Thursday, May 30, 2019

Military, Komnas HAM investigate Asmat shooting

  • Ghina Ghaliya
    The Jakarta Post
    Jakarta   /   Thu, May 30, 2019   /   06:21 pm


The Papua Military Command, the National Police and the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) have launched an investigation into the deaths of four in an alleged shooting by military personnel during an election dispute-turned-riot in Asmat regency, Papua.
Papua Military Command spokesman Col. Muhammad Aidi said the team had gathered evidence and questioned witnesses.

“We have checked the building [of the shooting], interviewed several witnesses including several perpetrators, examined the evidence and analyzed the crime scene," Aidi said in a written statement on Wednesday.

According to Aidi, three personnel were on duty during a riot at the Fayit district office on Monday: Chief Sgt. Fajar, Second Sgt. Reftob and Second Cpl. Eko. Fajar, wielding an SS-1 rifle, was the only officer armed with a weapon during the incident.

As the crowd entered the office, Fajar fired a warning shot, but the mob reportedly grew violent and cornered Fajar. He responded by shooting toward the crowd, killing four and injuring one, Aidi said.

The victims were identified as Xaverius Sai, 40, Nikolaus Tupa, 38, Frederikus Inepi, 35, and Matias Amunep, 16.

The riot started after a candidate for the Asmat Legislative Council, identified only as JK, allegedly sent around 350 of his supporters, many of whom were armed with traditional weapons, to launch an attack in Fayit district.
JK was said to be unhappy with his party's decision to replace him with another another candidate as he felt that he secured enough votes to obtain a seat in the council.
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VFWPA Chairman disappointed by UN SG’s remarks



VFWPA Chairman disappointed by UN SG’s remarks
  •  


I expected the United Nations’ Secretary General (SG), António Guterres, to confirm to the people of Vanuatu that he understands Vanuatu’s vision for the people of West Papua to be granted their democratic freedom from colonial rule, and that he would take the request to the UN to consider Vanuatu’s stand.
“However he did not say that except to touch on climate change affecting the world and the human rights issues surrounding the Melanesians of West Papua”.
The Chairman of both Vanuatu Christian Council and Vanuatu Free West Papua Association, Pastor Alan Nafuki, made the statement outside his Presbyterian Church of Vanuatu Office at Independence Park yesterday.
Last week, the Vanuatu Government invited the outspoken Chairman of the Vanuatu Christian Council (and Chairman of the Vanuatu Free West Papua Association), Pastor Nafuki, to pray over the United Nations’ Flag and the visit of the UN Secretary General, Antonio Guterres, on his five-hour visit to Port Vila on May 18.
Asked his opinion of the SG’s response to media questions on West Papua, he replied, “In my opinion, the UN Secretary General’s remarks on West Papua were shallow and it seemed he merely spoke to please the Vanuatu Government.
“Meanwhile as the Chairman of VFWPA, I expected Mr. Guterres to dwell on the need for the freedom of the people of West Papua but he concentrated on the human right issues of West Papua”.
Pastor Nafuki regrets not having any chance of speaking to him in person due to shortage of time and his busy schedule during his lightening visit to Port Vila which was also the first in the Pacific Region.
He said, “I expected Mr. Guterres to acknowledge Vanuatu’s firm stand for West Papua to be freed from colonial rule and that it would be wise for the UN to listen to Vanuatu in its unshakable stand to help West Papua to gain self-determination from Indonesian rule.
“Let me add that his coming here has not changed my heart or that of my committee and everyone in Vanuatu from the Chiefs to the Government, Opposition, people and children in our steadfast vision for the people of West Papua to be granted their rightful self-determination from Indonesian rule”.
He said the people’s expectation and ‘cry’ for the UN to support the people of West Papua and all other remaining colonized peoples in the world, has not happened.
“Let me proclaim to the world that our stand in favour of self-determination for the people of West Papua and all the remaining colonies in the world, will continue regardless of what ever response comes from abroad.
“The UN SG won’t change our cry and focus for the eventual freedom of the colonised people of West Papua as well as Kanaky, Tahiti and Moluccas”.
As a Christian Church Pastor, he said he believes in God’s timing in which to grant self-determination to the people of West Papua.
“We must fear God that through Him and Him alone, we can receive our freedom”, he said.
Asked what it was that he focused on in his prayer in his latest assignment he replied, “I prayed for those peoples who are struggling for self-determination and God’s caring for those affected by Climate Change”.
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Wednesday, May 29, 2019

