AWPA update
Summary of events in West Papua (15 June -16 July 2020)
A lot of media coverage on West Papua (again) over the past month focused on the Papuan political prisoners detained in Balikpapan. Many opinion pieces linking them to the Black Lives Matter Campaigns in the US and around the world and in general to racism/oppression of minority groups. In West Papua there was a lot of comment on how the authorities have difficulty separating concern about human rights and racism from the independence struggle.
The Balikpapan 7 as they were known received between 10 and 11 months in prison on charges of treason for organising and participating in anti-Jakarta protests last year. Activists Buchtar Tabuni, Stevanus Itlay and Agus Kossay were found guilty of treason and sentenced to 11 months in prison. Student leaders Ferry Gombo, Irwanus Uropmabin, Alexander Gobai and Hengki Hilapok received 10 months. The seven had already spent about nine months in prison. Although the sentencing seemed lenient compared to what the prosecutors had demanded (between 17 and 15 years’ imprisonment), all the defendants had done was to take part in demonstrations.
Three of the Papuan political prisoners, Irwanus Uropmabin, Alexander Gobai and Ferry Gombo arrived back in Papua from East Kalimantan on Sunday 7 July after their release. The other political prisoners who were sentenced to 11 months are to be discharged next month.
Photo session with Fery Kombo, Alexander Gobai and Irwanus Uropmabin and several students in front of Kabesma Uncen, (12/12/2020) Yanuarius Weya-SP (In SuaraPapua.com)
Palm oil plantations.
(Note. Lots of photos etc. in article below)
ON 25 JUNE 2020 Mongabay Series: Indonesian Forests, Indonesian Palm Oil
In a year-long investigation with The Gecko Project, the Korean Center for Investigative Journalism-Newstapa and Al Jazeera, Mongabay traced a $22 million “consultancy” payment connected to a major land deal in Indonesia’s Papua province. It took us from South Korea and Singapore to the heart of the largest rainforest left in Asia, to find out what role the payment played in making the Korindo Group one of the largest oil palm producers in the region.
Photography by Albertus Vembrianto.
This article was co-published with The Gecko Project.
Part 1: ‘Maybe they didn’t expect us to find it’
In April 2019, an Indonesian delegate stepped onto the stage at a conference hosted by Interpol, the international police organization, at its Singapore headquarters. Among the audience were dozens of law enforcement agents from across the world, there to learn about how white-collar crimes and corruption underpinned the ongoing destruction of the world’s rainforests.
Interpol’s interest in forest crime had been stimulated by the billions of dollars the World Bank had calculated developing countries were losing in tax revenues to the global trade in illicit timber every year. There was a growing recognition among enforcement agencies that the crime scene was not only in rainforests. It was also in the dark recesses of the global financial system, through which bribes were paid and profits laundered.
The delegate, from an Indonesian nonprofit, walked the audience through a “suspicious” $22 million payment made by a conglomerate, which she declined to identify in her presentation. In corporate filings, the transaction had been described as a “consultancy fee,” paid to an unnamed “expert” who had helped obtain the rights to develop a vast oil palm plantation in the Indonesian province of Papua………………..
https://news.mongabay.com/2020/06/the-consultant-why-did-a-palm-oil-conglomerate-pay-22m-to-an-unnamed-expert-in-papua/
Two photos from article
Maria Kies, 38, working with her child in an oil
https://news.mongabay.com/2020/06/the-consultant-why-did-a-palm-oil-conglomerate-pay-22m-to-an-unnamed-expert-in-papua/
Two photos from article
Maria Kies, 38, working with her child in an oil
palm plantation in Boven Digoel.
Image by Albertus Vembrianto for
Mongabay and The Gecko Project
Petrus Kies and his family in an oil palm plantation in southern
Papua. The children do not attend school.
Image by Albertus Vembrianto for The Gecko Project and Mongabay.
Selling Out West Papua (Al Jazeera Video)
In West Papua, Indonesia, we investigate allegations of fraud and human rights abuses in billion-dollar land deals. 25 Jun 2020 15:53 GM
West Papua is home to Asia's largest remaining rainforests, Indigenous communities and unique species. But this exclusive 101 East investigation reveals how Korean-run companies are allegedly engaging in questionable deals as they buy up forests to develop palm oil plantations.
Featuring rare access to a restive Indonesian province usually off-limits to journalists, we meet tribesmen who allege that Posco International and Korindo are plundering their land for a pittance. Both companies deny all allegations including fraud and human rights abuses.
