Papuans in West Papua”, ULMWP alleged.

In conclusion the ULMWP Chairman is appealing to the people of West Papua to care for their organisation like “an egg” saying, it was hatched in Port Vila through the help of the Malvatumauri Council of Chiefs and people of Vanuatu.

For this reason it is vital for all independence factions and all affiliates to speak with one voice, sing the same song and walk the same talk for freedom which is coming soon.

“We have struggled and so many of us have died for the last 50 years for us to arrive where we are today. This unity must stand and stand strong. We have only one united organisation – ULMWP to take us to freedom,” says Wenda.

West Papua currently has a population of about 2.5 million people compared to Papua New Guinea’s 7 million. In 1970 PNG and West Papua were reported to be 50-50 in terms of population.

• ----------------------------

Media release. AWPA urges Julie Bishop to raise human rights situation with Jakarta

Australia West Papua Association (Sydney) 

18 July 2018

Media release. AWPA urges Julie Bishop to raise human rights situation with Jakarta

AWPA has written to the Australian Foreign Minister concerning recent worrying events in West Papua (letter below).

Joe Collins of AWPA said "we are very concerned about the security operation in the Nduga regency.  There has been a number of shootings in the past few weeks and as a result of these incidents extra security forces have being deployed to the area and are conducting a security operation to find those responsible for the shootings. Local people have reported that indicate that a police helicopter supporting the sweep was used to attack villages in the area. Large numbers of local people have fled because of the security operation. Up to 1000 security personnel are reported to be involved".

AWPA is urging the Foreign Minister to not only raise the ongoing human rights abuses committed by the Indonesian security forces in West Papua with the Indonesian Government but urging her to raise again the matter of a PIF fact-finding mission to West Papua at the upcoming PIF summit in Nauru in September. 

Fact-finding missions by the international community to West Papua can only help improve the human rights situation in the territory”. 

Ends.

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The Hon Julie Bishop MP

Minister for Foreign Affairs

House of Representatives


Parliament House


Canberra ACT 2600

18 July 2018

Dear Foreign Minister,

On behalf of the Australia West Papua in Sydney, I am writing to you concerning recent worrying events in West Papua.  There have been a number of shooting incidentsin the past few weeksin the territory resulting in a number of deaths including the death of three residents who died in a clash between security forces and the OPM at Kenyam airportin the Nduga regency.  As a result of these incidents extra security forces have being deployed to the area and are conducting a security operation to find those responsible for the shootings.

A police helicopter supporting the sweep is reported by local people to have attacked villages in the area. Large numbers of local people have fled because of the security operation. Up to 1000 security personnel are reported to be involved.

The Jakarta Post (15 July) reported that human rights activists have urged the National Police and the Indonesian Military to withdraw their joint operation from Alguru in Kenyam, Nduga regency. The human rights organisations include the Papua Legal Aid Institute (LBH Papua) and the Papua chapter of the Indonesian Forum for Environment (Walhi Papua). 

Amnesty International has also just realised a new report which claims that the Indonesian security forces have unlawfully killed at least 95 people in little more than eight years in the eastern provinces of Papua and West Papua, with the majority of perpetrators never being held to account for the crimes. 

The report, “Don't bother, just let him die": Killing with impunity in Papua, describes how police and soldiers have shot dead peaceful independence activists and protesters, as well as dozens of other Papuans in non-political contexts. Amnesty said killings have shown no sign of letting up since President Joko Widodo came to power in 2014.

Usman Hamid, who is Amnesty International Indonesia’s Executive Director, said:

“Papua is one of Indonesia’s black holes for human rights. This is a region where security forces have for years been allowed to kill women, men and children, with no prospects of being held to account. “Our research reveals that almost 100 people have been unlawfully killed in little more than eight years – about one person every month. This is a serious blot on Indonesia’s human rights record. “Now is the time to change course – unlawful killings in Papua must end. This culture of impunity within the security forces must change, and those responsible for past deaths held to account.”

In an opinion piece in the Jakarta Post (2 July) Usman wrote

“The tactics used by the country’s security forces may have changed since the fall of military rule in 1998, but in Papua — Indonesia’s easternmost, restive region — deadly violence from the use of excessive force by police and military personnel remains a constant threat “

Because Papuan students planned to show a film called Bloody Biak., 100 police and military personnel raided the student dormitory. For all the talk about Indonesia being a democracy, it would appear democracy does not apply to West Papua or the West Papuan people.

The 6th July was the 20^thanniversary since the tragedy of the Biak Massacre.  On the 6 July in 1998 the Indonesian security forces attacked peaceful demonstrators in Biak, massacring scores of people. The victims included women and children. They were killed at the base of a water tower in the town where the West Papuan people had raised their national flag.  No security force personal were ever charged over the killings.