1) Indonesian Troops Kill 4 in Papua Post-Election Violence





1) Indonesian Troops Kill 4 in Papua Post-Election Violence

Victor Mambor Jayapura 2019-05-28



A gunshot victim is treated at a hospital in Asmat Regency, Papua, Indonesia, May 28, 2019. 
Linus Dumatubun/BenarNews 











Soldiers shot and killed four people in Indonesia’s insurgency-stricken Papua province during a riot reportedly started by anger over their candidate’s failure to win a seat on a local regency council, police and military officials said Tuesday.
Protesters attacked the home of a rival candidate from the same political party in the Fayit district of Asmat regency on Monday, believing he had stolen votes from the politician they supported, local police chief Andi Yoseph Enoch said.
“The soldiers fired shots because the crowd tried to attack them,” he said.
Police identified the four victims as Xaverius Sai, 40, Nikolaus Tupa, 38, Matias Amunep, 16, and Frederikus Inepi, 35.
Muhammad Aidi, the Indonesian military spokesman in Papua, said the army had invited police and the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) to investigate.
“Yesterday afternoon, after the commander received the news, he immediately contacted the provincial police chief and the local representative of Komnas HAM to form an investigative team. The team traveled to Asmat this morning,” Aidi said.
“The service members will face the legal process. We will not cover things up,” he told BenarNews, adding that the team would work for three days to collect evidence and question witnesses.
Monday’s violence in Papua followed two nights of unrest last week in the Indonesian capital Jakarta triggered by the defeat of opposition presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto. Eight people were killed in the rioting. Prabowo rejected the result of the April 17 election and accused President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s government of systematic fraud at the polls.
On Tuesday, calm returned to Papua after 25 soldiers were sent from a neighboring district, according to officials.
Meanwhile, Papuan Legislative Council member Laurenzus Kadepa, called for an independent investigation without the involvement of the military and police.
“Any team that involves the security forces, who are suspected to be the perpetrators, will not produce anything satisfactory. Based on experience, perpetrators only received lenient punishment,” he told BenarNews.
The head of the Asmat electoral commission, Feronikus Ate, declined to comment while community leader Paskalis Kossay said Papua was no stranger to such incidents.
“Unfortunately, incidents of violence like that have hardly been resolved in accordance with the law. As a result, the military and the police feel they can act brutally and kill with impunity,” Kossay told BenarNews.
A low-level separatist conflict has been taking place in Papua, a region where the population is predominantly Melanesian, since the 1960s.
In December, separatist rebels killed 19 members of a crew working on a highway project in Nduga regency, prompting soldiers and police to hunt down insurgents.
Papua declared its independence from Dutch colonial rule on Dec. 1, 1961, but that was rejected by the Netherlands and later by Indonesia.
In 1963, Indonesian forces invaded the region and annexed it.
In 1969, the region held a controversial referendum in which security forces had selected slightly more than 1,000 people to agree to Papua’s formal absorption into the archipelagic nation, according to human rights advocacy groups.

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Letter in Vanuatu Daily Post in Response to previous letter.
Dear Editor,
Bruce Wearne asks a good question. When is Australian and New Zealand “going to get in behind Vanuatu’s advocacy of justice for West Papua”.
As secretary of the Australia West Papua Association in Sydney, I write regularly to our foreign affairs department (DFAT) raising concerns about the human rights situation in West Papua.
In all replies there will always be the sentence, “we recognise Indonesian sovereignty over West Papua”. It does not matter which party is in power but there are individual politicians in all parties, particularly in “The Greens” which are concerned about the situation.
There have been a number of hiccups in our relationship with Indonesia and DFAT’s policy seems to be basically not to upset Indonesia. Everybody wants to get along with their neighbours but it should not be at the expense of the West Papuan People.
One way Australia can support West Papua without incurring Indonesian criticism is to act collectively and support the call by the Pacific leaders in asking Jakarta to allow a PIF fact finding mission to West Papua.
In recent years there has been a groundswell of support throughout the Pacific region in support of the West Papuan people. Hopefully, the PIF leaders at the upcoming PIF summit in Tuvalu will continue to press Jakarta to allow a fact finding mission to the territory. They have the support of their people in doing so.
Joe Collins
AWPA (Sydney)
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Re: Waffling on West Papua



Dear Editor,
So, when are the other regional governments — Australia and New Zealand — going to get in behind Vanuatu’s advocacy of justice for West Papua and show themselves to be openly, genuinely and actively responsible for international relations across the entire South West Pacific region? Does not Australia exist within its own lawful portion of Melanesian territory through its Torres Strait Islands?
Does it not have the Torres Strait Islander flag among its collection of official national flags? So, when is Canberra going to face up to its own responsibility for regional justice with a humble recognition of its neglect hitherto of its own place in the Melanesian region?
If it faced up to itself it may assist the UN to moderate its waffling prevarication.
Bruce Wearne

