Tuesday, February 23, 2021

1) Thousands in Dogiyai rally in the street, rejecting new province, new police precinct


2) Interim President: Renewed humanitarian crisis in West Papua needs urgent Red Cross intervention
3) Counter claims over Papuan trio killed by Indonesian military
4) Minister Pledges to Trace Misuse of Papua’s Special Autonomy Funds
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1) Thousands in Dogiyai rally in the street, rejecting new province, new police precinct

West Papua No.1 News Portal | Jubi


News Desk February 22, 2021 11:29 pm



Thousands of people in Dogiyai rally to protest against the plan to create a new province in the regency. Jubi/Abeth You.


Dogiyai, Jubi – Thousands of people in Dogiyai Regency in Papua, united under Papuan People Solidarity, took to the streets on Monday, Feb. 22, to protest against the government’s plan to create a new province and to establish a new police precinct at the regency level.

They came from 11 districts in the regency and gathered in front of Dogiyai Legislative Council to convey their protests. Among the protesters were civil servants, Dogiyai Customary Council leaders, activists from West Papua National Committee (KNPB), students, customary figures, religious figures, and private company workers.

Six Dogiyai Legislative Council leadership, including Elias Anouw and Simon Petrus Pekei, received the protesters. An official from Dogiyai Regency, Nason Pigai, Kamuu Police chief, Mapia Police chief and Kamuu Military Command chief, also received them.

 

 

Rally coordinator, Goo Benny, said both regent Yakobus Dumupa and deputy regent were not present on Monday, so they would rally again to protest against the new province, Central Papua province, when both had returned to Dogiyai. “We will wait for the regent’s return when he finishes his study in Yogyakarta, then we will rally again in a larger number,” he said in a speech before the protesters.

 

The central government planned to split Papua province into four, adding three new ones.

 

Waves of rejection against the new provinces have emerged in Papua, in which people call the plan as serving only the elites’ interest. More provinces mean more political positions but not necessarily more wealth for the people, they said. Some even call the plan as “genocide” as they predict the new provinces would bring new people, non-Papuans, working as civil servants, police and the military, sidelining native Papuans even further.

 

The plan emerged after President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo met with 60 representatives of Papuans in the presidential palace in Jakarta. Some Papuans, however, question the selection of the representatives because many think they did not convey Papuans’ real concerns. The “representatives” instead suggesting new provinces to the government, which welcome the idea and followed it up quickly by proposing revisions to the Special Autonomy Law to the House of Representatives.

 

With the revisions, it would be easier for Jakarta to establish new provinces because the revisions would erase the participation of Papuan People Council (MRP).

 

 

The people also protested against Papua Police chief Insp. Gen. Paulus Waterpauw’s plan to establish Dogiyai Police precinct there.

 

Goo said according to the law on the National Police, to have a police precinct at a regency level, the region has to have at least four lower level precincts. Dogiyai only has two district level precincts: Kamuu and Mapia.

 

“According to article 5 clause 1i [in the national police law], such decision needs the approval of the legislative bodies and the indigenous peoples. Dogiyai people from 79 kampung and 11 districts all rejected [Dogiyai Police precinct]. We call on the people to refuse to sell their land to anyone,” Goo went on.

 

Kamuu Police chief, First Insp. Michael Ayomi said he and Mapia police chief never asked for a regency level police precinct in Dogiyai. “I supported the people to reject the Dogiyai Police precinct,” he said.

 

Human rights and democracy activists and scholars have warned the central government to stop security approach in Papua, because it has led to several alleged human rights violations.

 

“I would send this rejection to Nabire Police [in Nabire Regency] and will forward this to Jayapura [provincial level precinct],” Ayomi said.

 

Ayomi said he appreciated the people in Kamuu and Mapia who had created safety among the people. He specifically mentioned KNPB in Dogiyai that sometimes raided illegal liquor sales, which he considered as helping the police to keep the area orderly and safe.

 

The protests against new province are in line with the wave of protests against the continuation of special autonomy funds for Papua and West Papua provinces. Groups even demand a revocation of the special autonomy status itself, saying that it was only a way for Jakarta to control Papua. Officials and politicians in Jakarta often say that Papuans were fine because of the ongoing infrastructure development there and the existence of special autonomy, which they say give privilege to native Papuans.