We urge you to raise the ongoing human rights abuses committed by the Indonesian security forces in West Papua with the Indonesian Government.

At the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) forum meeting in Port Moresby (2015), the PIF leaders requested Jakarta to allow a PIF fact-finding mission to West Papua. 

We also urge you to raise again the matter of a PIF fact-finding mission to West Papua at the upcoming PIF summit in Nauru in September. Fact-finding missions by the international community to West Papua can only help improve the human rights situation in the territory”. 

Yours sincerely 

Joe Collins

AWPA (Sydney)

1) Indonesia a step closer to controlling Grasberg mine

2) Why It Took 50 Years for Indonesia to Control Its Own Gold Mine

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http://www.atimes.com/article/indonesia-a-step-closer-to-controlling-grasberg-mine/

1) Indonesia a step closer to controlling Grasberg mine

New agreement values mine's assets and provides a path for US miner Freeport's divestment but issues of management, arbitration and environment are still unresolved

By JOHN MCBETH JAKARTA, JULY 17, 2018 5:10 PM (UTC+8)

Indonesian police stand guard at the open-pit mine of PT Freeport's Grasberg copper and gold mine complex near Timika, in the eastern province of Papua, Indonesia. Photo: Antara Foto via Reuters /Muhammad Adimaja

The prolonged talks between the Indonesian government and Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold have passed another milestone with Freeport, partner Rio Tinto and state-owned holding company PT Inalum signing an agreement under which Rio Tinto will sell its stake in Papua’s fabulously rich Grasberg mine.

Coming a year after the two main parties agreed on a framework deal which President Joko Widodo’s administration over-optimistically hailed as a breakthrough, the new non-binding “Heads of Agreement” sets down a valuation of the mine’s assets and describes a pathway to 

Politically, it is the target Widodo was anxious to reach before the end of June as he gears up for the simultaneous April 2019 presidential and legislative elections. But it doesn’t resolve the key issues of managerial control over the mine, international arbitration and newly introduced environmental regulations.

Indeed, with analysts and social media commentators this time openly skeptical about the implications of the July 12 agreement, it appears to place more pressure on the government to get the final deal done before rather than after the elections as the opposition looks for ammunition to bring down the high-flying president.

Inalum will pay US$3.5 billion for Rio Tinto’s 40% participating interest in PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI) and another US$350 million for the 

9.36% stake held by Indocopper Investama, a Freeport unit controlled on separate occasions by influential Indonesian businessmen Bob Hasan and Aburizal Bakrie, who once enjoyed close relations with storied former Freeport chairman Jim-Bob Moffett.

Rio Tinto, an Anglo-Australian mining giant, entered into an agreement with Freeport in 1996 that gave it the right to 40% of production above a certain level and 40% of all production after 2022 in exchange for investing in the Grasberg’s early underground block-caving operations that now make up more than a third of its output.

Added to the 9.36% stake the state already owns in the Indonesian subsidiary, converting Rio Tinto’s stake into PTFI shares through a subsequent rights issue will give it the controlling interest, which Widodo hailed as a “big leap forward” in allowing Indonesia to increase its income from the mine.

According to some reports, Inalum will receive US$5.2 billion in funding from a consortium of 11 foreign and domestic banks, including Citibank, HSBC, Standard Chartered, BPP Paribas, Tokyo-Mitsubishi UFG, OCBC, SMBC, CIMB Niaga and state-owned Mandiri, Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI) and Bank Negara Indonesia (BNI).

Inalum chief executive officer Budi Gunardi Sadikan, who has said the company is putting forward US$1.5 million in equity, did not respond to an e-mailed request to confirm the amount, but the loan is still dependent on a sales and purchase agreement being executed in 30 days and reaching closure a month after that.

“Given the terms that remain to be agreed, there is no certainty that a transaction will be completed,” Rio Tinto said in a sobering statement. “Any final agreements will be subject to approval by the necessary government regulators and authorities.”

Wrapping up all the outstanding issues by early September when the 2019 presidential campaign officially gets under way will be no mean feat given the way the two sides have haggled over the one issue of managerial control for more than a year now without resolution.

Phoenix-based Freeport chairman Richard Adkerson has told negotiators from the finance, state enterprise and energy and mineral resources ministries that the company must continue to retain managerial as well as operational control to ensure conformity with the US Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.

Who will operate the mine itself is not an issue, but it is the management that will be in charge of parceling out the lucrative procurement contracts associated with the Grasberg’s current conversion from an open pit – which runs out of ore next month – to the world’s biggest underground mine with hundreds of kilometers of electric railway connecting to five different ore bodies.

