Sunday, October 31, 2021

Statement -Tension in West Papua

Australian West Papua Association (Sydney)

1 November 2021

Statement Tension in West Papua


There have been a number of clashes between the Indonesian security forces and the TPN PB in the town of Sugapa , Intan Jaya Rgency. In one incident  on 26 October,  a two-year-old infant, Nopelinus Sondegau was killed and six-year old, Yoakim Majau, was wounded by the Indonesian security forces although the police have denied this.  The TPNPB said  the children were shot because the military lost control after one of their personal was shot by the TPNPB.

 

According to Father Dominikus Hodo at the Catholic Diocese in Timika, large numbers of people have fled from the security forces with up to 2000 taken refuge in a church compound.


At one stage the OPM  took  control of the Bilogai Airport in Sugapa Sub-district. leading to the suspension of civil flights to the area. The commander of  the Nemangkawi Law Enforcement Task Force, said that a generator,  house, kiosk, and two motor vehicles, including an ambulance had been set on fire. Senior Commissioner Faizal Rahmadan said that they  will station two platoons of personnel in Intan Jaya to reinforce security in the area.



Joe Collins of AWPA said, "it’s hard to understand the lack of any concern from Canberra to what is going on in West Papua". It’s in the interest of Canberra to have a stable region to our north, yet it’s the behaviour of the Indonesian security forces that will lead to the very insatiability Canberra fears. West Papuans have fled across the border into PNG  and there is always the possibility that one day the Indonesian security forces could follow. 


AWPA will be writing again to our foreign minister concerning the situation.

Ends


Photos & text below are  from AWPA FP page postings


Intan Jaya regency




Sugapa Intan Jaya regency










Arson near Biloga airport on Friday. ANTARA/HO








 

Two-year old, Nopelinus Sondegau  Jubi 28 October

 

 

The below  photos & text are  from AWPA FP page postings

 

 

 






Terkini, 28 Oktober 2021

dari Sugapa_Intan Jaya, West Papua. 

Pastor Yehezkiel Belau, Pr memimpin ibadah di halaman gereja Katholik st. Petrus Agapa atas kematian anak terkasih Nopelinus Sondegau [2 tahun] korban perang revolusi TPNPB dan TNI-POLRI Indonesia di Bilogai_Intan Jaya, West Papua.

Selamat jalan anak terkasih, 

semoga para kudus menyambut mu di Sorga ðŸ˜“😭


Latest, October 28, 2021

from Sugapa _ Intan Jaya, West Papua.

Pastor Ezekiel Belau, Pr leading worship in the church yard of Catholic st. Peter Agapa for the death of beloved son Nopelinus Sondegau [2 years] victims of the TPNPB revolution and Indonesian TNI-POLRI in Bilogai _ Intan Jaya, West Papua.

Farewell dear son,

may the saints welcome you to heaven






InfoTerkini.!
Intan Jaya jumat,(29/Oktober/2021). Kembali terjadi memanas
kontak senjata dan pembakaran di dekat bandara udara intan jaya serta gereja katolik Bilogai sugapa, Sekitar jam 4:30 di ibu kota IntanJaya. Sementara masyarakat setempat semua mengungsi ke Gereja Katolik Paroki Santo Misael Kamarele Bilogai.!
Info selengkapnya akan menyusul, mohon pantauan dari semua pihak.!
New Info.!
Intan Jaya friday, (29 / Oct / 2021). Back to heating up
gun contact and combustion near Intan Jaya Airport and Bilogai Catholic church, Around 4:30 o'clock in IntanJaya capital. While the local people all displaced the Catholic Church of Saint Misael Kamarele Bilogai.!
More info will follow, please watch from all parties.!






Saturday, October 30, 2021

1) Military, police regain control of Bilogai after rebels' occupation


2) Optimize libraries for learning, Jayapura mayor to school librarians  

--------------------------------


1) Military, police regain control of Bilogai after rebels' occupation  
8 hours ago


                                      Arson near Biloga airport on Friday. ANTARA/HO

Jayapura (ANTARA) - Indonesian security agencies have regained control of Bilogai Airport in Sugapa Sub-district, Intan Jaya District, Papua Province, after an armed criminal group occupied it.