Selling Out West Papua was produced in collaboration with Mongabay, The Gecko Project and the Korea Center for Investigative Journalism..........
https://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/101east/2020/06/200625081849050.html
https://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/101east/2020/06/200625081849050.html
The stigma of ‘Free Papua’ mutes other humanitarian issues in Papua
Makassar, Jubi – Academic from the Cenderawasih University of Jayapura, Elvira Rumkabu, stated the stigmatised Free Papua to indigenous Papuans had killed other issues in Papua, humanitarian issue, for example. The statement revealed in an online discussion “Racism vs Treason” held by Jubi on Saturday (13/06/2020).
She said the political construction has bred two identities to Papuans, namely free-Papua (separatist) and pro Indonesia (nationalist). Separatist is a stigma attached to indigenous Papuans. “If we talk about Papua, it raises only two things, Free Papua or Indonesia is undisputed. For me, this construction is terrible. It has killed people’s aspirations, like humanitarian issues in Papua, “Rumkabu said. With this stigma attached to Papuans, she said it means Papuans are not given a space to talk about other issues because of the fear of being accused of treason. “For example, the Nduga case. Sometimes we are afraid to talk about Nduga because of this stigmatisation,” she said.
Further, Rumkabu also believes that racism and treason issues in Papua are two things that are closely related. Racism towards indigenous Papuan has existed since the Dutch era, where at the time there were three categories of social status which are Dutch elite in the first class, and Indonesian in the second class left the native Papuans in the lower rank. According to her, this stigma is still attached to Papuans until today. Not only in society but also constructed by the state, and the perspective of racism has affected the state’s institutions in treating indigenous Papuans. That’s why, she said, the accusation of treason is easily attached to Papuans in voicing their aspirations or speaking about the racism issue, which in her opinion is a humanitarian issue. “Racism is the root of the state’s perspective towards native Papuans, and it disguises the aspirations among Papuan people, even when they talk about democracy and humanity,” said Rumkabu. Therefore, she said, the issue now is beyond the demand to release the seven political prisoners in East Kalimantan, but to change the state’s perspectives, the rule and structure. In the same forum, lawyer Latifah Anum Siregar from the Papua Law and Human Rights Enforcement Coalition Team said the treason article could be used to someone if he is proven to make a physical attack on the authorities.
In the case of the seven Papuan Political prisoners, she gave an example, that the defendants were arrested and tried after a demonstration protesting racism against Papuan students in Surabaya in August with a charge of being the actors behind the demonstration. “I think this is a mistake because it precedes the legal process. The political prisoners are always called as the actors of the riot. What exactly does it mean? If you want to say that they are the mastermind behind the riot, you should use the articles related to destruction and arson instead of the treason article,” said Anum.
According to him, it is a mistake if the Papuan political prisoners are accused of treason only for shouting ‘Free Papua’ and ‘referendum’ because it relates to the context of a democratic country. She also said the defendant could not be charged with the treason article if they brought the Morning Star flag during the demonstration or dropped the Indonesian flag or raised the Morning Star flag during the protest in front of the Governor’s office. It is incorrect because the treason article does not include the clause about flags. “When talking about flags, we should refer to Law number 24 of 2009 about the flag as the symbol of the state. There (in that article) clearly stated it is a crime. So, where is the context of treason in their case? It’s not clear. So don’t get it wrong,” she said. (*) Reporter: Arjuna Pademme Editor: Pipit Maizier
“The absence of justice by the state in many cases often causes trauma among Papuans,” Yorrys said. On the other hand, Usman added, the perpetrators of racism against Papuans in many cases were sentenced to less than one year of imprisonment, including an individual who verbally attacked Papuan students in Surabaya, East Java, in August last year.
Stop confusing freedom of expression with treason in Papua: Activists
Alya Nurbaiti The Jakarta Post Jakarta June 24, 2020
Human rights activists have slammed the government for what they deem the misuse of treason charges to prosecute Papuans, thereby threatening their freedom of speech and right to assembly. The activists highlighted the recent imprisonment of seven Papuans following their arrest during antiracism protests in Jayapura, Papua, in August last year. Amnesty International Indonesia executive director Usman Hamid said people could exercise their freedom of expression legitimately if it was expressed without any violence, as was done by many Papuans during the protest. “However, the state generalizes all kind of expression by Papuans as treason, even peaceful protests, due to its fear over an imagined threat to the country’s sovereignty,” Usman said during a virtual press briefing on Tuesday. Foundation of the Indonesian Legal Aid Institute (YLBHI) chairwoman Asfinawati echoed Usman’s view, saying physical assault was necessary for charging someone with treason. “The treason article itself [in the Criminal Code inherited from the Dutch colonial era] is problematic due to its chronic errors in translation and use.” She added the fact that Cenderawasih University student union head Ferry Kombo and other defendants had been handed prison sentences of less than one year demonstrated that they should never have been arrested in the first place. “If they were truly guilty of treason, they should have been sentenced to at least two-thirds of the initial demand of five to 17 years’ imprisonment.”