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3) Four Killed After Supporters of Legislative Candidate Storm District Office in Papua

BY : ROBERT ISIDORUS
MAY 29, 2019 
Jakarta. Four people were killed and one wounded when a soldier opened fire on a mob of angry supporters of a regional legislative council candidate, who failed to win a seat in the recent election, stormed the Asmat district office in Papua on Monday.
The candidate reportedly believed he had won a seat, but the chairman of his political party replaced his name with that of another candidate.
"The legislative candidate did not accept the decision and mobilized around 350 people, armed with sharp and traditional weapons, who attacked the district office and the home of a council member named Handayan," Col. Muhammad Aidi, a spokesman for the Papua regional military command, said on Monday.
He did not reveal the identity of the losing candidate, nor the name of the political party.
Four members of the Fayit district military post, who were stationed about 50 meters from the district office, responded and tried to maintain order.
"A member of the district military post fired his gun into the air to disperse the crowd, but they became even more violent and started attacking the Army personnel. Feeling threatened, another member was forced to fire [at the crowd] while retreating toward the post to save himself and secure the post with limited support," Aidi said.
The four deceased were identified as Xaverius Sai, 40, Nikolaus Tupa, 38, Matias Amunep, 16, and Frederikus Inepi, 35. 
Jhon Tatai, 25, was shot in both arms and taken to the Asmat public hospital.
A 25-member team of the Indonesian Military (TNI) and National Police have since been deployed to Fayit to stabilize the area. Aidi said the situation has returned to normal.
"After receiving the report, the Papua regional military commander, Maj. Gen. Yosua Pandit Sembiring, acted quickly and coordinated with the Papua Police chief and the National Commission on Human Rights [Komnas HAM] to form an investigation team to obtain accurate information on the incident," Aidi said.
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Tuesday, May 28, 2019

1) Catholic hospital raises medical standards in Papua



2) Remote ‘paradise’ island covered in rubbish washed up from overseas  
3) Freeport to Start Talks With 15 Banks to Finance Unprofitable, but Politically
4) Regional heads in Papua asked not to misuse authority for gratification

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1) Catholic hospital raises medical standards in Papua
Despite problems affecting health care in this Indonesian province, Dian Harapan Hospital sets a path for others to follow




Nurses tend to patients at Catholic-run Dian Harapan Hospital in Jayapura. (Photo by Veni Mahuze/ucanews.com

Veni Mahuze, Jayapura  Indonesia  May 28, 2019

shortage of health facilities and professional health workers remains a long-standing problem in Indonesia’s Papua province despite the increasing clamor for better and more affordable services.

Amid the shortfall, church-run hospitals and clinics — such as Dian Harapan Hospital in Jayapura — have become vital for many Papuans who would otherwise slip through gaping holes in the region’s health care net. 

State-run institutions have often been criticized for pandering to those with money and neglecting those without in a region where long journeys just to reach an inadequate hospital result in the deaths of many patients.

Building on a clinic originally run by Catholics, including Dutch Franciscan missionary Jan van der Horst and the German bishops’ development agency Misereor, Dian Harapan Hospital was founded by Jayapura Diocese 24 years ago.

Since then it has established a reputation for responding to the needs of the poor, particularly those living in remote areas.

From an initial 52 beds, it now has 150 and it became a referral hospital for several districts in Papua, especially Lanny Jaya, an isolated area in the central mountainous region of Papua.

Riwan Wenda, 18, who comes from Lanny Jaya district, says he was admitted to the hospital on April 29 and remained there for almost three weeks after being diagnosed with water on his brain.

He said that despite not being able to pay for his treatment, he was treated well by staff who demonstrated a genuine desire to ensure he made a full recovery. "Meals and medicines were as regular as clockwork. I was made to feel very comfortable,” he told ucanews.com.

Ekira Weya, also from Lanny Jaya, said she received good treatment for a serious bowel condition at the hospital after surviving a long journey to get there. She had to travel three hours overland before a one-hour flight to Jayapura. “Fortunately, I received good treatment here.”

Wenda and Weya consider themselves among the lucky ones.

The scarcity of health facilities and the poor quality of care where there are facilities discourages people from have their health monitored, and even ordinary diseases such as diarrhea and minor respiratory problems can be fatal.

However, Dian Harapan Hospital has looked to buck that trend and has earned the backing of local officials who put the hospital at the top of the list when people need urgent care.