“It is true that since Friday night, Indonesian military and police personnel have taken control of Bilogai Airport following an armed criminal group’s occupation of the airport that led to the suspension of civil flights to the area,” Director of the Special Criminal Investigation Department of Papua Province Senior Commissioner Police Faizal Rahmadani stated in Jayapura, Papua, on Saturday.

The airport is now safe for civil flights, as military and police personnel have been deployed around the airport, he noted.


Related news: 282 Kiwirok refugees still at Oksibil's GIDI Church: police

“The Papua Provincial Police will also station two platoons of personnel in Intan Jaya to reinforce security in the area," he stated.

Some local residents are taking refuge at a church and police precinct, he noted without elaborating on their exact number.


Related news: Papua: Police, TNI asked to stay alert ahead of year-end

Tendering a clarification on whether the armed criminal group had torched the airport’s air navigation office on Friday, Rahmadan, concurrently commander of Nemangkawi Law Enforcement Task Force, stated that the members had, in fact, set fire to a generator set house, kiosk, and two motor vehicles, including an ambulance.

Earlier, Commander of the Nabire District Military Command Lt. Col. Anjuanda Pardosi had reported a firefight between security personnel and armed criminal group members in Sugapa Sub-district. However, no injury or fatality was reported.


Related news: Mexico supports Indonesia's G20 Presidency: Minister Marsudi


Related news: President Jokowi to attend G20 Summit, bilateral meetings

Reporter: Evarukdijati, Suharto
Editor: Fardah Assegaf





--------------------------


2) Optimize libraries for learning, Jayapura mayor to school librarians  
7 hours ago

Jayapura (ANTARA) - Jayapura Mayor Benhur Tomi Mano has said library staff must optimize the utilization of school libraries to help students increase their knowledge through learning.

"(This is expected to be achieved) Through technical guidance for library managers, providing knowledge and improving the skills of elementary school and Islamic junior high schools' library managers within the (jurisdiction of the) Jayapura city government," Mano said, as quoted on the city government's webpage on Saturday.

The mayor stressed the importance of libraries in supporting students' learning process, saying they can gain knowledge from reading textbooks and fiction alike.

"Thus, libraries owned by schools as providers of book collections must be utilized and be managed properly to increase children's knowledge," he added.

He said he expected the recent technical guidance hosted by the Regional Library and Archives Service to hone the skills and competence of library staff who were trained on ways to optimize the utilization and role of school libraries in the students' learning process.

The technical guidance also aimed to instill knowledge among participants about managing digital-based library materials, which can be accessed through a pre-programmed catalog, he informed.

Head of the Regional Library and Archives Service, Septinus Ireeuw, explained that the purpose of the technical guidance was to provide knowledge and improve library management in schools.

"The aim of this technical guidance was to realize intelligent elementary school students through increasing their interest in reading, and also managing skilled school libraries (staff)," Ireeuw remarked.

The technical guidance was hosted in Jayapura on Thursday, October 28, 2021. Fifty-five representatives from elementary schools and Islamic junior high schools took part in the event, officials said.

Related news: Libraries open digital access to promote reading
Related news: UI Library to become world-class research library


Reporter: Muhsidin, Mecca Yumna
Editor: Suharto


-----------

Friday, October 29, 2021

1) TPNPB ACCUSES TNI OF SHOOTING CHILDREN OUT OF ANGER


2) One child killed, one wounded in clash in Indonesia's Papua; hundreds flee

3) DON’T SPEAK ON BEHALF OF INDIGENOUS PAPUANS ASKING SMELTER IN PAPUA: CUSTOMARY COUNCIL



----------------------------------


1) TPNPB ACCUSES TNI OF SHOOTING CHILDREN OUT OF ANGER

 News Desk October 29, 2021 3:14 pm

Jayapura, Jubi – The West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) said that the Indonesian Military (TNI) personnel who allegedly shot dead Nopelinus Sondegau, a two-year-old child, and injured a six-year-old named Yoakim Majau, did so because they were upset for failing to shoot the opponents.

