Friday, October 6, 2017

1) INDONESIA: Indonesian Government irresponsibly denies human rights violations in Papua


2) Indonesia president urges action on Freeport mine deal

3) Campaigners, experts to host conference on local wisdom to protect environment

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1) INDONESIA: Indonesian Government irresponsibly denies human rights violations in Papua
October 6, 2017
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) is very disappointed at the Indonesian government’s irresponsible denial of human rights violations in Papua and West Papua province. Far from taking steps to improve the human rights condition there, the government consistently denies the existence of any problem. At the recent 72nd session of the United Nations General Assembly, in the first right of reply, Indonesian diplomat Ms. Ainan Nuran stated that human rights violations in Papua is nothing but a hoax (the related video is available here). In the previous 71st session, junior Indonesian diplomat, Ms. Nara Masista, also denied the occurrence of various human rights violations in Papua. (The AHRC’s previous statement is available here.)
The AHRC strongly condemns the government’s stance and statement, as human rights violations in Papua are a reality. By only focusing on infrastructure and economic development, and not resolving human rights issues over the past 10 years, the government has only strengthened impunity for the perpetrators, while failing its duty to protect the victims. Furthermore, the government continues to ignore the Papuan voices stating that economic development has yet to bring changes in Papua; rather, such development is merely enjoyed by migrants from other islands in Indonesia.
Many cases of human rights abuse in Papua are well documented and reported. Indonesia’s National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) has also conducted investigations into some of these cases, such as the Paniai case, where the police and military attacked and killed five teenagers, while injuring 17 others (please see the AHRC’s Urgent Appeal AHRC-UAC-089-2015 for more details of the case).
Other clear examples of serious human rights violations in Papua which remain unresolved are the gross violations of human rights in Wasior and Wamena Papua in 2001 and 2003, Abepura Papua in 2000, the enforced disappeared of Mr. Aris Toteles Masoka, and the murder of prominent Papuan activist, Mr. Theys Hiyo Eluay, committed by special armed forces (Kopassus).
Besides these cases, there are also various instances of torture and ill-treatment, some of which were brought to court and resulted in light punishment, such as the brutal shooting committed by a police mobile brigade in Deiyai regency, Papua on 1 August 2017. The AHRC also documented and reported on the cruel assault of 15-year-old Albert Nawipa, an indigenous Papuan teenager committed by the police, and the torture of Mr. Niko Hisage by Army personnel from the sub-district military command of Wamena city.
During Indonesia’s last Universal Periodic Review, human rights violations in Papua were a serious concern for many countries. The United States of America raised concerns about freedom of expression and peaceful assembly in Papua and West Papua province, while Austria expressed concern about undue restriction on freedom of expression and lack of accountability of security forces.
President Joko Widodo’s government has clearly not fulfilled its commitment to strengthen human rights protection in Papua. The AHRC respectfully requests the Indonesian government to properly resolve human rights cases in Papua. Rather than subjectively refusing suggestions proposed by some pacific countries, the Indonesian government should begin to deal with human rights cases. The government should ensure that Papua is accessible to journalists and the international community. The government should also reduce the number of soldiers in Papua, and increase police accountability, as the military and police are the two most frequent perpetrators of human rights violations in Papua. Lastly, the government must incorporate human rights into its development perspective, as any development policies lacking human rights protection will only create further problems for Papua.

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2) Indonesia president urges action on Freeport mine deal
Fergus Jensen 