Tiffany Kawengian, a Lanny Jaya district official, said patients with serious problems are sent straight to Dian Harapan Hospital.

“We have cooperated with the hospital since last year because it has decent facilities and shows real dedication to patients,” she said. “The costs are shouldered by the local government. The patients are treated well and return home healthy.”  

Every day more than 50 people are treated in Dian Harapan Hospital’s ophthalmology department in Jayapura. (Photo by Veni Mahuze/ucanews.com)


Social mission

Hospital director Dr. Ance M. Situmorang said that for over two decades the hospital has remained faithful to the Church’s mission to serve the poor.

“Our first priority is to help these people, but it does not mean we reject the affluent,” she said, adding that Dian Harapan is very much a community hospital.

She said its ability to provide more effective services has been enhanced by government health insurance schemes for citizens that reimburse treatment costs.

Situmorang said at least 200 patients are treated daily at the hospital, rich or poor, and plans are afoot to upgrade its facilities.

"We are well on the way to replacing outdated facilities, such as adding state-of-the-art radiology equipment,” she said.

It is also seeking to expand its ophthalmology department.

According to Situmorang, improvements in facilities have not only resulted in better treatments but also made diagnosing problems easier.

More specialized services such as treating head and neck ailments have led to more and more Papuans being diagnosed with such problems, she said.

Papuan Health Department chief Dr. Aloysius Giyai said the provincial government is trying to help Papuans by giving subsidies to hospitals, including those managed by the Church.

This effort has been inspired to a certain degree by the way Dian Harapan Hospital has gone about trying to serve communities, especially the poorest ones, he said. “It has played a significant role in helping Papuans, and the government has paid attention to it.”

Jayapura mayor Benhur Tomi Mano said the city is grateful to the Church for building a hospital that has offered such an outstanding service to people.

The provincial capital has 13 hospitals, but when people have serious health problems they are referred to Dian Harapan, he said.
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(A large number of photos in article) 


2) Remote ‘paradise’ island covered in rubbish washed up from overseas  



Jen Mills Monday 27 May 2019 4:07 pm

SEI_69806155.jpeg
Plastic marine garbage dumped on the beach in one day in Manyaifun (Picture: SWNS)



Raja Ampat is billed as a ‘secret paradise’ in travel magazines – an untouched archipelago in Indonesia’s north Papua, where you can find some of the most beautiful beaches on the planet. Its residents don’t create a lot of waste themselves, and the islands should be pristine. That’s not what conservationist Duncan Murrell, 65, found when he ventured there. The British photographer kayaked around Raja Ampa on a month-long trip, and was upset to find that one of the beaches there was struggling with plastic rubbish – washed up from the rest of the world. When he arrived at Manyaifun on Batang Pele, it had been crystal clear and free of litter, but the next morning it was choked with plastic, carried overnight from cities in Vietnam, the Philippines and beyond. He watched in horror as locals scooped up a dozen wheelbarrow’s full of rubbish from the tiny beach – a process he discovered they repeat after every windy night.



With no ways to recycle the man-made rubbish, they have no choice but to dump it in the island’s mangrove forest – now full of rubbish created hundreds of miles away. Duncan – known as The Whale Man for his famous photos and conservation work – said: ‘I woke up in the morning and it was, “Oh my god it’s crazy”. It blew me away. ‘The adults just shrugged their shoulders. It was clearly a familiar sight. ‘And it was just one day of rubbish – and it’s not even the windy season. ‘I kept thinking about how much work they have to do to clean the beach every time it happens. it must wear them down. ‘It’s coming from outside. It’s nothing to do with them. And it’s getting dumped on to their beach all the time.’



‘It’s heartbreaking. ‘I was really upset. I felt really emotional. It’s part of the coral triangle. ‘These places are being killed. These places are being left to die. Duncan, from Torbay, Devon, added: ‘I was staggered by how much plastic marine garbage was dumped on the beautiful beach there in 24 hours.


‘You think you are going to some remote location, to camp in some idyllic paradise, but you wake up to find plastic crap everywhere. ‘What was really interesting to see was how the adults were cleaning up the mess, and the kids were just loving it. ‘The kids were rummaging through and finding little things to collect and play with.’ ‘It’s everywhere. The mangroves were just choked with plastic bottles. ‘They took away a good ten whole full wheelbarrow fulls of garbage. And that’s just one day.’
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3) Freeport to Start Talks With 15 Banks to Finance Unprofitable, but Politically 

Important New Smelter 
BY : DION BISARA 
MAY 28, 2019 
Jakarta. Freeport Indonesia, the country's largest gold and copper mining company, will start discussions after Idul Fitri next month with 15 local and foreign banks interested in financing its $2.8 billion unprofitable smelter project, senior executives said.