“The TNI shot a two-year-old child named Nopelinus Sondegau and Yohakim Mazau who was six years old because they could not contain their anger after their comrade was shot by us,” said TPNPB General Operations Commander Gusby Waker in a written statement received by Jubi on Thursday, Oct. 28, 2021.

“[The TNI] operate without distinction of status. The shootings of small children, priests, and women have happened many times in Papua,” he added.

Previously, Papua Police spokesperson Sr. Comr. Ahmad Kamal confirmed there were children victims in a crossfire between the TNI and TPNPB on Tuesday, Oct. 26, 2021. “It’s true,  we received a report that a child died from gunshot wounds on Tuesday in Sugapa,” Kamal said on Wednesday, as quoted by CNN Indonesia.

From the report, the two children were in the house with their parents when they got shot. Yoakim Majau, who was injured, was taken to Mitra Masyarakat Hospital in Timika for treatment. (*)

Reporter: Abeth You

Editor: Kristianto Galuwo




----------------------

https://www.reuters.com/world/asia-pacific/one-child-killed-one-wounded-clash-indonesias-papua-hundreds-flee-2021-10-29/


Asia Pacific

2) One child killed, one wounded in clash in Indonesia's Papua; hundreds flee

Reuters

2 minute read.   

October 29, 20219:30 PM AEDTLast Updated 10 hours ago

 

Oct 29 (Reuters) - A child was killed and one wounded in Indonesia's easternmost Papua region, a security spokesman said, in a rare flare up in an old insurgency when government forces clashed with separatist insurgents.

The separatists have waged a low-level campaign for independence in the resource-rich region for decades, saying a 1969 vote overseen by the United Nations that brought the former Dutch colony under Indonesian control was illegitimate.

Indonesia rejects that.

Authorities said in a statement on Thursday that separatists shot at a police station and a military post in the area of Intan Jaya, and the security forces fired back.

"In the shooting, two kids and their parents were doing an activity around their house, so they became the target of armed criminals," Ahmad Mustofa Kamal, spokesman for joint military and police forces in Papua, said in the statement, confirming one child was killed and one wounded.

Sebby Sambom, a spokesman for the Papuan separatists, said the joint forces killed the child in the gunfight on Tuesday. The authorities did not say what day the clash occurred.

Neither Sambom nor Kamal gave more details of the casualties but the Suara Papua news portal said the child who was killed was aged two and the one who was wounded was six.

Father Yustinus Rahangiar of the nearby Bilogai Catholic church told Reuters that about 800 villagers took refuge in a church amid fears of more violence.

"They're confused as to where to get food, especially the women. It's confusing, tense, and scary. Where can they go?" he said.

Indonesia, a sprawling archipelago of some 270 million people, for decades faced campaigns for independence or autonomy in different regions but the Papuan confrontation is the last main one the government is dealing with.

Mining companies, keen to exploit the region's abundant mineral resources, also keep a close eye on security.

Chief Security Minister Mahfud MD did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Since 2010, there have been 190 unlawful killings of civilians by security forces in the Papua region, according to rights group Amnesty International, 95 of whom were killed between 2018 and 2021.

Authorities invariably reject such accusations and say the security forces uphold rights.

Editing by Robert Birsel Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.


——————————————


3) DON’T SPEAK ON BEHALF OF INDIGENOUS PAPUANS ASKING SMELTER IN PAPUA: CUSTOMARY COUNCIL
News Desk October 29, 2021 2:47 pm

Jayapura, Jubi – The Papuan Customary Council has criticized all parties who speak on behalf of the Indigenous Papuan people and ask PT Freeport Indonesia to build a copper smelter in Papua.

The council also questions those who ask the company to prioritize Indigenous Papuans to work at Freeport’s new smelter in East Java.

Dominikus Surabut, head of the Papuan Customary Council, said that according to the results of the Extraordinary Conference held in Lapago recently, the request to build a smelter in Papua and prioritize Papuans as Freeport’s workforce were not aligned with the “Papuans Stop Selling Land” and “Protect Papuan Forests and Humans” campaigns.