Yorrys Raweyai, the head of the Papua and West Papua legislative council members forum, said the state’s attitude toward the freedom of expression in the country’s easternmost provinces was discriminatory, even though such rights were guaranteed in the Constitution. “The judicial process against Papuans is deemed discriminatory as well,” Yorrys went on to say. He highlighted a case when law enforcement officials arrested MG, a Papuan child suspected of premeditated murder. Police transferred him from Wamena to Jakarta, while he did not speak Indonesian and was not accompanied by legal representatives during the investigation. The court eventually acquitted him of all charges.
“The absence of justice by the state in many cases often causes trauma among Papuans,” Yorrys said. On the other hand, Usman added, the perpetrators of racism against Papuans in many cases were sentenced to less than one year of imprisonment, including an individual who verbally attacked Papuan students in Surabaya, East Java, in August last year.
“Systemic racism in this country is reflected in unfair trials of Papuans,” Usman said. The Law and Human Rights Ministry’s director general of human rights, Mualimin Abdi, argued that the problem lay with the law’s misinterpretation by law enforcement authorities, who interpreted the norms differently to the government’s initial intent upon formulating it. Usman disputed Mualimin’s statement, saying the police initially had ensured the antiracism protest by Papuan students remained peaceful. They did not immediately detain the students for treason, even though some had been spotted waving the Bintang Kejora (Morning Star) flag, a symbol of the Papuan independence movement. “The police made arrests only after several political elites had voiced their disagreement with any expression of Papuan self-determination,” he said, alleging that the police had lacked independence in conducting its investigation.
Asfinawati urged the government to evaluate its law enforcement, as discriminatory treatment of Papuans in legal proceedings violated the 2008 Law on the Elimination of Racial and Ethnic Discrimination. She added that the state had failed to provide justice for Papuans who had been wrongly prosecuted as prisoners of conscience by not providing rehabilitation, including an acknowledgement of their innocence. Mualimin admitted that the ministry had never evaluated this aspect of law enforcement. “I agree that the government must be ready to provide reparation for trauma.”
Thousands of Papuan rights defenders victimised under Widodo’s watch
CNN Indonesia – June 17, 2020
Jakarta – The Civil Society Coalition for the Protection of Human Rights Defenders says that thousands of human rights (HAM) activists advocating Papuan issues have been victims of violence under the administration of President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo. There have been at least 72 cases of legal violations and violence against them. These violations have taken the form of threats, persecution, arbitrary arrests, mistreatment, physical violence and criminalisation. “During President Joko Widodo’s administration, there have been at least 72 cases of violations and violence against Papuan HAM defenders, with the number of HAM defenders falling victim in the thousands”, said Ardi Manto, a researcher from Indonesian Human Rights Watch (Imparsial), one of the non-government organisations (NGOs) in the Coalition during a virtual discussion on Tuesday June 16.
The Coalition believes that the violence experienced by Papuan human rights defenders originates from their stigmatisation as supporters of separatism or as rebels. As a consequence of this stigmatisation, it is as if these actions that demean human dignity and violate legal stipulations, which are committed by government officials as well as civilians, can be justified in cases of Papuan political prisoners and human rights defenders. “One of the practices of violence and stigmatisation is discrimination and racism against the Papuan people”, said Manto. The Coalition notes that over the last two years many human rights defenders, civil society activists and student groups in Papua who have held peaceful protest action have been arrested and jail on charges of makar (treason, subversion, rebellion). Yet this represents a form of expression that is protected under Indonesia’s constitution. “This discriminatory and even racially bias behaviour is reinforced by the government through the practice of impunity which takes place in case of violence that befall HAM defenders in Papua”, he said.