Notorious for its rent-seeking practices, Indonesia scored only 37 out of 100 on Transparency International’s 2017 Corruption Perceptions Index, putting it in 96th place among 180 countries. Illustrating the slow progress that has been made in Indonesia’s so-called war on corruption, the country’s score has moved only five points in five years.

The index is mostly based on business perceptions and puts special emphasis on licensing and similar red tape issues, but Indonesia’s standing with the business community wasn’t helped by the US$173 million identity card graft case, which sent House Speaker Setya Novanto to jail for 15 years earlier this year.

Although he was later reinstated, Novanto was forced to resign as speaker in 2015 for allegedly conspiring with oil mafia kingpin Muhammad Reza Chalid to shakedown Freeport; in a secretly taped hotel conversation, Novanto was heard demanding PTFI shares in exchange for an early extension to Freeport’s contract.

Freeport has insisted on appointing the new PTFI president director, who will then assign responsibilities to the executives under him. Given the fact that an Indonesian has filled that post for decades, analysts are puzzled why the two sides can’t come up with an inventive solution that would address both their concerns.

PTFI hasn’t had a president-director since retired air force chief Chappy Hakim, reportedly a Widodo recommendation, resigned after only seven months in the job in February last year as the government sought to pressure Freeport into converting its Contract of Work (CoW) to a Special Business License (IUPK) four years ahead of its 2021 expiry date.

Nationalist politicians say with the state holding a controlling interest, Indonesia has every justification for wanting to take charge of management, although after using Freeport as a convenient scapegoat for decades that will put it in the direct firing line of Papuan activists demanding a greater share of the mine’s revenues.

Also missing from the public debate is a new situation where Inalum will have to come up with half of the cost of a new US$2.7 billion smelter and also half of the US$19 billion Freeport calculates is still needed for the underground expansion of the Grasberg, which will be a hefty recurring expense for at least the next four years as the company seeks to return production to current levels.

Freeport and Amman Mineral are in talks to build a joint-venture smelter on a 160-hectare site at Amman’s Batu Hijau mine in Sumbawa, where there is already a deep-water port.

Amman purchased the country’s second biggest copper and gold mine from Newmont for US$1.3 billion two years ago, but now needs an extra cash injection to exploit an adjoining concession.

Many in the mining community believe that once Freeport is under new ownership, the implementing regulations that have still to be attached to the amended 2009 Mining Law will drop the requirement to refine the last 5% of the mine’s copper and gold concentrate, which they say has never made a lot of sense anyway.

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http://www.globalindonesianvoices.com/33096/why-it-took-50-years-for-indonesia-to-control-its-own-gold-mine/

2) Why It Took 50 Years for Indonesia to Control Its Own Gold Mine

Posted On 17 Jul 2018

By : Leo Jegho

After 50 years of operation, Indonesia now finally controls majority of stake at Grasberg copper and gold mine

Jakarta, GIVnews.com – The government and many Indonesians are in a great mood these days. Last Thursday (12/7), world mining giant Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. and Indonesia’s state-owned PT Indonesia Asahan Aluminium (Inalum) signed a deal for the Indonesian government to acquire the controlling ownership of PT Freeport Indonesia (PT FI).

The agreement, which stipulates the divestment by Freeport-McMoRan of 51 percent of its share in PT FI, brought to an end of decades of acrimonious public demand for the government to take over the whole copper and gold mine in Papua, currently 90-percent owned by mining giant Freeport-McMoRan. PT FI is Indonesia’s largest mining venture which has been operating a large copper and gold mine in Papua’s Timika District over the past decades.

Public anger over the fact that Indonesia still owns only a 10-percent stake in PTFI had led political opponents of President Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo to demand him to stop Freeport-McMoRan’s control of its mining venture in the country’s easternmost province. Some even claimed that PTFI and its Grasberg mine is a symbol of American imperialism and questioned why the government had done nothing to put it to an end.

Following is part of GIV’s English translation of an opinion article that was published by Kompasdaily (14/7) and was written by Ginandjar Kartasasmita, who is former minister of energy and mining (1988 – 1993) under the leadership of then President Suharto. Entitled Memahami Kontrak dan Divestasi Freeport (Understanding Freeport’s Contract and Divestment), the piece tried to explain why Indonesia had remained in a so weak position vis-à-vis Freeport-McMoRan. Also under Suharto, Ginandjar served as head of the National Development Planning Agency (Bappenas) and the speaker of the Regional Representative Council (DPD-RI) that was established after Suharto’s fall. Then coordinating minister for the economy, Ginandjar reportedly played a key role in encouraging Suharto to resign.