 

Reporter: Abeth You
Editor: Kristianto Galuwo
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2) Interim President: Renewed humanitarian crisis in West Papua needs urgent Red Cross intervention
February 23, 2021 in Statement

The Indonesian state is causing a renewed humanitarian crisis in West Papua. Three young West Papuan men have been murdered by the Indonesian military in Intan Jaya Regency, and hundreds of residents have now fled the area in fear. Indonesia must allow the International Committee of the Red Cross and the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights into West Papua urgently.

The three men, Janius Bagau, Justinus Bagau and Soni Bagau, were tortured and killed on February 15 in a health centre where one of them was receiving treatment after being shot in the arm by a soldier. Amnesty Indonesia has issued an urgent statement of concern over the killings.

Fearing more acts of violence, at least 600 men, women and children have been displaced by the military’s actions, seeking shelter in a Catholic compound. They join over 50,000 West Papuans internally displaced by Indonesian operations since December 2018. Over 400 have died from a lack of medical treatment and supplies. Indonesia is ethnically cleansing my people.

Those displaced by these operations will have no access to healthcare. They cannot tend to their crops. The children cannot go to school. In the middle of a pandemic, Indonesia continues to kill us West Papuans and force us from our homes by our thousands. The Indonesian state has imposed martial law, using the Covid-19 crisis as a cover to conduct military operations. As the West Papua Council of Churches, the four Protestant denominations in our nation, put it in a statement on February 5, ‘The Land of Papua has become a Military Operation Area.’

The ULMWP Provisional Government demands that Indonesia immediately allow the international community into West Papua to assist civilians affected by military operations. In particular:

1) Indonesia must allow the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights into West Papua to conduct an investigation into the human rights situation, in accordance with the call of 83 international states;

2) Indonesia must invite the International Committee of the Red Cross into West Papua. The Red Cross was banned from entering in 2009.

Regional leaders must pay attention to what is taking place in West Papua. Australia, New Zealand, the Pacific Islands Forum: Indonesia is hiding behind claims of ‘sovereignty’ to crush my people. This is not an ‘internal matter’, this is a question of military occupation and colonialism. Our right to self-determination under international law is bullet-proof. Indonesia has lost the moral, political and legal argument, and has turned to the last thing it has left: brute violence. We need urgent action to protect my people.

Benny Wenda
Interim President
ULMWP Provisional Government


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3) Counter claims over Papuan trio killed by Indonesian military
From Dateline Pacific, 6:02 am on 23 February 2021 
The West Papua Liberation Army says three young men killed by Indonesia's military last week were civilians and died after being tortured.
There's a different take on the deaths from Indonesia's military which claims the men were members of the pro-independence Liberation Army.
The deaths, in remote Intan Jaya regency, are the latest in a series of violent attacks in Papua province's rugged interior.
Johnny Blades is here to give me the latest about the ongoing conflict.
Listen duration4:39 
Add to playlist 
 


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4) Minister Pledges to Trace Misuse of Papua’s Special Autonomy Funds

Translator: 

Editor: 

Petir Garda Bhwana

TEMPO.CO, Papua - Mahfud MD., Indonesia's Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs, promised to immediately trace down the misuse of Special Autonomy funds for Papua. The minister said he has summoned a number of institutions to follow-up on the investigation.

In a written statement on Monday, February 23, Mahfud said he will speak together with the Attorney General's Office, KPK, and the National Police to follow up on these findings with law enforcement.

Mahfud had an audience with the Papua Forum of Regional Heads of Tanah Tabi and Sairei (FORKADA) on Monday, February 22. There, Papuan community leader Reverend Albert Yoku asked for the prosecution of local government officials who misused the special autonomy funds.

Like Albert, the chair of the Evangelical Christian Church (PW GKI) Women's Fellowship of Papua, Dorince Mehue, also asked the central government to evaluate the use and management of Papua's special autonomy funds since 2002 until now.

"The special autonomy [fund] is a blessing from God that came through the central government, but it was abused by a number of people, preventing the rightful people to enjoy the benefits," she said.

Also Read: Papua Police Investigate Firearms Smuggled to Armed Criminals

ANTARA

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