Freeport has an obligation to build the smelter as part of its deal with the government to extend its permit for the Grasberg mine in Papua until 2041. 
"To be honest, I would rather build a 1,000-megawatt power plant in Papua than build the smelter," Freeport Indonesia president director Tony Wenas said late on Monday.
"Whichever way we make it, it would be best if we can get zero [percent] as the smelter's IRR," Tony said, referring to the internal rate of return, an estimation of the profitability of an investment.
Orias Moedak, Freeport Indonesia's vice president director, said the company would talk with banks from Japan, France, Britain, the United States and several local state-owned banks to discuss the financing scheme. 
"Because the project itself is unprofitable, we would likely have to opt for corporate financing instead of project financing," Orias said. 
That means loan repayments would come from Freeport's operations, which would reduce the dividends paid out to shareholders, instead of being contained within the project.
Still, the smelter project is far from disastrous for Freeport Indonesia, Orias said. "It only means that our future income would be reduced by the $2.8 billion [we will put into the smelter]," he said. 

The company is now burning through cash as it needs billions of dollars in investment to shift its operations from open-pit to fully underground. Freeport Indonesia expects its interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization to dip to $1.3 billion this year due to the shift, before returning to its usual level of around $4 billion by 2022. 
The company estimates that the government, which now owns 51 percent of Freeport Indonesia, still stands to pocket about $40 billion over the next 21 years from dividends taxes and royalties. 
Not Economics, It's Political
Indonesia passed a law in 2009 that requires all mining resources to be processed in the country before export. This later became a highly contested point in the Freeport contract extension. 

Tony said the smelter only adds 5 percent value to Freeport Indonesia's copper concentrate before export, and that many smelters abroad can do it at a much lower cost. Illustrating his point, Tony said Freeport Indonesia's existing copper smelter arm, known as Smelting, which processes about 1 million tons of concentrate per year in Gresik, East Java, has only paid a dividend once since starting operations in 1997. 
But since the company had agreed to the government's terms on building a smelter, Orias and Tony both acknowledged that the project was no longer about the economics.
"This smelter is not a profitable project, but it has become our commitment and obligation under the law. Until now, we have spent $122 million on smelters, so there is no reason to step back," Tony said, adding that it also politically important for Indonesia to see the realization of the smelter. 
Freeport Indonesia commissioned Japan's Chiyoda Corporation to construct the smelter. The company has so used some of the money to acquire and prepare 100 hectares of land in the JIIPE industrial complex in Gresik.

The new smelter will process 2 million tons of concentrate per year, Tony said. It will produce copper cathode and several byproducts, including sulfuric acid for fertilizers. 
The company has set a target for the new smelter to be operational by 2023 – just in time for its underground mining activities to hit full throttle. 
The smelter will require 2,000 workers during the construction phase, but only 500 once it is operational.
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4) Regional heads in Papua asked not to misuse authority for gratification

Published
 
on
 


Jayapura, Jubi – Indonesia’s Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) asked the regional heads in Papua to not misuse their positions for their benefits.
The Coordinator of KPK Regional VIII Adlinsyah Malik Nasution said people are encouraged to report to KPK if they know a regional head commits it. “I got information about a regional head misuses his authority, but his regional secretary denied it. So what did exactly his regional secretary do? So, to whom did it, I warn him to get ready,” said Adliansyah during the coordination and evaluation meeting on the integration corruption eradication program attended by regents, mayor, regional secretary and department heads of Papua Provincial Government in Jayapura on Tuesday 21/5/2019).
Moreover, he gave an example of the corruption case by the regents of Nganjuk, Cirebon and Klaten. They were proven to misuse their potions and accept gratification. “They can get 60 billion rupiahs in one turn. Their collectors could be their children, relatives, in-laws and others. So please do not do it,” he said.
According to him, the ‘position bargaining’ is only a term, whether you take gratification in advance or later on, it still accounts as gratification. “So no matter if you are asking for or not, once you take it, it still means gratification. So, I ask the government to take this as a reference,” he said.
In this occasion, Adlinsyah also asked the provincial, regional and municipal governments to immediately respond to the Joint Decree (SKB) of three ministers regarding the dismissal of civil servants who proved to be corrupt.
Moreover, he said until now only 12 regencies have responded by reporting the cases, namely Keerom (9), Paniai (4), Mappi (2), Intan Jaya (0) or there is possibly no civil servants involved, Jayawijaya (1), Supiori (10) , Boven Digoel (4), Waropen (14), Sarmi (4), Nabire (6), Biak Numfor (17), and Yapen Islands (3).
“I saw that Biak Regency had the most corruption case. So, I ask the provincial, regional and municipal to respond this SKB immediately,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Deputy Governor of Papua Klemen Tinal said the provincial government had been very responsive and fully supported the implementation of the action plan for the corruption eradication program that is reflected from a number of actions that have been implemented, including the launch of e-Government policies with the integration of e-planning, e-budgeting, e-samsat, e-licensing and e-taxation systems.
“These actions aim to minimize the potential corruption, and the more important is it will give an impact on the better governance,” said Tinal. For this reason, he invited every regional head in Papua to commit and consistently implement the corruption eradication program which designed to build a good, clean, transparent and accountable governance. (*)
Reporter: Alexander Loen
Editor: Pipit Maizer
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Monday, May 27, 2019

