2) Police track down social media accounts suspected of sowing discord amid unrest in Papua
3) Amnesty International UK Press releases West Papua: Police must stop discrimination and unlawful
use of force against students
4) ULMWP Chairman: UN must visit West Papua following racist attacks
5) Hundreds of inmates escape cells in Sorong during protests against racist abuse of Papuans
6) East Java to build dormitory for students from various provinces after attack against Papuans
7) Police dispatches four units of Brimob personnel to West Papua
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1) Jokowi to visit Papua, West Papua after riots
News Desk The Jakarta Post
Jakarta / Tue, August 20, 2019 / 03:51 pm
Rioting broke out in Manokwari, West Papua, on Aug. 19 as local people, comprising mostly university students, protested against the recent case of racial abuse of Papuan students in East Java. (Antara/Toyiban)
President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo is set to visit Papua and West Papua following rioting that broke out in the provinces’ capitals on Monday. The demonstrators protested racial abuse against Papuan students in East Java during the commemoration of Indonesia’s Independence Day over the weekend.
Presidential staff member Lenis Kogoya said on Tuesday that the visit would be made sometime next week.
“We will invite the President to Papua to talk with the locals there,” he said as quoted by kompas.com, adding that the state leader would accommodate the people’s aspirations regarding his next five-year term.
Jokowi, who has visited the easternmost part of the country more times than any previous president, had called on all Papuans to stay calm and forgive fellow citizens who had launched physical and verbal attacks on Papuan students in Surabaya, East Java.
Security personnel reportedly cursed the students with the words “monkey” and “pig” as they rounded up students at a dormitory in the city. The personnel were believed to be provoked by accusations that the students had destroying an Indonesian flag.
“Fellow citizens, pace [brothers], mace [sisters] and mama-mama [mothers] in Papua and West Papua, I know that there are some grievances. As fellow citizens, it is important to forgive each other,” Jokowi said at Merdeka Palace on Monday, addressing the Papuans in the local dialect. “It is better to forgive and be patient.”
The President, however, refused to comment on calls to investigate the racist abuse that sparked the rioting. (vny)
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2) Police track down social media accounts suspected of sowing discord amid unrest in Papua
News Desk The Jakarta Post
Jakarta / Tue, August 20, 2019 / 05:05 pm
Protesters take to the street to face off with Indonesian police in Manokwari, Papua on Aug. 19. Riots broke out in Indonesia's Papua with a local parliament building torched as thousands protested allegations that police tear-gassed and arrested students who supported the restive region's independence. (AFP/Str)
The National Police have called on the public to refrain from sharing unverified information about the riots in Papua, as authorities track down social media accounts suspected of sowing discord.
The police were tracking down a YouTube channel and a Facebook page that had reportedly posted provocative content aimed at fanning the flames of unrest, National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Dedi Prasetyo said
“We’re currently profiling [the social media pages]. Although they have deleted their videos, the [National Police's] Cyber Directorate is still able to investigate their digital footprints,” Dedi said on Monday, as quoted by tribunnews.com.
He said the police were still unable to confirm whether the two social media pages were affiliated and managed by the same administrators.
The police have yet to disclose the names of the social media accounts.
Rioting broke out in several cities in Indonesia's easternmost provinces, including West Papua's cities of Manokwari and Sorong as well as Papua's town of Jayapura, on Monday, as local people, comprising mostly university students, protested against the recent case of racial abuse of Papuan students in East Java.
The protests came after security personnel and members of mass organizations reportedly launched physical and verbal attacks on Papuan students living in a dormitory in Surabaya, East Java, on Sunday, accusing the Papuans of refusing to celebrate Indonesia's 74th Independence Day over the weekend.