JAKARTA (Reuters) - Indonesian President Joko Widodo called for faster progress to wrap up a deal with Freeport-McMoRan Inc (FCX.N) on rights to the giant Grasberg copper mine, which the U.S. firm owns, officials said on Friday. 
The chief executive of the world’s biggest publicly traded copper company -- which under a framework deal agreed in August to divest 51 percent of the mine -- held talks with officials in Jakarta earlier in the day. 
The deal is intended to replace an existing contract with a “special mining permit” and give Jakarta greater control over its mineral resources. 
But significant differences remain including on how Grasberg, the world’s second-largest copper mine, will be valued and on the timing and structure of the required divestment, leading some analysts to raise doubts about the future of the agreement. 
Hadi Mustofa Djuraid, an aide to Mining Minister Ignasius Jonan, said Freeport CEO Richard Adkerson had met Jonan and other company and government officials in Jakarta on Friday morning after the president said “the sooner the better” referring to an end to the talks. 
“In principle, Freeport is still committed in accordance with the agreement,” Djuraid told reporters, noting that issues over divestment and state revenues from Grasberg had not been resolved yet by the finance ministry. 
Under Widodo’s direction, Jonan will “help the negotiation process” with Freeport alongside Finance Minister Sri Mulyani Indrawati and State Owned Enterprise Minister Rini Soemarno, “so this problem is resolved immediately,” Djuraid said. 
“In negotiations there’s always a bargaining process,” he added, declining to provide detail on the talks. 
A spokesman for Freeport’s Indonesian unit declined to comment. 
The government is seeking a “win-win” solution as quickly as possible, Widodo said late on Thursday, according to an official transcript of remarks the president made to reporters in Banten province west of the capital Jakatra. 
“It’s already been three years of heated arguing, but this is almost finalised,” Widodo added. 
Adding pressure to end the dispute, Indonesia’s Supreme Audit Agency (BPK) told parliament this week that between 2009 and 2015, Freeport Indonesia’s royalty and levy payments were $445.96 million lower than they would have been if the miner had taken up a new mining permit during that period.

“The risk of the dispute escalating and ultimately going to arbitration has increased,” Jefferies analyst Christopher LaFemina said in a research note this week, referring to the divestment issues, and cutting Freeport’s target share price to $19 from $23. 
“We are increasingly concerned that a resolution will not be reached,” LaFemina added. 
Jefferies estimates the value of the Freeport Grasberg stake to be divested at $6.7 billion. 
Reporting by Wilda Asmarini and Gayatri Suroyo in JAKARTA; Additional reporting by Susan Taylor in TORONTO and Nicole Mordant in VANCOUVER; Writing by Fergus Jensen and Ed Davies; editing by John Stonestreet
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3) Campaigners, experts to host conference on local wisdom to protect environment

3 hours ago | 236 Views
Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Groups of campaigners and experts will host an international conference on Indonesias diverse local wisdom to protect, as well as preserve, the environment and natural resources for future generations in the country, an activist has said.

"Indonesia and the other developing nations have shared the similar problem of environmental destruction. Hence, we are now seeking the possibilities of how the local wisdom practised by the indigenous communities in the country could help us resolve the issue," an activist, Nasrullah said, Friday, on the sidelines of the event hosted jointly by an academic publicist, Jurnal Wicaksana, and the campaigner, Policy and Human Rights Advocacy for Papua Association (PAK-HAM Papua), in Jakarta. 

Hosted in Bali on March 2018, the international conference will feature speakers from several countries, including France, United States of America, Japan, Australia, China and Singapore.

"This issue (protecting nature) has posed a global concern not only for the developing countries, but also the developed nations. Therefore, we would like to invite all scholars and experts to talk about the possibility of following local wisdom to protect the environment and promote sustainable economic activities," he remarked. 

Therefore, the FGD, which was hosted by the academic publicist and campaigner, aimed to generate ideas from scholars and experts, ahead of the conference. 

"The discussion was part of our efforts to prepare the conference. Following this event and another talk in Lahat district, North Sumatra province, we will continue hosting similar sessions in other regions, such as in Palembang, South Sumatra province, and Yogyakarta, " Nasrullah explained. 

As one of the speakers during the talk, senior journalist Aat Surya Safaat noted that most indigenous groups in Indonesia have practised sustainable lifestyle, which promoted harmonious relations among nature, society and the God. 

"The local wisdom practised by our traditional communities actually has protected the natural reserves. Hence, the government, as well as the business sectors, need to learn and adopt this value to ensure the sustainability of the environment, mainly for the future generations," Safaat emphasized on the sidelines of the discussion. 

He further stressed that most economic activities, such as mining, plantation and logging, have been performed in a non-sustainable manner. Therefore, ecosystems were deteriorating owing to the pollution and man-made disasters. 

"In order to stop the destruction, we need a strong commitment of not only the government, but also the companies, and the civil organization, to actively engage in protecting the nature by learning from our local wisdom," he reiterated. 

During a similar occasion, PAK-HAM Papua head of investigation Decy Violent Riwu said the government needed to rethink its goal of accelerating the development in Papua province.

"We lauded the government effort in building many infrastructures to accelerate the economy in Papua. However, the authority should consider how the development will affect the lives of many indigenous groups in the island," Riwu said. 

Therefore, any development projects have to take local wisdom in Papua into account, she maintained.(*)
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