Thursday, January 17, 2013

1) Fighting Reported At Border Between PNG And Indonesia


1) Fighting Reported At Border Between PNG And Indonesia
2) PNG/Indonesia border incident
3) TNI Violence Increase


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1) Fighting Reported At Border Between PNG And Indonesia
Sandaun villagers claim access to traditional lands blocked
By Haiveta Kivia
PORT MORESBY, Papua New Guinea (PNG Post-Courier, Jan. 16, 2013) – An altercation along the Papua New Guinea-Indonesia border between disgruntled Sandaun villagers and Indonesian soldiers is increasing tension between the two neighbors.
Reports reaching the Post- Courier say villagers from Wutung in PNG’s West Sepik Province tried to forcefully lower the Indonesia flag at the popular Bartas market, but were stopped by armed Indonesian soldiers.
The same group then proceeded to the mouth of Taimi River, where a lighthouse was constructed on the Indonesia side of the border and tried to burn it down, but they were also stopped by the armed Indonesian soldiers.
The burning of a sovereign nation’s flag is an offence in some countries and the Wutung villagers were nearly shot at, however Indonesian soldiers recognized them as traditional landowners and restrained them.
The Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) in Waigani was unable to comment on the incident and a telephone message left for the department’s acting Secretary Lucy Bogari to call us was not returned.
But the Indonesian Embassy in Port Moresby has confirmed it is aware of the situation but will not comment further as the incident is currently been investigated by their government.
A police officer at the Vanimo Police Station confirmed the incident at the international border and added that Government authorities were monitoring and trying to stabilize the situation.
It is not known what triggered the incident but a Wutung villager, who spoke on condition of anonymity, said her people have had issues with the current location of the border. Most of the villagers’ land, which includes their gardens and hunting grounds, is allegedly on the Indonesian side of the border.
"Bartas (market) is on our traditional land but we don’t benefit from all the business activities that take place there but the Indonesians do," she said.
The villager added that the area from the Bartas Trading Post to Taimi River is all Wutung land. The traditional boundary with the Indonesian villages of Skow One, Skow Two and Skow Three is the Taimi River.
"The Skows are traditionally our people, we speak the same language and have the same culture but they are Indonesians and we are Papua New Guineans," she said.
She said the border check point was previously at Taimi River but was moved further into PNG’s side of the border when Bartas was built.
"That is an issue that the PNG Government needs to seriously resolve for their good and everyone. The border needs to be pushed back to Taimi River," she added.
A ban allegedly imposed by Indonesia on traditional border-crossers also appears to be a contributing factor as the villagers complained that they could not go to their gardens.
"Now only PNG-Indonesian passport holders are crossing the no man’s land but not the traditional border crossers. But we need to move freely to our gardens and we cannot be restricted," said one villager, who did not want to be identified.
The location of the Bartas market, which hundreds of Papua New Guineans frequent every year, also appears to be a point of contention. According to international law the 10-kilometer buffer zone between the Indonesian and PNG border should be free of infrastructure. However, observers have noted that the Indonesian border post and the Bartas market were built within the buffer zone.
PNG Post-Courier: http://www.postcourier.com.pg/
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Posted at 04:55 on 17 January, 2013 UTC
Reports from Papua New Guinea say there has been an altercation between disgruntled Sandaun villagers and Indonesian soldiers along the border.
The Post- Courier says people from Wutung in West Sepik Province tried to forcefully lower the Indonesian flag at the Bartas market, but were stopped by armed Indonesian soldiers.
The Bartas market, which hundreds of Papua New Guineans frequent every year, appears to be a point of contention as according to international law the 10-kilometre buffer zone between the Indonesian and PNG border should be free of infrastructure.
However, observers have noted that the Indonesian border post and the Bartas market were built within the buffer zone.
The same group of villagers reportedly also tried to burn down an Indonesian lighthouse but were also stopped by the Indonesian troops.
A ban allegedly imposed by Indonesia on traditional border-crossers also appears to be a contributing factor as the villagers complained that they could not go to their gardens.
There have been no official comments.
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3) TNI Violence Increase
Thursday, 17 January, 2013 | 13:37 WIB
TEMPO Interactive, Jakarta: The number Indonesian National Army (TNI) soldiers who commit violence increased throughout 2012. Cases of violence by officers on duty amounted to 355 cases or up by 25 cases from the previous year.

The reported incidences include, among others, violence against journalists. TNI Commander Admiral Agus Suhartono said that violence against journalists is a violation of discipline.

The Enforcement Order and Yustisi Operation also recorded an increase in cases of adultery, which reached 275 cases last year. Meanwhile the number of deserters increased from to 1,123 soldiers.

Drug abuse amounted to 165 cases. Case of firearms misuse was recorded at 54 cases. Globalization, Agus said, plays a role in influencing the soldiers' patterns of thought and level of discipline. "In the future, we hope that they will be more disciplined."


SUBKHAN
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