The government temporarily limited internet access in Papua as the situation quickly escalated in an effort to curb the spread of misinformation amid the chaos. (rfa)
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3) Amnesty International UK Press releases West Papua: Police must stop discrimination and unlawful use of force against students
20 Aug 2019, 09:50am
Following yesterday’s events in West Papua Province, during which the local parliament building and a penitentiary were burned down and homes were destroyed, Usman Hamid, Amnesty International Indonesia’s Executive Director said:
“Indonesian authorities must act promptly to deescalate tensions in West Papua Province and guarantee that people who wish to protest peacefully can continue to do so.“Security officers must refrain from using unnecessary or excessive force, prioritise dialogue with protesters and not use the violent acts of a few as a pretext to restrict or impede the rest from exercising their rights.“Where investigations are opened for alleged offences committed during the protests, these must be for internationally recognised crimes and proportionate to the alleged offence.“It is also crucial that the National Police addresses the root cause of the unrest by promptly launching an investigation into the allegations of discrimination and unlawful use of force against Papuan students in Surabaya, Semarang and Malang over the weekend.“The recent allegations of discrimination by the police are only the latest accusations of such treatment over the years. The police have so far failed to protect Papuans from any form of discrimination, sending a worrying message that these acts are tolerated by the authorities.”
Ongoing protests
On 15 August, a group of Papuan students staged a protest in Malang, East Java, to reject the 1962 New York Agreement which transferred control of the territory of Papua from the Netherlands to the United Nations.
Demonstrations went ahead despite police refusing to grant the Papuan students in Malang permission to hold the protest, citing “security reasons”.
The situation worsened when protesters were attacked by groups of Malang residents, and Malang deputy mayor made a discriminatory statement saying: “we will see, we have an option on the table to return them [to Papua]”.
In Surabaya, a group from local religious organisations attacked a dormitory of Papuan students, accusing them of destroying the national flag of Indonesia and throwing it in the sewer before the celebration of Indonesia’s Independence Day, and calling derogatory slurs including “monkey, dog, animal and pig”.
Instead of dispersing the crowd that was attacking the students, police surrounded the dormitory and asked Papuan students to turn themselves in.
The standoff continued the following day; when police fired tear gas and arresting 43 Papuan students. The police took them in for questioning, but released them on Sunday after finding no evidence that they had destroyed an Indonesian flag.
The incidents in Surabaya and Malang triggered Papuans to stage protests in Manokwari and Sorong in West Papua, during which the local legislative council in Manokwari was burned down. They also destroyed public facilities and residents’ homes. In addition, crowds also disrupted activities at an airport and burned a penitentiary in Sorong.
According to international law and standards, the exercise of the right to freedom of peaceful assembly should not be subject to the permission of government authorities.
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4) ULMWP Chairman: UN must visit West Papua following racist attacks
August 20, 2019 in Statement
I, as Chair of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua, express my deep concern over the situation of Papuan students in Indonesia, especially in Semarang, Malang, Surabaya, Ambon, Ternate, Sulu-Maluku, as well as in West Papua in the City and Regency of Jayapura.
The people of West Papua are united in opposition to the extreme racism we suffer at the hands of the Indonesian occupation. The events of the past five days show that Pacific leaders, speaking out collectively this month, are right: the UN must urgently visit West Papua.
Dozens of Papuan students in Surabaya were barricaded in their dormitories by Indonesian nationalist gangs and police on August 16, called ‘monkeys’, ‘dogs’ and ‘pigs’, attacked with tear gas, and arrested. Thousands of my people, from Manokwari, Sorong and Jayapura to Kaimana, Bintuni and Serui to Biak, Merauke, Wamena and Nabire, as well as solidarity demos in North Sumatra, Bandung West Java and Jogjakarta are defending the dignity of Papuans as human beings created by God.
The events in Surabaya are the match that has lit the bonfire of nearly 60 years of racism, discrimination and torture of the people of West Papua by Indonesia. Every Papuan knows that he or she is seen as a second-class citizen by Indonesia. I myself was spat at by an Indonesian school girl at high school, just because of the colour of my skin. Every Papuan has a similar story to tell.