Instead, Surabut said, such requests paved the way for new investments that could threaten the existence of Indigenous Papuans. The Indigenous People in Papua have consistently pushed the “Papuans Stop Selling Land” campaign, as well as the “Protect Papuan Forests and Humans” campaign since 2001.

“If Papuans agree to build a smelter in Papua, that means agreeing to investment,” Surabut told Jubi on Thursday, Oct. 28, 2021.

 Surabut asked all parties to stop acting on behalf of the interests of the Papuan people and voicing demands that would endanger the survival of the Papuans.

Previously, Papuan People’s Council (MRP) chairman Yoel Luiz Mulait said on Tuesday that his party would write to the central government, to ask for a special policy to prioritize Indigenous Papuans working in the smelter currently being built by Freeport in East Java. Mulait said he received information that the smelter would employ 40,000 employees.

According to Mulait, Indigenous Papuans have been affected by PT Freeport Indonesia’s mining activities in Mimika Regency the most, and therefore, must get an allocation of work opportunities of up to 50 percent of the total workers who will be employed by the smelter.

“We will ask so that from the 40,000 vacancies, it will be for 20,000 Papuans and 20,000 non-Papuans. [The proposal] will go through a plenary [meeting] first to make it valid,” said Mulait. (*)

Reporter: Benny Mawel

Editor: Aryo Wisanggeni G

------------------- 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Thursday, October 28, 2021

1) TWO TODDLERS SHOT IN A CROSSFIRE BETWEEN TNI AND TPNPB, ONE DIES



2) TPN-PB OPM reveals the cause of the shooting of two small children in Intan Jaya 
3) Baby killed by Indonesian military as Papuans flee to PNG, claims Wenda 

4) PEGUNUNGAN BINTANG REGENCY TO SEND DISPLACED PEOPLE OF KIWIROK HOME
5) Senior cop injured after nationalist mob attacks Papua student rally in Makassar
-----------------------------------------
1) TWO TODDLERS SHOT IN A CROSSFIRE BETWEEN TNI AND TPNPB, ONE DIES

 News Desk October 28, 2021 4:11 pm





Jayapura, Jubi – Two children were reportedly shot during a crossfire between the Indonesian Military (TNI) and the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) in Sugapa, Intan Jaya. The victims are Nopelinus Sondegau, a 2-year-old toddler 

and Yoakim Mazau, 6 years old. Sondegau died from the gunshot wound.

A resident reported that the gunfight that injured and killed the children occurred in Mamba Village on Tuesday, Oct. 26, 2021 at 9 p.m. local time. Sondegau and Mazau were in their home when they got shot.

Both victims were taken to the Sugapa Health Center for medical treatment but because there was no health worker at the health center, the children were taken home by their families.

Lawmaker of Intan Jaya Regional People’s Representative Council Marthinus Maisini confirmed the shooting that killed one of two Sugapa children. “Yesterday, gunfire lasted until the afternoon. Two children fell victims, Nopelinus Sondegau and 

Yoakim Mazau. Nopelius died this morning,” Maisini said, as quoted by suarapapua.com on Wednesday.

The Intan Jaya Police Chief has yet to answer Jubi’s request for comment


Meanwhile, a soldier named Sergeant Asep was also reportedly injured in the crossfire between the TNI and TPNPB on Tuesday.

“It is true, there was an injured soldier in a crossfire in Mamba village,” said 173/PVB Military Resort commander Brig. Gen. Taufan Gestoro, as quoted by Antara.

