1) Rights violation probe

2) Papua Police destroy marijuana  from PNG

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http://www.fijitimes.com/story.aspx?id=344927

Fiji Times online

1) Rights violation probe

Tevita Vuibau Thursday, March 10, 2016

THE MSG says while it respects the sovereignty of Indonesia over West Papua, it will still vigorously pursue the reports of the violation of human rights in the country that is struggling for self-determination.

Allegations of gruesome human rights abuses perpetrated by Indonesian armed forces on West Papuans have been widely reported, however, no concrete action has been taken to bring those responsible to justice.

But MSG chairman and Solomon Islands Prime Minister Manasseh Sogavare said the abuses were something they could not shy away from, even though they recognised that Indonesia had authority over West Papua.

"The matter of self-determination is a matter between the West Papuans and Indonesia to discuss. But when it comes to human rights violations, I think we can and we have a duty as members of the UN to express our views and concerns and

 we hope the President of Indonesia will respect that for the good of all.

"All right thinking people of planet earth should be able to express concern when a race is persecuted for what they believe in for expressing their thinking and expressing how they want to organise themselves," Mr Sogavare said.

He said they continued to encourage the Pacific Islands Forum Secretariat to send an independent fact-finding mission made up of NGOs and churches to West Papua to find out more about the human rights violations.

"Now that has yet to happen, in my latest discussion with the Prime Minister of Papua New Guinea, he said he is still talking with his counterpart the President of Indonesia on how we can get that fact finding mission to Indonesia."

Mr Sogavare said the MSG's main concern was to ensure the integrity of the fact-finding mission and to do that, the mission would need to be independent of all governments.

He also explained the Indonesian Government needed to allow the mission free access to follow up the allegations of abuse.

"We have reports of it we have reports of the last ten years of violations. It's with me as chair of the MSG, two volumes and our concern is that fact-finding mission must be allowed to do it's work freely.

“And we also expressed and jointly agree that it is good for Indonesia that we discuss this openly and they to allow this fact-finding mission and we would like to make it very clear to Indonesia that we respect Indonesia's sovereignty over 

West Papua and that's a position that we take both in the MSG and the Pacific Island forum."

Mr Sogavare said he planned to visit Indonesia in April and encourage the leadership talks with the West Papuans, the first peaceful talks in 50 years.

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http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2016/03/10/papua-police-destroy-marijuana-png.html

2) Papua Police destroy marijuana  from PNG

Nethy Dharma Somba, thejakartapost.com, Jayapura, Papua | Archipelago | Thu, March 10 2016, 7:09 PM - 

The Papua Police narcotics unit destroyed 2.2 kilograms of marijuana smuggled from Papua New Guinea at an event in Jayapura, Papua, on Thursday.

The marijuana was confiscated in separate operations that took place from Feb.4 to 16, during which seven suspects were arrested.

“Today we destroyed 2.2 kg of marijuana, the evidence confiscated in the operations, and handed over seven suspects in the cases to prosecutor offices,” the Papua Police’s narcotics unit deputy chief, Adj.Sr.Comr.JS Napitupulu, said on Thursday.

Jayapura has become a popular place for the distribution of marijuana from Papua New Guinea, and in many cases, it is bartered with electronic goods, fuel and stolen motorcycles. Marijuana is smuggled via both land and sea routes in border areas.

“Police and military personnel guarding the Indonesian-Papua New Guinea border in Skouw Wutung continue to carry out security patrols and surveillance to minimize marijuana smuggling attempts,” said Napitupulu.

Skouw Wutung is located 40 kilometers east of Jayapura.

The head of the Papua Narcotics Agency (BNN), Jackson Lapalongan, said the agency had intensified efforts to disseminate information on the dangerous impacts of narcotics in schools to prevent the spread of the harmful substances as the young generation in Papua had become the main target of marijuana distribution.

“Without preventive measures, our young generation will be destroyed by drugs. They will destroy the future of our children,” he said in Jayapura. (afr/ebf)