Four dead in post-election riot in Indonesia's Papua

Four dead in post-election riot in Indonesia's Papua 
27 May 2019 09:34PM (Updated: 27 May 2019 09:40PM) 

JAKARTA: A 16-year-old boy was one of at least four people shot dead by police during a riot triggered by dissatisfaction over the election result in the restive province of Papua, an official said.
More than 300 supporters of a legislative candidate who claimed he should have won the seat in the local council attacked a district office in Asmat district.

The candidate, who was not identified, claimed based on the votes he should have won a seat in the city council but his name was replaced with another candidate's name.
The protesters, armed with sharp weapons, damaged the district office, local military spokesman Muhammad Aidi said.
Four soldiers guarding a nearby military post tried to control the protesters but were outnumbered, and one of the officers tried to control the mob by opening fire into the air, Aidi said.
"The mob became even more brutal and attacked the officer, in a such threatening situation another officer was forced to open fire and retreat to the post to save themselves," Aidi said in a statement Monday (May 27).

Four people, including the teenager, were shot dead while one more was injured and has been treated at a local hospital. The military, local police and the human rights commission have formed a team to investigate the case, Aidi said. Indonesia's presidential and legislative election also triggered a riot in the capital Jakarta. Supporters of presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto have been protesting since the election result was announced last week in favour of incumbent president Joko Widodo. Subianto's supporters claim the election was marred by rampant electoral fraud. Since the rioting, more than 400 demonstrators have been arrested, according to police, who blamed the violence on "provocateurs" they claimed mixed with the crowd to stir up trouble. Police said seven demonstrators have died but offered few details on how they died or who was responsible, though earlier said some had gunshot and blunt force wounds. About 900 people were injured in the riots, according to the Jakarta Health Agency.
Source: AFP/nh
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1) Mass rally protest: Papuans should obtain 20 seats in the regional parliament


2) 10 great reasons to visit West Papua
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1) Mass rally protest: Papuans should obtain 20 seats in the regional parliament
Published 10 hours ago on 27 May 2019 By pr9c6tr3_juben
Protesters held banners while entering the lawn of Jayapura Regent Office in a peace rally–Jubi / Engel Wally

Sentani, Jubi – The Forum of Jayapura Indigenous People conducted a peace rally to demand twenty seats for indigenous people and five seats for non-Papuan in the Jayapura Regional Parliament.
Daniel Toto, who is the Coordinator of the Jayapura Regency Customary Council (DAS), conveyed people’s aspiration during a peace rally conducted in the lawn of the Jayapura Regent Office on Tuesday (21/05/19).
He said that the election that took place on 17 April was beyond the expectation of democracy because it had much fraud and did not reflect the political education for the community. “The rights of democracy for the native people are tramped. We give our verandah for you to stay, but you want to enter our living room, and then ask more for our bedroom. It is not right,” said Daniel Toto, who was also a candidate of the election held in Jayapura Regency.
Moreover, he said it the Papua Special Autonomy Law clearly stated that the authority had been given to the indigenous people as the owners of the customary rights.
Meanwhile, a member of the Mamta Customary Council, Yakop Wadi, said he was concerned about the last election. “Some electoral districts allegedly had a connection with money politics. However, the parliament’s seats belong to the native people in this area. Therefore, we ask the regional government as a political tutor to take this matter seriously,” he said. (*)
 Reporter: Engel Wally
Editor: Pipit Maizier
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2) 10 great reasons to visit West Papua

Kathryn Curzon KATHRYN CURZON DIVE TRAVEL WRITER
Jakarta   /  Mon, May 27, 2019  /  01:35 pm


No destination in Indonesia is as remote and wild as West Papua. With verdant forests full of birdlife and immaculate coral reefs, this is a nature lover's paradise.
Don’t miss it for your chance to go island hopping, scuba diving, hiking or immersing in the diverse tribal cultures West Papua is known for……………...
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Sunday, May 26, 2019