Gestoro said Asep was currently receiving treatment and in a stable condition. Taufan, however, did not explain the chronology of the shooting incident. (*)

Reporter: Victor Mambor


—————————————
A google translate
Original Bahasa link

2) TPN-PB OPM reveals the cause of the shooting of two small children in Intan Jaya 
Reporter: Abeth You October 28, 2021 10:48 pm

Papua No.1 News Portal | Jubi Jayapura, Jubi – The West Papua National Liberation Army of the Free Papua Organization (TPN-PB OPM) Kodap VIII Intan Jaya, revealed that the TNI and Polri shot dead Nopelinus Sondegau (2) and the injured victim Yoakim Majau (6) who is still being treated at the hospital. RSMM Timika, because the TNI and Polri failed to shoot the opposing party. "The TNI and Polri shot a two-year-old child named Nopelinus Sondegau and Yohakim Mazau who was six years old because they [TNI and Polri] could not contain their emotions over the fall of their colleague who was shot by us," said the General Operations Commander of the TPN-PB OPM, Gusby. Waker, through his statement received by Jubi, Thursday (28/10/2021). According to him, the mission of the Republic of Indonesia through the TNI and Polri is to immediately spend Papua's Human Resources (HR) to seize Natural Resources (SDA) in Papua.


"Because our search for the shooting of the two small children who became TNI's retaliation is something that is very inappropriate in the eyes of the world from the [humanitarian] laws of war," said Waker. He said that for the TNI and Polri when they see every boy from Papua, it is a preparation of human resources in all fields of struggle against the Indonesian state. "They operate without distinction of status, shootings of small children, shootings of priests, shootings of women have happened many times in Papua," he said. Separately, previously the Head of the Public Relations Division of the Papua Regional Police (Head of Public Relations Polda) Kombes Pol Ahmad Kamal said, the Armed Criminal Group (KKB) again acted by shooting two children in Sugapa, Intan Jaya Regency, Papua.

"It is true that there was a report of a child who died from a gunshot wound on Tuesday (26/10/201) in Sugapa," said Kamal in Jayapura, Wednesday (27/10/2021) night, quoted by CNN Indonesia. From the report he received, it was stated that the two children and their parents were currently active outside the home. At that time, both of them were shot until one of them died. (*) Editor: Kristianto Galuwo

——————————————————


3) Baby killed by Indonesian military as Papuans flee to PNG, claims Wenda 
By APR editor -  

Two small babies were shot by the Indonesian military in Intan Jaya two days ago, claims the United Liberation Movement of West Papua (ULMWP).

One of them has died, and the other is in critical condition. Thousands more West Papuans have been displaced in Intan Jaya and Maybrat as Indonesia bombs villages.

Hundreds of internal refugees are fleeing into PNG.

One two-year-old, Nopelinus Sondegau, was killed by the Indonesian forces, ULMWP interim president Benny Wenda said in a statement.

A five-year old, Yoakim Majau, was also shot. The bullet was still in the baby’s shoulder.

“These killings are happening under the eye of the world while the Indonesian President [Joko Widodo] and ministers pretend that nothing is happening during talks with Pacific and Melanesian leaders,” said Wenda.

“These killings are happening as Indonesia tries to turn West Papua’s killing fields into a tourist destination.”

Wenda called for urgent United Nations intervention.

“Indonesia cannot use coronavirus as an excuse to delay the visit of the UN High Commissioner, recently called for by the Basque Parliament, any longer,” he said.

“Indonesia has hosted national games in West Papua during coronavirus, Indonesia has sent thousands of troops to West Papua during coronavirus, now Indonesia is killing small children during coronavirus.

“There can be no more excuses. Amnesty International, Red Cross, all international journalists, must be allowed in to monitor this urgent situation.

“My people are screaming for help. Where is the world?”


-------------------------------------


4) PEGUNUNGAN BINTANG REGENCY TO SEND DISPLACED PEOPLE OF KIWIROK HOME
News Desk October 28, 2021 4:03 pm

Jayapura, Jubi – The Pegunungan Bintang (Pegubin) Administration is preparing to send hundreds of displaced people of Kiwirok District, who fled after the attack on the Kiwirok’s health center on Sept. 18, 2021,  back to their villages.

More than 300 Kiwirok residents currently take shelter at 17 points in Oksibil City, the capital of Pegunungan Bintang.

Pegunungan Bintang regent Spey Yan Bidana, deputy regent Piter Kalakmabi, and secretary of the Governor’s Office Aloysius Giyai on Tuesday,  Oct. 26, visited the evacuation posts to take people’s aspirations regarding the plan to send them home.