National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) Commissioner Beka Ulung took the opportunity to say that under a democratic state, activists and human rights defenders should be afforded space so they can speak out about human rights violations in Indonesia. “It also has to be understood that it’s not just in Papua, but when we speak about the issue of HAM defenders, the situation is almost identical in other parts of the country”, said Ulung. However, said Ulung, up until now the state’s commitment to protecting human rights defenders has been weak. Komnas HAM has recorded many policies or laws which can be used a hold for activists and human rights defenders. “In my view if indeed there is an opportunity to revise the laws on HAM, there are special articles that speak about the issue of HAM defenders. It is important to ask what is the context of HAM defenders under specific laws which regulate HAM in Indonesia”, said Ulung. Speaking separately, President Widodo’s special staff member for Papua, Lenis Kagoya, was reluctant to comment on the Coalition’s remarks. According to Kagoya, it is up to law enforcement officials to respond to the issue. (yoa/pmg)
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was “Ribuan Pembela HAM Papua Jadi Korban 72 Kasus Era Jokowi”.]
Voice of solidarity rises from Depok campus: Better late than never
Ati Nurbaiti The Jakarta Post Jakarta , June 19, 2020
A strange and solid voice emanated recently from the University of Indonesia (UI). After praising the student executive body (BEM-UI) for fostering free speech in its discussion on the sensitive subject of Papua, UI lecturers last week urged the university “to assume a more active role in disseminating diverse ideas [...] to avoid producing a [singular] truth”.
Come again?
The lecturers’ defense was unexpected, not only for my alma mater but for Indonesian academia. We expect silence from our lecturers, who have been wary of their job security and careers since the New Order, even after 22 years of Reformasi. Many academics don’t really care to seek what are likely to be uncomfortable truths beyond the one version we grew up with regarding Papua and other touchy issues.
Over 20 members of the UI Lecturers Alliance signed the above statement, which was issued in response to the rectorate’s criticism of the BEM-UI, that the June 6 talk lacked a “strong enough scientific foundation” and had invited “inappropriate speakers” (the discussion’s speakers included Veronica Koman, a renowned human rights activist and lawyer who has represented many Papuans, and Papuan activist Sayang Mandabayan). Alliance member Shofwan Al-Banna told The Jakarta Post, “[...] we felt that it was crucial for us [to speak up] now, because the very essence of any university is to enable the search for scientific truths”.
We tend to romanticize the role of academics who, like journalists, are often challenged on their integrity. Yet if academics remain in their cocoons, they risk simply passing on many dominant, but not necessarily true, versions of Indonesia’s history. The New Order survived as long as it did partly thanks to academics’ support for and the media’s reproduction of its “official truths”. Those lecturers who didn’t fit the confines of state universities sought positions at private Indonesian universities or went overseas, if they did not switch professions. Leaving was better than enduring ostracization, the threat of dismissal or a stifling daily environment, some lecturers said. Thus, while state universities still struggle to reach even the top 100 in regional collegiate rankings, becoming a lecturer lack appeal. The prevailing “truth” that relatively few Indonesian academics challenge include the “’65” – the mother of all taboo subjects referring to the failed 1965 coup, the subsequent witch hunt and massacres – and Papua’s unquestionable place in the Unitary Republic despite the Papuan people’s racial grievance.
Like other recent talks, the BEM-UI discussion on Papua and racism was prompted by the killing of African-American George Floyd by a white policeman in Minneapolis. The lecturers’ defense of the student board was especially surprising, given that Indonesian academics rarely contribute to unresolved issues regarding Papua.
Among their few contributions is the recently updated Papua Road Map by researchers of the Indonesian Institute of Sciences, which include their recommendations on addressing the fundamental problems of racism and the contrasting historical “truths” of how Papua became part of Indonesia. Further, the chauvinism prevalent in higher education has led to institutional suppression of reports on sexual harassment and rape that involve respected male lecturers, while institutional conservatism has silenced gender minorities and efforts to promote interfaith tolerance. Lecturers are not known for defending the outspoken student press, as in the case of Balairung Press at Gadjah Mada University (UGM). In 2018, Balairung published the results of its investigation into a female student’s allegations of sexual assault against another student, only to face denial, if not a cover-up, from UGM higher-ups.
Therefore, the lecturers’ support for a safe space to speak up comes better late than never, even as their integrity as scholars and educators continue to be challenged. In 2016 for instance, UI lecturers joined in the fearmongering over the “spread of LGBT” that led to the closure of the Support Group and Resource Center on Sexuality Studies, which offered counseling for the university’s LGBT students. In 2015, lecturer Rosnida Sari of Banda Aceh’s Ar-Raniry State Islamic University was suspended after publishing her experience in teaching students about interfaith tolerance, which included a dialogue with a local church minister. Her suspension, followed by public bullying, reflected the rising trend in intolerance, especially in the sharia-rule province. Herlambang Wiratman, the president of the Indonesian Academic Freedom Caucus, said that academic freedom was no better today than it was under Soeharto, citing the new Science Law that requires permits for research on subjects deemed a threat to “national security” and “social harmony”. Some academic discussions on controversial topics do reflect some progress, but their organizers must constantly take heed of the “who’s who” in the administration and their stance on non-mainstream views.