Events like these show why we have been struggling for a referendum on independence for so many decades. Racism goes hand-in-hand with colonisation and repression. Like the Black people of South Africa, fighting against apartheid, our struggle against racism is also a struggle for self-determination. President Widodo’s words are not enough: Papuans will not stop fighting until we achieve equality, self-determination and a referendum on independence.
In February this year, the UN condemned the ‘deeply entrenched discrimination and racism’ Papuans suffer at the hands of Indonesia. The UN must now follow this up. The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Michelle Bachelet, must be allowed to visit West Papua. I reiterate the call of the Pacific Islands for Indonesia to stop blocking the High Commissioner from seeing the reality in our country.
In the 21st century, Black West Papuans are still being called ‘monkeys’ and ‘dogs’. Not so long ago, such racism was directed against Indonesians by the Dutch colonisers. Indonesians fought against European colonisation and discrimination, winning their independence – but today, Indonesia has become the very thing it once struggled against.
The Preamble to the 1945 Indonesian constitution states, ‘independence is the inalienable right of all nations, therefore, all colonialism must be abolished in this world as it is not in conformity with humanity and justice’. We are only calling for this constitutional right to be upheld. It is time, to mark the 74th anniversary of Indonesian Independence, for the people of West Papua to be given the choice to determine their own destiny.
Benny Wenda
Chairman
United Liberation Movement for West Papua
Chairman
United Liberation Movement for West Papua
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5) Hundreds of inmates escape cells in Sorong during protests against racist abuse of Papuans
News Desk The Jakarta Post
Jakarta / Tue, August 20, 2019 / 03:32 pm
At least 258 inmates detained in Sorong Penitentiary in West Papua have escaped their prison cells after the building caught on fire during protests in the city that were in response to racist abuse being hurled at Papuan students on Java.
The inmates ran away through a broken wall after they were provoked by protesters who had thrown rocks at the penitentiary building, said a spokesman for the Law and Human Rights Ministry’s Directorate General of Corrections, Ade Kusmanto.
“Sorong penitentiary’s wall was burned and broken and some of the inmates revolted against the prison guards and managed to run away,” said Ade as reported by kompas.com on Tuesday.
Out of a total of 547 inmates detained in the penitentiary, at least 258 escaped, Ade said.
At about 1 p.m. on Monday — the time when protests reportedly broke out in Sorong — shouts were heard from inside the penitentiary complex. The guards were still able to calm the inmates down.
However, tensions escalated quickly at about 4 p.m. after mobs started throwing rocks at the windows of the inmates’ cells, he said.
Subsequently, at 5 p.m., the prisoners managed to tear down the walls at the western part of the penitentiary and broke into the window of the registration office, which the inmates used as their escape route.
“We also received reports that one of our guards was wounded when assaulted by inmates who were running away,” Ade said.
The situation in the penitentiary has been calm since about 7 p.m. on Monday.
Local firefighters had been deployed to put out the flames, while penitentiary officials reviewed their records to list the escaped inmates, Ade said.
Protests broke out in several cities across Indonesia’s easternmost provinces on Monday morning, including in the Papuan town of Jayapura and the West Papuan cities of Manokwari and Sorong.
The protesters were reacting to an incident on Sunday when Papuan students living in a dormitory in Surabaya were subjected to physical and verbal violence by security officers and members of mass organizations, who accused the Papuans of refusing to celebrate Indonesia’s 74th Independence Day over the weekend. (bry)
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6) East Java to build dormitory for students from various provinces after attack against Papuans
News Desk The Jakarta Post
Jakarta / Tue, August 20, 2019 / 08:00 pm
Some people raise their hands at a Papuan student dormitory on Jl. Kalasan 10 in Surabaya, East Java, on Saturday as security officers and members of mass organizations harass the students after reportedly finding a discarded Indonesian flag near the building. (Antara/Didik Suhartono)
To strengthen the sense of unity among Indonesian students after racist attacks against Papuan students, East Java Governor Khofifah Indar Parawansa plans to build a dormitory to accommodate students from various provinces.