1) Shooting incident in Wagete, Deiyai, Tigi Police Station burned down


2) Indonesia: don’t over- react to Jakarta violence

3) Dogs to assist police in border work to minimise illegal trade
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1) Shooting incident in Wagete, Deiyai, Tigi Police Station burned down

Published 10 hours ago on 26 May 2019
By pr9c6tr3_juben

Jayapura, Jubi – A resident of Wagete of Deiyai Regency, Papua Province was reportedly shot dead by the police on Tuesday evening, while another resident was seriously injured (21/5/19). This incident triggered the outraged people to burn down the local police station (Tigi sector) in Deiyai.
Pastor Santon Tekege confirmed this incident by phone to Jubi on Tuesday evening (21/5/19). He said the incident occurred when four drunken young men were stopping a car in a road near YPPK high school. “They stopped a passing car and asked for Rp 10,000 to the driver for buying cigarettes. However, the driver told them that he had no money. While argued, the driver got out of the car and chased them with a machete,” said Pastor Tekege.
The four men then went away, so the driver returned to his car. However, when he was about to leave, these four men came with a group of people and smashed the windshield. The driver escaped from the outraged people and went to the Tigi police station to report the incident.
According to Tekege, the police officers came to the scene and opened fire. As a result, a resident Elianus Dogopiai got shot in his thigh and immediately rushed to Deiyai Hospital. This shooting triggered the outrage among residents in Wagete. They then went to the Tigi Police station and burned it down on Tuesday afternoon. Police officers address people’s outrage by opening fire towards the mass several times. In this incident, a bullet hit the head of a resident Julius Mote that causes his dead on the scene.
“Police and Mobile Brigade officers from Enarotali and Deiyai were immediately sent to Wagete. Besides using the tear gas to disperse the crowd, they also opened fire over the crowds. Many residents were reportedly injured by gunfire, but could not confirm their identity. At 7:00 p.m., the electricity was outages in Wagete, and it increases the tense atmosphere,” said Pastor Tekege.
Further, Tekege stated that he thought the way the police handled the problem between the drunken men and the car’s driver is overwhelmed because the police choose using a repressive approach rather than a persuasive one. “The police must be responsible for the shooting,” he said.
Meanwhile, the Chairperson of Meepago Regional Customary Council, Okto Pekey, when contacted by phone, said he already informed about the incident. “I am now in Nabire, but I got the information about the shooting incident in Deiyai,” he told Jubi through a short message on Tuesday evening (21/5/19).
There was no confirmation yet from the Papua Police about the shooting incident and the Tigi Police Station. Jubi reporter tried to contact the Papua Police Spokesperson the Commissionaire AM Kamal but still not received a confirmation until this report written. (*)
 Reporter: Benny Mawel
Editor: Pipit Maizier


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2) Indonesia: don’t over- react to Jakarta violence
BEN BLAND 
Published 24 May 2019 14:00
The taint of riots shouldn’t undermine what was a free, fair and peaceful election.
Images of rioting by supporters of defeated presidential candidate Prabowo Subianto in Jakarta have been beamed around the world this week, tainting what was otherwise a free, fair and peaceful election in the world’s third biggest democracy.
At least eight people were reported killed and hundreds wounded in two nights of clashes between groups of (mostly) young men and the security forces. On Wednesday, the second evening of violence, the police showed considerable restraint, helping to calm tempers for now.
The international media has rushed to dub this the worst political violence in decades. Commentators have warned that these riots, and the attempts to instigate a “people power” movement by Prabowo’s team, represent a fundamental challenge to Indonesian democracy. And the government of re-elected President Joko Widodo responded by, for the first time, restricting access to popular social networking platforms like WhatsApp, Facebook and Twitter, in an effort to stop the spread of incendiary messages and fake news.
As the debris is cleaned from Jakarta’s streets, all concerned need to reflect in a more measured manner.
These were indeed some of the nastiest riots Jakarta has seen since the fall of Suharto in 1998 – and the loss of life and wanton destruction was tragic. But this was not the worst political violence in Indonesia for decades, given the insurgency in Aceh   only ended in 2004 and the bloody separatist conflict in Papua continues to this day.

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Prabowo used the same playbook – claiming electoral fraud – when he lost the 2014 election
to Jokowi and when he was defeated as a vice-presidential candidate in 2009.

