Thursday, July 15, 2021

1) Indonesian police crack down on West Papuan demos



2) Obeying health protocols is key to successful convening of Papua's PON 
3) Social Affairs Ministry Clarifies Risma's Remark on Papua
4) Korindo: Korean palm oil giant stripped of sustainability status 
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https://www.rnz.co.nz/international/pacific-news/446968/indonesian-police-crack-down-on-west-papuan-demos
1) Indonesian police crack down on West Papuan demos
4:33 pm today  

Fresh demonstrations by West Papuans have again been stopped by armed Indonesian police who arrested dozens of people




Indonesian police move in on a demonstration by West Papuan university student against the government's plans for the administration of their region, Jayapura, 14 July 2021. Photo: Supplied

The demonstrations are the latest in a series of protests by West Papuan students, churches and customary representatives opposed to the Indonesian government's plans to extend Special Autonomy provisions in the two Papuan provinces.
Many West Papuans claim they have not been involved in consultations about Special Autonomy, while police have repeatedly prevented public discussions about the issue in some parts of Papua region.
Yesterday, three student-led demonstrations were held in the Papua provincial capital, Jayapura, before armed police arrived and forcefully stopped the mobilisations. Several Papuan students from the University of Cenderawasih in Jayapura were injured.
As well, police arrested 23 students and activists with the Petisi Rakyat Papua group, an organisation with 112 civil society, student, customary and church representatives that has been co-ordinating public mobilisations in relation to Indonesia's plans for Papua.

A demonstration by West Papuans against the Indonesian government's plans for Special Autonomy provisions for their region, Manokwari, 15 July 2021 Photo: Supplied
The demos were held as Indonesia's lawmakers in Jakarta this week proceeded with ratifying their plans for Papua's new Special Autonomy provisions
Petisi Rakyat Papua also organised demonstrations today in West Papua province, including its capital, Manokwari, and Kaimana regency.
A police spokesman told RNZ Pacific that the demonstrations in Jayapura were forbidden, saying that because the Covid-19 outbreak in Jayapura is at a high level, authorities have made it clear that such public events that would add to the spread of the virus wouldn't be tolerated.
In West Papua province, sixteen demonstrators were arrested in Kaimana, as state media reported that police have tightened restrictions on public movement in a bid to curb the spread of Covid-19
Special Autonomy status, which was granted to West Papua 20 years ago in response to growing Papuan demands for independence, proved controversial.
Many Papuans deemed the Autonomy law had failed to empower them to run their own affairs, with calls for a legitimate self-determination process persisting.

Police move in to stop a demonstration involving students from the University of Cenderawasih in Jayapura, 14 July, 2021. Photo: Supplied
Meanwhile, the demonstrators in Manokwari were also calling for the release of Papuan political prisoner, Victor Yeimo, a leading member of the pro-independence West Papua National Committee.
Yeimo, who was arrested in May over his alleged role in widespread anti-racism protests in 2019, is facing numerous charges including treason, arson, and incitement.
A statement by police related to his arrest also referred to Yeimo's appearance and representations at the UN Human Rights Council session in Geneva in March 2019.
An international organisation advocating for the rights of political prisoners in Indonesia, Tapol, is concerned that Yeimo is being targetted for state reprisal, and has appealed to Indonesian authorities for his release.


A demonstration by West Papuans against the Indonesian government's plans for Special Autonomy provisions for their region, Manokwari, 15 July 2021 Photo: Supplied
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https://en.antaranews.com/news/179282/obeying-health-protocols-is-key-to-successful-convening-of-papuas-pon

2) Obeying health protocols is key to successful convening of Papua's PON 
 5 hours ago

antarafoto-promosi-pon-papua-di-jakarta-140721-app-10_1.jpeg

A mascot of the National Sport Week (PON) XX to be held in Papua in October 2021. (ANTARA FOTO/ADITYA PRADANA PUTRA)


Jayapura city, which co-hosts this year's PON National Games along with Jayapura, Mimika, and Merauke Districts, is bracing for a surge in COVID-19 infections, but the government has hinted at still going ahead with the convening of the competition.

In anticipation of a potential COVID-19 spike, the Jayapura Public Hospital, Abepura Public Hospital, and Provita Hospital are striving to increase their hospital bed and isolation ward capacity.

According to Silwanus Sumule, the Papua COVID-19 Task Force spokesperson, the Jayapura Public Hospital has run out of beds for COVID-19 patients, as all 23 beds allocated for Covid patients have been occupied.

The Jayapura Public Hospital is hospitalizing patients with moderate and severe COVID-19, said Sumule, who is also the hospital's deputy director.