This means that all efforts to facilitate freedom count; although it would not restore what historians call the “lost generation” of Indonesia intellectuals. Lecturers and students in 1960s Indonesia were targeted in the witch hunt against suspected communists led by university administrators and lecturers, as testified in 2015 at the International People’s Tribunal on 1965 Crimes Against Humanity in the Hague. This academic generation included thousands of exceptional students, the majority of whom never returned from their foreign scholarships in various countries, because the state revoked their passports and left them stateless. The efforts of the UI Lecturers Alliance and others before them must grow and strengthen, as the hard-won freedom to speak one’s mind must never be taken for granted. *** Staff writer at The Jakarta Post
USTJ students arrested by police on campus
Published 17 June 202 By pr9c6tr3_juben
Jayapura City Resort Police arrested four administrators of the Student Executive Board (BEM) of the University of Science and Technology Jayapura (USTJ) – Jubi
Jayapura, Jubi – Jayapura City Resort Police arrested four administrators of the Student Executive Board (BEM) of the University of Science and Technology Jayapura (USTJ), Papua on their campus in Padang Bulan, Jayapura City, Papua on Monday (6/15/2020) at around 8 a.m. Papua time. “The police arrested the four students because of their initiative to open a solidarity post to support the release of seven Papuan political prisoners in East Kalimantan,” BEM Deputy Chairman Marvin Yobe told Jubi by phone on Monday (15/6/2020).
Yobe confirmed the name of the four students are Marten Pakage, Semi Gobay, Albert Yatipai, and Ones Yalak who took are now taken to the police.................
https://en.jubi.co.id/ustj-students-arrested-by-papua-police-on-campus/
https://en.jubi.co.id/ustj-students-arrested-by-papua-police-on-campus/
22 years since the Biak massacre
The 6th July marked 22 years since the Biak Massacre when the Indonesian security forces massacred scores of people in Biak, West Papua.
The victims, included women and children who had gathered for a peaceful rally. They were killed at the base of a water tower flying the Morning Star flag... https://awpasydneynews.blogspot.com/2020/07/not-forgotten-biak-massacre.html
A survivor of Biak Massacre: Don’t stop us commemorating the victims of the tragedy Published 8 July 2020 By pr9c6tr3_juben
Makassar, Jubi – A survivor of the Biak Massacre Tineke Rumkabu warned security forces to not preventing people sprinkle flower petals at around the water tower in Biak, Papua, she told in an online forum organised by the Law School of UPNVJ on Monday (6/7/2020). According to her, she and some friends and relatives came to the water tower to sprinkle flower petals and pray for the victims of the Biak Massacre on Monday morning (6/7/2020). However, the movement to commemorate the twenty-two years of the tragedy got attention from the security forces who were on the scene.
“I told them that I will continue to sprinkle the flower petals because they (victims) have no grave. If you tell me where their graves are, I will go there and not come here anymore [to pray and sprinkle flower petals],” said Rumkabu.
The security forces once tried to stop them. “They followed us to the scene (water tower) and told me that we did not have a permit. But at around 11 a.m. [Papua time], I entered the area of the water tower and put a flower bouquet there. I don’t care whatever the risk I would face. I would never be scared. It is the place where my friends, elders, and relatives got murdered while nobody knows their graves,” she said.
About the tragedy, she emphasised that the state must take responsibility for both victims and their families. “Maybe the violence and injustice will end if Papua gets freedom. If we are parts of this country, we should be guarded and protected instead of massacred,” she said. The Biak Massacre that occurred on 6 July 1998 is a dark story in Papuan history. The tragedy began with a peaceful protest for a referendum and a raising of the Morning Star flag under the water tower in Biak since 2 July 1998 but ended with a series of arrests, tortures, shots, rapes and other violence on the fourth day.
A few years ago, Elsham Papua published their result of investigation under the title “Pusara Tanpa Nama, Nama Tanpa Pusara (Grave without Name, Name without Grave)”. The report listed eight people died, three were missing, four seriously injured while 33 lightly wounded, and 150 were arrested and tortured, and 32 corpses found floating in the Biak waters.
