1) Indonesia gets defensive in ‘Year of Protests'

2) Members of Militant Group JAD Go Into Hiding in Papua

3) Social approach needed to settle Papua conflict: Kalla  

4) Six Charged With Treason in Indonesia After Papua Protest

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https://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2019/12/19/indonesia-gets-defensive-year-protests.html

1) Indonesia gets defensive in ‘Year of Protests'

Dian Septiari The Jakarta Post

Jakarta   /   Thu, December 19 2019   /  02:18 am

At the start of the week, two native Papuans entered a courtroom in Jakarta shirtless but adorned in their traditional attire, complete with feathered headdress and war paint. The word “monkey” was boldly strewn across their bare chests as they silently waited for their trial to begin.

The trial was eventually adjourned, but the scene had already become a foil for one of the most serious accusations leveled at Indonesia in recent years: discrimination against Melanesian Papuans.

Throughout President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s first term in office, Indonesian diplomats shrugged off what they called efforts to “internationalize” the issue of Papua, including attempts to challenge the status quo by a small but persistent separatist movement.

In a joint communiqué issued in mid-August, members of the Pacific Islands Forum “strongly encouraged” Indonesia to commit to a schedule that included a visit by the United Nations human rights chief to the region to investigate alleged rights abuses. The government was quick to express its objection, telling them that they should instead talk about issues like climate change.

In the past few years, Jakarta has stepped up efforts to contain antigovernment sentiment by enacting a “Look East” policy that aims to provide development assistance to low-lying island nations in the hopes of painting an image of Indonesia as a benevolent giant in the region.

For the most part, experts argue this strategy has succeeded as the majority of these nations have stopped peddling allegations of human rights abuses in Indonesia’s easternmost provinces.

However, Indonesia failed to claim the higher moral ground this year after local authorities and members of a mass organization in East Java were accused of perpetuating racism against Papuan students in Surabaya, inciting waves of protests in many cities in Papua and other parts of the country.

What had begun with a slur equating the students with monkeys later spiraled into violent riots and a wider call for self-determination in Papua and West Papua, regions with a predominantly Melanesian population.

Long considered a backwater region exploited for its wealth of mineral resources, the two provinces have become a development focus for President Jokowi in his second term.

However, violent protests that killed at least 33 civilians and forced thousands to flee the city of Wamena provided ample opportunities for countries like Vanuatu, outspoken in its support of the separatist movement, to raise the issue at the UN General Assembly in September.

Indonesia hit back by accusing Vanuatu of “state-sponsored separatism”, alleging that it had provoked people and triggered conflict that damaged infrastructure and disrupted everyday life.

It was becoming increasingly clear that Indonesia was not immune to the discontent that has plagued many other countries around the world.

In a year that is increasingly being dubbed the “Year of Protests”, Indonesia has found itself on the back foot as it struggles to calm a public that is growing disenchanted with the way the state deals with various domestic issues, especially those with an undeniable international dimension.

Unrest in Papua is just one issue that has exposed Indonesia to criticism.

Indonesia has received flak for politicians’ plans to pass dubious laws that negate good governance, prompting thousands of people to take to the streets in the largest student movement since 1998, when the 30-year reign of dictator Soeharto came to an end.

At the height of the rallies beginning Sept. 23, protesters occupied the streets around the House of Representatives building, demanding that lawmakers stop its plan to pass a Criminal Code bill into law, while also voicing disappointment over the recent passage of a highly criticized amendment of the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) Law.

Other countries, particularly those from the more developed West, expressed concern over Indonesia’s lawmaking, with some singling out the Criminal Code bill, which carries the risk of criminalizing, among other things, consensual sex among unmarried couples and cohabitation.

Australia, for instance, took note of this issue in its latest travel advisory, urging its citizens thinking of visiting Indonesia to be wary of possible persecution. As many as 1 million Australians visit Indonesia every year.

The newly appointed ambassador of the European Union, Vincent Piket, also expressed worries that the Criminal Code bill, if passed into law, might affect EU citizens visiting or residing in the country.

Meanwhile, economists and private sector players urged Jokowi to roll back the amendment to the antigraft law, arguing that unchecked corruption would hamper investment. This appeared to hit home with Jokowi, who looks to grow the economy by increasing exports and canvassing foreign investment. In the end, the President did not bow to public pressure.

However, Jokowi appears to have learned from the wave of protests ahead of his second term in office. In November, he urged security forces and regional heads in a national coordination meeting not to underestimate signs of public discontent, a global trend that he noted has spread to places as far-flung as Hong Kong, Chile and Bolivia.

Dozens of other countries, including France, Spain, the United Kingdom and Russia, are also struggling with civil unrest, while the leaders of Algeria, Bolivia, Iraq, Lebanon and Sudan have been ousted or forced to step down due to issues that vary from corruption to economic hardship.

Vice President Ma’ruf Amin described discontent and public distrust as a “virus” that could “trigger instability”, a message that has been echoed by Foreign Minister Retno LP Marsudi at various occasions.