Deputy regent Kalakmabi said that his party would send residents back to Kiwirok before December 2021.

“We have spoken with the Kiwirok residents and delivered logistics. We will discuss with all stakeholders to make sure these people can go back to their hometown in Kiwirok before December,” he said in a written statement obtained by Jubi on Tuesday.

According to Kalamakbi, the displaced people really wanted to go home. “They want to go home as soon as possible. They say it doesn’t matter even if they live in a tent, so long as they are in their hometown. Therefore, the administration will facilitate them. The situation [in Bintang Mountains] is generally more conducive now,” he said.

Meanwhile, the administration will use the 2022 regional budget to recover a number of public facilities and government assets that were damaged and burned in the attack last month, such as the community health center, the Papua Bank Office, the Kiwirok District Office, as well as some schools.

“We will also rebuild public housing. We will ask for assistance from the Papua Provincial Government, the Ministry of Social Affairs, and the Ministry of Public Works and Public Housing. With a limited budget, we at Pegubin cannot build it ourselves,” Kalakmabi said.

Kalakmabi also asked the health workers who had previously left Kiwirok and several other districts to return to their normal duties in the future. “For Kiwirok, we are aware that they need time to recover from their psychological trauma. But for those outsides of Kiwirok, we asked them to return to their places of duty. We guarantee that Pegubin is a safe area,” he said.

Regent Bidana asked the people not to spread hoaxes about Pegunungan Bintang being an unsafe area. Pegunungan Bintang, Bidana said, had always been known as a safe and comfortable area for anyone who comes to serve the community.

“I ask the village heads, district heads, church leaders, and traditional leaders to make sure the public get the right information instead of fearmongering hoaxes,” said Bidana. (*)

Reporter: Abeth You

Editor: Kristianto Galuwo


——————————————————

5) Senior cop injured after nationalist mob attacks Papua student rally in Makassar
Lima Pagi – October 26, 2021

Lodi Aprianto – A protest action by Papuan students in the South Sulawesi provincial capital of Makassar ended in chaos after members of an ormas (social or mass organisations) forcibly broke up the demonstration. Rappocini deputy sectoral police chief Deputy Police Commissioner Widodo was injured by a rock during the incident.

Initially, the demonstration which took place in the neighbourhood of Jalan Ap Pettarani in Makassar on the afternoon of Tuesday October 26 proceeded in an orderly manner. The arrival of the ormas however caused the situation to heat up with each side attacking each other by throwing rocks on the main road.

Rappocini sectoral police chief Police Commander Syamsir Syamsuddin said that the brawl did not last long and after the police moved in and separated the two groups they immediately disbanded.

"There was a social group (ormas) which arrived. We went there to separate them. Praise be Allah it has been secured", said Syamsuddin on Tuesday.

The incident began when the Makassar City Papua Student Forum held a demonstration in front of the Makassar Regional House of Representatives (DPRD). All of a sudden members of the Indonesian Muslim Brigade (BMI) arrived and began forcibly breaking up the Papuan student demonstration.

The Papuan students resisted and a scuffle was unavoidable, with both sides pushing and shoving each other, which then escalated into stone throwing. It was during this chaos that Deputy Police Commissioner Widodo was hit in the face by a rock and had to be rushed to hospital.

"My face was bleeding after being hit by a stone, it was thrown", he explained.

Speaking separately, South Sulawesi BMI Chairperson Muh Zulkifli claimed that their spirit of nationalism was disturbed by the protest action by the Papuan students. According to Zulkifli, they appeared to be supporting Papuan independence and West Papua National Committee (KNPB) international spokesperson and jailed Papuan activist Victor Yeimo.

"They disturbed our spirit of nationalism", he said.

[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Demo Mahasiswa Papua di Makassar Dibubarkan Ormas, Polisi Jadi Sasaran".]