“I feel like our sense of unity hasn’t reached a substantial level. Therefore, I was thinking what if we prepare a dormitory to accommodate students?” Khofifah said as quoted by news agency Antara on Monday.
She added that she had already discussed the plan with deputy governor Emil Elestianto Dardak.
“[The dormitory] will refresh our memory about how Jong Java, Jong Celebes and Jong Borneo [and other youth organizations in 1928] pledged an oath to protect our country,” Khofifah said, referring to youths from various ethnic groups during the 1928 youth movement promoting the birth of the unified Indonesia.
On Sunday, security personnel and members of mass organizations harassed Papuan students living in a dormitory in the East Java capital of Surabaya, launching a tirade of verbal slurs and physical attacks. The mob was apparently angered after finding a discarded Indonesian flag near the building, prompting them to throw stones at the dormitory while shouting racist remarks for hours.
Presidential staff member and Institution for Papua Indigenous Community chairman Lenis Kogoya visited the governor’s office at the Grahadi building on Tuesday afternoon. Lenis, along with Khofifah and Surabaya Mayor Tri Rismaharini, was also set to visit the Papuan student dormitory in Surabaya to meet the students. (dpk)
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https://en.antaranews.com/news/131300/police-dispatches-four-units-of-brimob-personnel-to-west-papua
7) Police dispatches four units of Brimob personnel to West Papua
9 hours ago
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Four units of Mobile Brigade (Brimob) personnel from three provincial police are stationed in West Papua to facilitate restoration of security following riots in the provincial capital of Manokwari on Monday, a police spokesman stated.
The deployed Brimob personnel come from the Southeast Provincial Police, North Sulawesi Provincial Police, and Maluku Provincial Police.
"They have been stationed according to their respective position. The most important aspect is that the presence of Brimob personnel aims to ensure a peaceful situation," Chief of the Public Relations Bureau of the National Police (Polri) Brigadier General Dedi Prasetyo stated on Tuesday
He affirmed that the security condition in West Papua, especially Manokwari, has been brought under control, and the local people have returned to their routine activities.
According to the police, 10 public facilities incurred damage in the aftermath of the riots in Manokwari, while 15 facilities were damaged in Sorong.
On Monday, thousands of people in Manokwari had demonstrated to express their ire over alleged racist action against Papuan students in Surabaya and Malang, East Java. They had set fire to tires in several parts of the city and main streets.
The rally was also reported in Jayapura, the capital city of Papua Province. Related news: East Java Police avers no Papuan students faced racism
Related news: Police Chief confirms situation placated in West Papua
Related news: Injured policeman discharged from Papua's Bhayangkara Police Hospital
EDITED BY INE
The deployed Brimob personnel come from the Southeast Provincial Police, North Sulawesi Provincial Police, and Maluku Provincial Police.
"They have been stationed according to their respective position. The most important aspect is that the presence of Brimob personnel aims to ensure a peaceful situation," Chief of the Public Relations Bureau of the National Police (Polri) Brigadier General Dedi Prasetyo stated on Tuesday
He affirmed that the security condition in West Papua, especially Manokwari, has been brought under control, and the local people have returned to their routine activities.
According to the police, 10 public facilities incurred damage in the aftermath of the riots in Manokwari, while 15 facilities were damaged in Sorong.
On Monday, thousands of people in Manokwari had demonstrated to express their ire over alleged racist action against Papuan students in Surabaya and Malang, East Java. They had set fire to tires in several parts of the city and main streets.
The rally was also reported in Jayapura, the capital city of Papua Province. Related news: East Java Police avers no Papuan students faced racism
Related news: Police Chief confirms situation placated in West Papua
Related news: Injured policeman discharged from Papua's Bhayangkara Police Hospital
EDITED BY INE
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