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Former special forces general Prabowo and his backers have been trying to undermine trust in the election commission for months, as it became increasingly clear that they would lose to the incumbent Jokowi, as he is known. After whipping up anger and resentment among his supporters over an extended period, he and his allies were, at best, far too slow in calling for them to stand down. At worst, the police have accused members of Prabowo’s party Gerindra of helping to orchestrate the violence, which was clearly driven by determined troublemakers.
Prabowo used the same playbook – claiming electoral fraud – when he lost the 2014 election to Jokowi and when he was defeated as a vice-presidential candidate in 2009. Rather than representing a real threat to democracy, there seemed to be a performative aspect to these previous allegations.
So what changed this time?
Prabowo’s efforts to delegitimise the elections have been more effective, and damaging, because of three main factors.
Firstly, the country is much more divided, after three bitterly-fought consecutive elections involving similar players (and their allies/proxies): the 2014 presidential election, the 2017 Jakarta gubernatorial election (in which Jokowi ally Ahok was ousted by a Prabowo-backed coalition) and this election, in which Prabowo looked to hardline Islamist groups for support and Jokowi tried to shield himself by appointing a conservative cleric as his VP candidate.
Secondly, Jokowi’s government has increasingly used the legal system to suppress Prabowo supporters and government critics, in the name of maintaining political stability and curbing hate speech and fake news. Activists have condemned these measures as breaches of human rights, despite their dislike for many of the views of those prosecuted. Beyond the question of rights, this approach has backfired at a practical level by lending credibility to the claims of Prabowo supporters that the system is biased against them.
Thirdly, tensions have been heightened because of the growing use of social media platforms to spread disinformation and inflammatory content. Much of this has revolved around sensitive questions of race, religion and identity, which trigger emotive responses and are more likely to be shared with others. Supporters of both candidates are guilty here, from the use of semi-official, paid troll farms to individuals making the worst possible use of their creative skills.

In response, the government has looked to prosecute the creators of some of the more heinous hoaxes under Indonesia’s draconian electronic information and transaction. This week the government went much further, ordering internet service providers to curb accessto social media platforms, with a view to stopping the spread of videos and images that it argued were stoking the riots.
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The actions of a few thousand trouble- makers should not obscure the fact that 158 million Indonesians
voted peacefully for their leader in the world’s most complicated single-day election.
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It was an unprecedented move. But it reflects a global trend of governments looking to restrict social media platforms. And it was a predictable next step for Indonesia, given that officials have been pressuring Facebook and the like to take down more content over recent years and threatening to block access to one of their biggest emerging markets.
This censorious and ad hoc approach is worrying – especially if it were to be used more frequently. If such measures are temporarily necessary, which is arguable, they should be done in a much more transparent and limited manner. The Alliance of Independent Journalists, a media campaign group, has called on the government to lift the restrictions immediately and not curb the public’s right to access and share information.
Despite the raised tensions in Jakarta, the actions of a few thousand trouble-makers should not obscure the fact that 158 million Indonesians – a remarkable turnout of 82% of registered electors – voted peacefully for their leader in the world’s most complicated single-day election.
Even most Prabowo supporters will accept the results, with an exit poll by Indikator, a respected survey agency, finding that 94% of voters thought the election was free and fair.
As he considers making a formal challenge to the election results at the Constitutional Court, Prabowo and his backers need to do more to cool tempers and rein in the minority of hot-heads and provocateurs. While maintaining law and order, Jokowi’s government needs to be careful that it does not dole out systemic medicine that is more damaging than the disease.


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3) Dogs to assist police in border work to minimise illegal trade

May 24, 2019 The National

EIGHT police dogs will be sent to Vanimo to help police isolate illegal items along the international border with Indonesia, according to dog unit director Leith Nidung.
The dogs can assist in detecting firearms, bombs, drugs and explosives and be used for other aspects in fighting crime, he said.
Nidung told the police commissioners’ conference in Port Moresby yesterday that an increase in crimes, especially smuggling of drugs and firearms along the international borders, meant other parts of the province could also be used for illegal activities.
He said the dog unit had started a new programme this year to send trained dogs to Vanimo to help policemen and women.
Six general dogs will be trained in dual tasking, 12 jobs will be performed, Nidung said.
He said another two dogs were trained to sniff firearms, drugs and detection of explosive dynamites.
“Indonesia and Papua New Guineans have being doing illegal trading for many years, especially with exchanging of goods, illicit drugs and firearms which will now help the manpower in the province,” he said. If intelligence picks up an illegal crossing along the coastal lines, dogs will be sent to those areas to help police.
“Ground work is already underway to build the dog unit and scope is under preparation to transfer the dogs over,” Nidung said.
He said 14 handlers would also be deployed with the dogs this year.
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