Read: Indonesia Close to Buying Freeport’s Grasberg Mine Worth $5 Billion

Understanding Freeport’s Contract and Divestment

by Ginandjar Kartasasmita

Freeport’s Grasberg mine is a large project that impacts the interests of many people. Accordingly, debates about Freeport’s contract extension have been so healthy and at the same time are highly necessary. However, such debates should be based on adequate knowledge about the Freeport issue. This writing is aimed to help support such knowledge and understanding.

Ginandjar Kartasasmita (Photo source: Beritasatu.com)

Freeport’s Working Contract (KK) was made based on Law No. 1 Year 1967 on Foreign Capital Investment. This contract was effective for 30 years from 1973 when the company started to formally operate in Indonesia. As such, the contract would expire in 2003.

Then, in accordance with the contract, in 1988, or 15 years before it expired, Freeport submitted a requested to extend its contract. It reasoned that there was an indication of mineralization on a new site, or Grasberg, which is part of its operational area. Freeport planned to invest about US$ 2 billion for the planned new project. As the $ 2 billion was quite a big amount, Freeport submitted its request for contract extension 15 years before its KK expired in 2003.

However, the government at that time viewed that the 1967 law contained weaknesses and was more favorable for Freeport. They included the fact that the company was listed in Delaware in the United States and accordingly was subject to American laws. Freeport had no obligation concerning the environment. On taxation, Freeport did not follow existing tax laws in Indonesia in terms of tax types and structures. Freeport had no ‘community development’ obligation. As a result, the presence of Freeport in Indonesia did not have direct impacts on the local community. In addition, the contract did not stipulate ownership transfer to Indonesian, the use of local workers and domestic processing of copper and gold.

Opportunity for correction

Accordingly, the government viewed Freeport’s request for KK extension as providing a good opportunity for making correction over the contract’s weaknesses. This was why the government decided that the ‘KK of Generation I’ be replaced with a new contract that was called ‘KK of Generation V’. Indeed, at that time the concept of the ‘KK of Generation V’ was being drafted. That is why it is not true to say that Freeport’s 1967 contract had been extended. What actually happened had been the annulment of the KK and the application of new contract stipulations.

Then, what followed were negotiations on all aspects of the new KK. Those negotiations resulted in the correction of a number of contract stipulations and this provided more benefits for the Indonesian state and nation. Those corrections included the stipulation of Freeport’s obligation to operate as a PT (Perseroan Terbatas), or a limited liability company that was listed in Indonesia. Accordingly, with such a new status, Freeport was obliged to abide by Indonesian laws; follow all the financial systems currently applied in Indonesia; and follow the country’s prevailing rules on environment protection.

In addition, the new contract obliged Freeport to divest up to 51 percent of its shares to Indonesian companies/nationals within a period of 20 years. And, five years after the contract was signed, 20 percent of Freeport shares must have been owned by Indonesian companies/nationals. Also, the mining firm was obliged to conduct community development for the welfare of the local people; build a smelter (currently one is already in operation in Gresik, East Java); optimally use local workers and goods/products; and set higher tariffs of averaged royalties.

Freeport accepted all those conditions and – after several rounds of negotiations which involved various government agencies and with House (DPR) approval and an approval letter from the President – KK of Generation V was put into effect by the end of 1991. Consequently, the premature annulment of Freeport’s KK of Generation I exactly benefit Indonesia because it stopped the mining firm’s excessive profits.

Government’s negligence?

Since the beginning the KK of Generation I the government had owned only about 9 percent share in Freeport. The company actually wished to divest another 20 percent but the then minister of finance decided that the government would buy only another one percent. This was because the government was financially unable to acquire another 10 percent as initially designed. The minister then proposed that the 10 percent share be sold to national private investors. And so Freeport divested the 10 percent to a national company. But, based on government regulation (PP) No. 20/1994, Freeport bought back the 10-percent share. As such, Indonesia’s share in Freeport is currently 10 percent, which is government-owned.

At this time, some people have questioned why the government had not just taken over Freeport’s Grasberg mine. Previously, there had been question why the Indonesian government had been so negligent that it created the 1967 KK, which benefitted Freeport so abundantly.

In fact, Freeport was the first foreign capital investor (PMA) in Indonesia. It entered Indonesia exactly when the country was trying to get out of its economic crisis in the 1960s. As Indonesia had run its administration and mobilize its economy, it was forced to fully rely on foreign assistance. The World Bank then placed Indonesia among the poorest countries in the world. It is in this context that we should now judge government policies in the past.

You may also be interested in this article: Digging the World’s Largest Gold Mine, What is Freeport?