Source: https://www.limapagi.id/detail/3sMyk/demo-mahasiswa-papua-di-makassar-dibubarkan-ormas-polisi-jadi-sasaran


--------------------------------

Wednesday, October 27, 2021

1) West Papuans flee from conflict into remote PNG area



2) 282 Kiwirok refugees still at Oksibil's GIDI Church: police  
3) LEGAL AID CALLS ON GOVT AND RED CROSS TO HANDLE DISPLACED PEOPLE IN PAPUA

4) JAYAWIJAYA REGENCY TO REDUCE POVERTY IN FIVE DISTRICTS
5) Indonesian Minister backs plans for new copper smelter in Papua
6) INDONESIAN INTERNET BLOCKS AMID SOCIAL UNREST LAWFUL, COURT RULES
---------------------------


1) West Papuans flee from conflict into remote PNG area

7:39 am today Johnny Blades, RNZ Pacific Journalist

Armed conflict in West Papua has caused an exodus of displaced people into one of the most remote parts of neighbouring Papua New Guinea.
The latest flashpoint in the conflict is in the Indonesian-administered Bintang Mountains regency, where state forces are pursuing West Papua Liberation Army fighters who they blame for recent attacks on health workers in Kiwirok district.

West Papuans displaced by armed conflict in Bintang Mountains regency, October 2021. Photo: Supplied
Since violence surged in Kiriwok last month, Indonesian security forces have targetted suspected village strongholds of the OPM Free Papua Movement's military wing.
At least two thousand people are recorded by local groups to have fled from the conflict either to other parts of Bintang Mountains (Pegunungan Bintang) or crossed illegally into the adjacent region over the international border.
Hundreds of people have fled across to Tumolbil, in Yapsie sub-district of the PNG province of West Sepik, situated right on the border.
A spokesman for the OPM, Jeffrey Bomanak, said that those fleeing are running from Indonesian military operations, including helicopter assaults, which he claimed have caused significant destruction in around 14 villages.
"Our people, they cannot stay with that situation, so they are crossing to Papua New Guinea side.
"I already contacted my network, our soldiers from OPM, TPN (Liberation Army). They already confirmed 47 families in Tumolbil."
A teacher in Yapsie, Paul Alp, said he saw evidence of the influx in Tumolbil last week.
"It is easy to get into Papua New Guinea from Indonesia. There are mountains but they know how to get around to climb those mountains into Papua New Guinea.
"There are foot tracks," he explained, adding that Papua New Guineans sometimes went across to the Indonesian side, usually to access a better level of basic services.


A village destroyed in Pengunungan Bintang regency, Papua province. Photo: Supplied
Alp said West Papuans who had come to Tumolbil weren't necessarily staying for more than a week or so before returning to the other side.
He and others in the remote district confirmed that illegal border crossings have occurred for years, but that it had increased sharply since last month.
For decades, the PNG government's policy on refugees from West Papua has been to place them in border camps, the main one being at East Awin in Western Province, with support from the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees.
Thousands of displaced Papuan have ended up at East Awin, but many others who come across simply melt into the general populace among various remote villages along the porous border region.

Threadbare security

Terry Dap is one of a handful of policemen in the entire Telefomin district covering 16,333 square kilometres and with a population of around 50,000.
He said a lot of people had come across to Tumolbil in recent weeks, including OPM fighters.
"There's a fight going on, on the other side, between the Indonesians and the West Papuan freedom fighters.
"So there's a lot of disruption there (in Tumolbil). So I went there, and I talked to the ward development officer of Yapsie LLG (Local Level Government area), and he said he needed immediate assistance from the authorities in Vanimo (capital of West Sepik)."
"They want military and police, to protect the sovereignty of Papua New Guinea, and to protect properties to make sure the fight doesn't come into PNG."
Sergeant Dap said he had emailed the provincial authorities with this request, and was awaiting feedback.
According to Bomanak, the impacts of displacement from recent attacks in Kiwirok district are ongoing.
"This problem now is we have very damage in village, More civillians will cross over in Papua New Guinea side.
"Five to six hundred villagers, civillians, mothers and children, they're still in three locations, out in jungle in Kiwirok, and they're still on their way to Papua New Guinea," he warned.
On the PNG side, Sergeant Dap said some of the people coming across from West Papua have traditional or familial links to the community of Tulmolbil
But their presence on PNG soil creates risk for locals who are fearful their communities could get caught in the crossfire of Indonesian military pursuing the Papuan fighters.
Dap said he spoke with the OPM fighters who had come to Tumolbil, and encouraged them not to stay long.
"I've talked to their commander. They said there's another group of people coming - about one thousand-plus coming in.
"I told them, just stay for some days and then you go back, because this is another country, so you don't need to come in. You go back to your own country and then stay there.”