If the COVID-19 surge hits Jayapura, the capital of Papua province, new coronavirus patients would have to be treated in the same rooms as non-COVID-19 patients, but the treatment areas would be segregated.

However, the hospital currently has only three ventilators, which is considered inadequate, Sumule said.

Besides Jayapura Public Hospital, Provita Hospital is also making efforts to boost its capacity so it can receive more COVID-19 patients in the future.

Since the start of the pandemic in 2020 until July 9, 2021, Papua has recorded 26,641 COVID-19 cases, Sumule said.

At least 22,847 COVID-19 patients had fully recovered from the infection, while 524 others have died. Currently, some 3,270 residents are hospitalized in the province with COVID-19.

The Papua COVID-19 Task Force further revealed that Mimika District, which also co-hosts the PON National Games, was noted to be the largest contributor to Papua's infection rate, with 713 COVID-19 cases reported through July 9.

On July 8, 2021, Papua recorded 405 COVID-19 cases and 10 new deaths. The single-day increase in both COVID-19 cases and deaths was the highest since the pandemic struck the province in 2020, Sumule noted.

Despite the potential COVID-19 surge, the central government has hinted that they would hold Papua's 2021 PON National Games, while using a bubble system to ensure the safety of competing sports teams.

During a virtual press conference in Jakarta on Tuesday, Youth and Sports Minister Zainudin Amali confirmed that the bubble system would also be in use at the Tokyo Olympic Games.

The minister also expressed his optimism that the sporting event hosted by Papua Province would not be delayed.

Amid the global pandemic of COVID-19 that has battered Indonesia since March 2, 2020, the government had delayed the convening of Papua's National Games from October 2020 to October 2021.

Papua's 2021 PON National Games are scheduled to take place from October 2 to October 15, while the National Para Games (Peparnas) will be held from November 2 to November 15.

With the participation of at least 6,400 athletes and 3,500 officials from 34 provinces across Indonesia, Papua's PON National Games feature 37 events, while the National Para Games, featuring 12 events in Jayapura City and Jayapura District, will be joined by 1,935 athletes and 740 officials.

With the bubble system, all competing sports teams would stay isolated from the general public because they would be transported from their housing to sporting venues, and vice versa.

Minister Amali determined that the bubble system was the most reliable approach to ensure the safety of athletes and those involved in the sporting event held during the COVID-19 pandemic.


Related news: Widodo wants all athletes vaccinated prior to Papua's PON

Related news: Govt pushes ahead with Papua games preparations despite COVID surge


Meanwhile, the Indonesian Sports Council (KONI) Chairperson, Marciano Norman, backed Amali's statement while stating that health protocols will strictly be applied during the Tokyo 2020 event to be held on July 23-August 8, 2021.

"The Tokyo Olympic Games will be our reference for Papua's PON National Games. We are optimistic that the enforcement of public activity restrictions would successfully flatten the COVID-19 curve," Norman said.

To ensure the safety of athletes and officials participating in the PON National Games and National Para Games, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) has asked the concerned agencies to inoculate the athletes.

In addition to athletes and officials, President Jokowi has also instructed that local residents living near all venues of the sporting events and athletes’ villages must also be vaccinated, Amali said.


Related news: PLN's 564 officers to secure electricity supply at Papua's PON

Speaking at the online press conference shortly after attending a limited cabinet meeting with the President, Amali said mass vaccination drives for the targeted recipients need to be intensified.

To this end, mass vaccinations will be ramped up in Papua province to achieve the government's goal of inoculating all targeted recipients by August this year, he said.

Apart from the President's instruction, based on reports he has received so far, all participating athletes, coaches, officials, and support staff members from the 34 provinces have been vaccinated.

Asked about whether sports fans will be able to attend the two multi-sport events, he said the government will take a decision on this in September.

Over the past few weeks, Jakarta, Papua, West Papua, and several other Indonesian provinces have been striving to cope with a severe second wave of COVID-19 infections, driven by the more transmissible Delta variant of the virus.

As the host of both PON National Games and National Para Games, Silwanus Sumule has appealed to all members of society to participate actively in the fight against coronavirus ahead of the convening of the two important sporting events in Papua.