An Indonesian human rights commissioner Beka Ulung Hapsara in the similar discussion forum told that the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) already submitted their result of the investigation to the authority, but has not yet received any response. “The Biak Massacre is a human tragedy that must be taken seriously. An initial investigation of Komnas HAM (a few years ago) found some indicators of human rights violations in the tragedy such as torture and so on,” said Beka.
Therefore, he said, the investigation team of Komnas HAM came to Papua several times to investigate this case, and in 2010 recommended Article 26/2000 about the severe human rights violation should apply to analyse the Biak Massacre. However, there was no follow up until the assignment of new commissioners.
Some activists joined the “Papua Itu Kita” movement attempting to bring up the settlement of the Biak Massacre. On 26 February 2015, they came to the Komnas HAM office and urged the human rights commissioners to follow up their investigation.
“Regarding the Biak case, I will try to bring up this issue in the plenary meeting, and discuss it with other colleagues to find a fair and dignified solution for the victims and their families,” said Beka. (*) Reporter: Arjuna Pademme Editor: Pipit Maizier
Police hose down Papuan student activists during peaceful rally in Denpasar
By Coconuts Bali Jul 6, 2020
The rally was held to commemorate the 22nd anniversary of the Biak massacre. Photo: LBH Bali
Police were said to have used a water cannon on activists during a peaceful rally held by the Papuan Student Alliance (AMP) in Denpasar earlier today, along with reports of alleged physical assault against some participants, who were commemorating the 22nd anniversary of the Biak massacre. A number of videos uploaded to Facebook by AMP show moments when the water cannon was deployed, as well as one participant who appears to have been briefly detained.
video
“This is the attitude from the country which claims to be a democracy,” a speaker at the rally can be heard in one of the videos seen by Coconuts. Ni Kadek Vany Primaliraning, who heads the Legal Aid Foundation (LBH) in Bali said that authorities blocked rally participants, took away some of their protest items and disrupted the masses. She also confirmed that some participants were beaten and were blasted with a water cannon. “This is excessive, especially because authorities used violence,” Vany said. Only dozens of people appeared to take part in the rally, which was organized to commemorate the 22nd anniversary of the Biak massacre, one of several long-standing human rights abuses in Papua that remains unresolved to this day. Repression is unfortunately common in protests held by Papuans or on issues regarding Papua.
Last year, AMP activists also clashed with local organizations and pecalang (traditional Balinese security forces) during a similar demonstration that saw some of the former physically assaulted, throughout which police reportedly only stood by and watched. On July 6, 1998, Indonesian security forces launched an attack against demonstrators who took part in a peaceful rally days prior that saw the raising of West Papua’s Morning Star flag. Eight people were reportedly killed that day while several others were injured, with another three people having gone missing and dozens more arbitrarily detained. Activists also say that around 150 people were tortured and 32 people died mysterious deaths. This year, one of the protesters’ demands is for the Indonesian state to claim responsibility over the Biak massacre, along with other human rights violations that have occurred in Papua. Papua was a colony of the Dutch until the early 1960s, when it declared itself an independent nation in 1961. Neighboring Indonesia took control of the region by force in 1963 and officially annexed it with a UN-backed referendum in 1969 that was widely seen as a sham. https://coconuts.co/bali/news/police-hose-down-papuan-student-activists-during-peaceful-rally-in-denpasar/
Illegal gold mining in Jayapura has been happening since 2001
Jubi Published 1 July 2020 By Admin1
Police arrested 17 people related to illegal mining in Buper, Waena, Jayapura City. – Jubi/Courtesy
Jayapura, Jubi – Jayapura Municipal Police arrested 17 people who allegedly were involved in illegal gold mining in Bumi Perkemahan (Buper) Waena, Jayapura City on Friday, 26 June 2020. “These seventeen people are operators of heavy equipment and worker coordinators. There are about 70 people involved in this business,” Jayapura Municipal Police Chief Gustav Urbinas told reporters on Friday (26/6/2020).In their operation, the Police also seized two units of construction equipment, six excavators, liquid mercury and eleven jerrycans of diesel fuel. Police Chief Urbinas said he received a report on this illegal activity two months ago, but at that time he could not arrest those who were involved because they escaped the mining site
Illegal miners have carried out their activity in Buper, Waena, since 2001 because this sector was promising to generate income. Four years ago, a gold miner Frans told suara.com about his experience regarding this illegal activity. He said people only need simple equipment such as a hoe, pan, and sifter for doing this activity. He further explained that all panning processes were traditional, starting from finding rocks, crushing it and putting the grinds in the pan. After mixing with water, the grids would look like porridge, and through the panning process, we can see gold flakes. However, to get gold containing rocks was not simple. People should dig at least three meters depth under the ground.