Though people had largely vacated the streets, Indonesia should not consider it “mission accomplished”, political economist Dinna Wisnu of Atmajaya University said as she warned of the dangers of a polarization in society that could drive further division.

“We shouldn’t immediately think that a problem can be solved by giving people financial support,” Dinna argued in a recent discussion in Jakarta. “People in Papua,'' she noted, “are already fed up and they don’t feel a part of [Indonesia].” (tjs)

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 https://jakartaglobe.id/news/members-of-militant-group-jad-go-into-hiding-in-papua

2) Members of Militant Group JAD Go Into Hiding in Papua 

BY :BERITASATU 

DECEMBER 19, 2019 

Jakarta. Members of militant group Jemaah Ansharut Daulah have tried to go into hiding in Indonesia's easternmost province of Papua, police said on Thursday following the arrests of eight suspected militants there.

Police launched separate operations in the province's capital Jayapura earlier this month and arrested eight JAD members from North Sumatra and Lampung.

"We arrested the eight suspected militants for conducting activities that according to the law may constitute as crimes," National Police spokesman Chief Comr. Asep Adi Saputra told reporters at his office in South Jakarta.

Interrogation of the suspects revealed they had plans to extend the JAD network to Indonesia's eastern regions, but there was no indication they were planning immediate attacks in the area, Asep said.

"They have been cornered in many other areas in the country, so they moved there. But we found no indications they were planning to carry out attacks in Papua," he said.

The suspects were detained at a Papua Police facility before being flown to Jakarta for further questioning on Tuesday.

JAD has been blamed for a series of attacks in Indonesia over the last few years, the latest of which include the stabbing in October of then chief security minister Wiranto and a suicide bomb attack at the Medan Metropolitan Police headquarters in November.

Papua Police Chief Insp. Gen. Paulus Waterpauw said the militants had come to Papua to do paramilitary training.

"They ran away from Medan and Lampung and ended up here to do some training, before they could launch attacks somewhere else," Paulus said on Tuesday.

"They were arrested after we collected convincing evidence against them. We don't arrest people without a reason," the officer said.

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https://en.antaranews.com/news/138435/social-approach-needed-to-settle-papua-conflict-kalla

3) Social approach needed to settle Papua conflict: Kalla  

3 hours ago

Yogyakarta (ANTARA) - The government should focus on social approach in resolving the conflict in Papua, former Vice President Jusuf Kalla believes.

"There still needs to be social efforts and better education," he said in a press conference after receiving the Hamengku Buwono IX Award at Yogyakarta's Gadjah Mada University, Thursday.

President Joko Widodo has made various efforts to build Papua, also known as 'Bumi Cenderawasih', he said.

However, he believed there is still a need to resolve social problems in order to ensure that Papuans can fully enjoy the positive impact of development in their everyday lives.

Until now, the development in Papua had often been seen as inadequate, but he believed the progress has been extraordinary, he further said.

"In reality, the development has been extraordinary, which means there are social problems that we need to pay attention to in regards to Papua," he said.

Conflicts happen in all parts of the world and each one is different from the other, he further said.

Despite that, conflicts need to be resolved with dignity, he added.

Kalla received the 2019 Hamengku Buwono IX Award in the summit of the 70th Anniversary of the University of Gadjah Mada for his services in the social field through concrete contributions in increasing the people's capabilities and welfare, as well as his role in prosperity and peace. (INE)

Related news: Government to prioritize holistic development for Papua
Related news: Bappenas composes policy centering on swifter development in Papua
Related news: President's youth staff to promote young Papuans' products in US

Reporter: Luqman Hakim/Aria Cindyara
Editor: Azis Kurmala

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https://www.voanews.com/east-asia-pacific/six-charged-treason-indonesia-after-papua-protest

4) Six Charged With Treason in Indonesia After Papua Protest

By Reuters December 19, 2019 02:39 PM

An Indonesian prosecutor charged five men and a woman with treason on Thursday, accusing them of organizing a protest in Jakarta demanding independence for the easternmost province of Papua.

The peaceful protest of about 100 people had been held outside the presidential palace and military headquarters on Aug. 28 and followed a period of unrest in Papua.

Prosecutor P.  Permana read out the indictment in the Central Jakarta court saying the six defendants had organized a rally demanding the Indonesian government allow a vote in Papua to let it separate from Indonesia One of the six waved the "Morning Star" flag, while dancing and singing, the indictment said. The flag is a banned symbol of Papuan nationhood.

"The action by the defendants is treason with the aim to separate Papua province and West Papua province from the unitary state of Indonesia," said Permana.

There was a small protest outside the court on Thursday held by pro-Papuan activists calling for the release of the six.

The six could face up to 20 years in jail if found guilty.

A hearing for the defense is due on Jan. 2, but the six have said it was their constitutional right to participate in the rally.

Resource-rich Papua was a Dutch colony that was incorporated into Indonesia after a controversial U.N.-backed referendum in 1969. The region has since endured decades of mostly low-level separatist conflict.

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