Related news: Papua's PON expected to boost SME growth: govt

Related news: Bubble system applied during Papua's PON National Games: minister

By Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Fardah Assegaf


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3) Social Affairs Ministry Clarifies Risma's Remark on Papua


Translator: Dewi Elvia Muthiariny   Editor: Petir Garda Bhwana 
15 July 2021 11:06 WIB

TEMPO.COJakarta - The Social Affairs Ministry explained the controversial remark by Minister Tri Rismaharini, or more known as Risma, about threatening to transfer state civil apparatus or ASN to Papua. Director-General of Social Rehabilitation, Raden Harry Hikmat, said it was a form of motivation for civil servants to be more caring during the state of emergency of the Covid-19 pandemic

According to Harry, the remark was an effort to boost state employees’ empathy for the current social conditions


“The statement that [they] will be transferred to Papua, the farthest region [from Bandung] but still within Indonesia means that all workers must be able to leave their comfort zone, family, and daily routines to play a role in overcoming social issues from Aceh to Papua,” said Harry in a statement received in Jakarta, Wednesday, July 14.

As widely reported, Minister Risma voiced protest to a number of state apparatus and threatened to transfer them to Papua because they did not join to help in the ministry’s public kitchen in Balai Wyata Guna Bandung and even prepared a music performance that she considered unnecessary.


Risma’s remark on Papua, however, met with public criticism. The PapuaituKita Forum and the Papuan Anti-racism Student Coordinator Michael Himan opined that the minister’s statement was provocative, racist, and discriminatory. “An apology from the Social Affairs Minister is very important for the Papuan people so as not to cause new problems,” he said.

Read also: President Jokowi Wants All Athletes Vaccinated Prior to Papua's PON: Minister

ANTARA


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Note. Photos/video in article

4) Korindo: Korean palm oil giant stripped of sustainability status 
Published 4 hours ago


A Korean palm oil giant has been rejected from the world's leading green certification body in the wake of a BBC investigation. 
The BBC had earlier found evidence that the Korindo group had been buying up swathes of Asia's largest remaining rainforests in the remote Indonesian province of Papua. 
A visual analysis suggested that fires had then been deliberately set to these forests, a clear violation of the Forest Stewardship Council (FSC).
The regulator's tree logo - found on paper products throughout the UK and Europe - is meant to tell consumers the product is sourced from ethical and sustainable companies. 
At the time of the BBC's investigation late last year, the FSC said they would not expel Korindo but were working with the Korean company to address social and environmental problems. 
But now the green body says the relationship has "become untenable" and Korindo's trademark licenses with FSC will be terminated from October. 
"We were not able to verify improvements in Korindo's social and environmental performance," Kim Carstensen, FSC international director general said.
He said the decision would "give us clarity and a breath of fresh air while Korindo continues its efforts to improve.”


Korindo groups chief sustainability officer Kwangyul Peck said in a statement that the company was "very shocked by the FSC decision." 
He insists they were following all the steps of "an agreed roadmap of improvements" and said despite their expulsion from the FSC "they remain committed to sustainability and human rights."

'A violation of traditional and human rights 

Korindo controls more land in Papua than any other conglomerate. The company has cleared nearly 60,000 hectares of forests inside its government-granted concessions - an area the size of Chicago or Seoul.

A 2018 report by the FSC into the allegations against Korindo was never published, after legal threats from the company, but the BBC obtained a copy.
The report found "evidence beyond reasonable doubt" that Korindo's palm oil operation destroyed 30,000 hectares of high conservation forest in breach of FSC regulations and that the company was, "on the balance of probability … supporting the violation of traditional and human rights for its own benefit."
A visual investigation by the Forensic Architecture group at Goldsmiths University in London and Greenpeace International, published in conjunction with the BBC, also found evidence that indicated deliberate burning.



Kiki Taufik, head of the Greenpeace Southeast Asia forest campaign said the FSC decision was "better late than never" saying they had "finally come to their senses".
But he said the Indonesian government continues to "grant companies like Korindo forest concessions, allowing them to violate the rights of indigenous people."
"It is crucial that buyers and certification bodies don't keep helping them create a facade of sustainability and transparency," he said. 
After the BBC's investigation last year, the Indonesian parliament had launched an inquiry into Korindo's conduct - though the findings have not been made public.


The Korindo group strongly denies starting any fires or involvement in any human rights violations, saying it follows the law. They also insisted they paid fair compensation to tribes. 
Indonesia is the world's largest exporter of palm oil - found in everything from shampoo to biscuits - and Papua is its newest frontier. 
The rich forests in the remote province of Papua had until recently escaped relatively untouched, but the government has rapidly opened the area up to investors, vowing to bring prosperity to one of the poorest regions in the country. 
Vast areas of forest have been cleared to make way for row upon row of oil palm trees. 
Indonesia's palm oil exports were worth about $19bn (£14bn) last year, according to data from Gapki, the nation's palm oil association.


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