“But not all rocks we met contained gold. We would find out about the weight and type of gold after mixing it into liquid mercury,” he told suara.com.
Considering this, the income of gold miners was uncertain. If they were lucky, he and his friends could get 20 to 100 grams of 24 carats which could trade at Rp 400 thousand per gram. “It’s all depending on the current gold price. It fluctuated following the increase in the oil price. But its price now is Rp 400 thousand,” he said. Ten years ago, the Jayapura Municipal Government had attempted to stop the illegal mining in Buper that has been happening since 2001. But, the Ondofolo (Tribal Chief) of Kampung Babrongko Waena, Ramses Wally, disagreed with the city government. At that time, Ramses said if the city government banned this panning activity, they should provide job opportunities to those illegal gold miners. (*) Reporter: Victor Mambor Editor: Pipit Maizier
Indonesian trolls target Tongan beauty Diamond Langi over Papuan solidarity
By Sri Krishnamurthi, contributing editor of Pacific Media Watch
By Sri Krishnamurthi - June 25, 2020
Beauty queen Diamond Langi ... “I shared [her video] because I wanted to bring awareness with what was happening with West Papuans, especially now with the Black Lives Matter movement." Image: Diamond Langi FB screenshot/PMC
Miss Universe NZ 2019 beauty queen Diamond Langi is being trolled by thousands of Indonesians on social media for speaking up about discrimination against West Papuans. “The post I had made was #FreeWestPapua with a video showcasing the discrimination West Papuans have had to endure for years,” she declared on Coconet TV’s Facebook and Instagram pages two days ago.
On her “Women of the Islands – Diamond Langi” webpage on the Coconet TV website, the Auckland-born Tongan beauty queen is quoted as saying:
“I shared it because I wanted to bring awareness with what was happening with West Papuans, especially now with the Black Lives Matter movement.
“I had kindly asked Miss Indonesia (Frederika Alexis Cull), who I had met last year in America while competing at Miss Universe, to speak to the president of her country [Joko Widodo] to free the seven activists who were found guilty of treason for protesting against racism.
She says that from that one post she has been hounded by Indonesian trolls who still exist on her Facebook page.While there was support for her stance, some of the abuse from some Indonesians bordered on plain hatred, whereas others claimed the Melanesian region of West Papua belonged to Indonesia [it was annexed by Jakarta in in 1969 in a disputed colonisation process that has resulted in armed struggle and peaceful resistance ever since – Pacific Media Watch]. ‘My Instagram was flooded’
“From that one post, my Instagram was flooded with abusive comments (at least 10,000 comments in a day) and they also started abusing my family, close friends, and even organisations that I work with,” she says on her Coconet TV webpage. “I was like, wow if this is happening to me just from making a post, imagine what is happening to the people of West Papua!
“From that one post, my Instagram was flooded with abusive comments (at least 10,000 comments in a day) and they also started abusing my family, close friends, and even organisations that I work with,” she says on her Coconet TV webpage. “I was like, wow if this is happening to me just from making a post, imagine what is happening to the people of West Papua!
“I’ve had to deactivate some of my social media for a little bit but don’t worry I’ll be back,” she says. But she also had support for her stance.
“Very concerning that our beautiful Pacific sister, Diamond Langi’s public Facebook page is under attack by a few propaganda-fuelled keyboard warriors from Indonesia, because she’s chosen to use her emerging platform and political freedom to stand in solidarity with our indigenous whanau in West Papua,” @Oceania Interrupted said on Facebook.
“Black Lives Matter all over the world, even in the Pacific – and bullying someone for standing in solidarity with indigenous people in our Pacific context, who continue to be brutally oppressed, exploited, silenced and killed in their own land is sickening! “If you haven’t already, please go on her page, show some love for what she is standing in solidarity for; And if you know a thing or two about THE REAL WEST PAPUA [sic] situation, please school the ignorant bullies on her page and in our world,” the cultural activist group says.
Earlier this year, Langi acted in a Polish-American feature film titled, Sosefina. The film is written by Manu Tanielu and Namualii Tofa and directed by Hinano Tanielu. The theme of Sosefina has been to tell the story of a marginalised and overlooked Polynesian community. The movie was released in the United States on 31 January 2020.
YouTube. Rip Up the Lombok Treaty
Jul 2, 2020 Make West Papua Safe
This 2 minute animation tells the story of the Lombok Treaty, the Indonesian Government's gag order. The Lombok Treaty is inconsistent with Australian democratic norms and restrains Australian politicians from acting to address the root causes of conflict in West Papua. By speaking out and publicly standing with West Papuans you help render the Lombok Treaty useless. The film outlines the Treaty's history, what it means, and why YOU need to rip it up.
Make West Papua Safe website
Free Papua Movement Australia
CALL TO ACTION FOR AUSTRALIANS: We are collecting data for the purposes of lobbying our local members and representatives, if you are as serious about West Papua's Freedom as we are, please add your details here; https://survey.app.do/lobbying-for-west-papua-data-collection
We will contact you once we have collected enough numbers for you to meet up with other supporters and start lobbying in your area/Federal Electorate.
We hope to collect enough data within the year.
Free Papua Movement Australia Team
Webinar panel on West Papua sharply divided over media ‘black hole’
By Pacific Media Watch -
A senior Indonesian government official and a New Zealand journalism professor have clashed over differing perspectives on access for journalists and media to the West Papua region.
Speaking on a webinar organised by the Tabloid Jubi newspaper in Jayapura, Ministry of Foreign Affairs’ director of the European affairs Sade Bimantara said Papua was “much more open” than credited in social media. However, Pacific Media Centre director Professor David Robie said it was still extremely difficult for journalists in Australia, New Zealand and Pacific nations to visit the Melanesian region on assignment.
https://asiapacificreport.nz/2020/07/03/webinar-panel-on-papua-sharply-divided-over-media-black-hole/
Elvira Rumkabu and Eddie Synot discuss #BlackLivesMatter in the Asia Pacific
•Streamed live on Jul 9, 2020
For West Papuans in Indonesia and Indigenous Australians, #BlackLivesMatter resonated deeply. So how will this global movement enact change in the Asia Pacific? Join our experts Elvira Rumkabu and Eddie Synot to find out.
Opinion pieces/media releases reports etc.
How we calculated Korindo’s revenues from clearing Papuan rainforest
by The Gecko Project and Mongabay on 29 June 2020
Groups demand financial, human rights probes into palm conglomerate Korindo by Hans Nicholas Jong on 7 July 2020
’In the plantations there is hunger and loneliness’: The cultural dimensions of food insecurity in Papua (commentary)
COMMENTARY BY SOPHIE CHAO ON 14 JULY 2020 Mongabay Series:
https://news.mongabay.com/2020/07/in-the-plantations-there-is-hunger-and-loneliness-the-cultural-dimensions-of-food-insecurity-in-papua-commentary/
Inquiry into Australia's Defence relationships with Pacific Island nations
Submissions received by the committee
No. 15, a West Papuan submission
’Stop denying and listen to us’: Papuans hopeful for talk, action to end everyday racism Gemma Holliani Cahya
West Papua Autonomy – Lies, Bullets And Murders
How Black Lives Matter Inspired West Papua’s Freedom Struggle
West Papua and Black Lives Matter
Published: Jun 17, 2020 Written by SOPHIE CHAO
Papuan Lives Matter: What now? An open letter
Open letter to Jakarta – Papuan self-determination isn’t special autonomy v2
Indonesia, Papua New Guinea and Australia amid the rising tide of secessionism in the region
Australia’s Strategic Update: What it means for Indonesia
GRETA NABBS-KELLER
Papuan groups voice opposition to special autonomy status
Alya Nurbaiti The Jakarta Post July 7, 2020
Sixteen groups in Papua have voiced opposition over the potential continuation of its special autonomy (Otsus) status, with the transfer of Otsus funds from the central government set to end next year.Protesting under a movement called Petisi Rakyat Papua (Petition by Papuans), the groups also demanded a referendum to determine their own fate.
In a remote area of Papua, a box of instant noodles costs 2 grams of gold
Will dynamics of conflict in West Papua, Indonesia change with COVID-19?
https://www.aseantoday.com/2020/06/will-dynamics-of-conflict-in-west-papua-indonesia-change-with-covid-19/
Previous update
https://awpasydneynews.blogspot.com/2020/06/summary-of-events-in-west-papua-may-15.html
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George Floyd’s death inspires an unlikely movement in Indonesia: Papuan Lives Matter
Previous update
https://awpasydneynews.blogspot.com/2020/06/summary-of-events-in-west-papua-may-15.html
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