Violence in mountainous Pengunungan Bintang regency, near the border with PNG, October 2021. Photo: Supplied
The policeman has also been involved in efforts by PNG authorities to encourage vaccination against Covid-19.
Mistrust of Covid vaccines is deep in PNG, where only around 2 or 3 percent of the population has been inoculated, while a Delta-fuelled third wave of the pandemic is causing daily casualties.
Sergeant Dap said convincing people to get vaccinated was difficult enough without illegal border crossings adding to the spread of the virus and the sense of fear.

-------------------------------------


2) 282 Kiwirok refugees still at Oksibil's GIDI Church: police  
4 hours ago
Jayapura, Papua (ANTARA) - At least 282 residents of Kiwirok sub-district are still taking refuge at GIDI Church in Oksibil, the capital of Pegunungan Bintang district, Papua province, for security reasons, police have said.

The district government has expressed its readiness to facilitate their return to Kiwirok though the exact date for that is not yet available, Pegunungan Bintang Police chief Adjunct Sen.Coms. Cahyo Sukarnito said.

The security situation in Pegunungan Bintang's areas has relatively remained conducive though several Papuan separatist terrorists operating in the district keep attempting to pose a threat to locals, he added.

On October 24, 2021, for instance, several members of an armed Papuan terrorist group tried to torch the Okbibab junior high school building, Sukarnito said.

Their act of terror was, however, foiled by police's mobile brigade personnel conducting a routine patrol in the area, he said.

Related news: Some 11 other residents of Kiwirok evacuated to Oksibil

Over the past two months, the Papuan separatist terrorists operating in Pegunungan Bintang areas have repeatedly set buildings on fire, he noted.

The terrorists also launched black propaganda campaigns on social media platforms against Indonesian security personnel, accusing them of torching buildings and bombing areas, he said.

Sukarnito denied the allegations saying that if the security personnel did bomb the areas, they would be destroyed.

On the morning of September 13, 2021, several members of the Lamek Tablo-led separatist terrorist group had reportedly torched several public facilities, including a public health center, and homes in Kiwirok.

The Papuan terrorists reportedly assaulted and tortured several health workers from the Kiwirok Public Health Center.

As a result, one health worker, identified as Gabriela Meilan, died while four others sustained serious injuries. Meilan died after being tortured by the terrorists, said officials.

The separatist terrorists also got into a gunfight with Indonesian security personnel during which one army personnel sustained minor injuries on his right arm after a bullet ricocheted and struck him.

The wounded army personnel was identified as 1st Private Ansar from the 403/WP Infantry Battalion.

The deadly terrorist attack has resulted in the termination of healthcare services at the Kiwirok Public Health Center since September 13, according to a National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) official.

Related news: Two platoons of Brimob personnel dispatched to Papua's Dekai, Oksibil
Related news: Four men in Papua's Oksibil subdistrict nabbed for burning kiosks


 

Reporter: Evarukdijati, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Suharto

—————————————————


3) LEGAL AID CALLS ON GOVT AND RED CROSS TO HANDLE DISPLACED PEOPLE IN PAPUA
News Desk October 27, 2021 4:33 pm

Jayapura, Jubi – Papua Legal Aid Institute has called on the Papua and West Papua administration, as well as the Indonesian Red Cross, to immediately save civilians who were displaced due to armed conflict in a number of areas in Papua.

Emanuel Gobay of the Papua Legal Aid Institute said that the obligation for the government and the red cross to handle displaced people during conflicts had been stipulated in Government Regulation No. 7/2019 on Red Cross.

“Displaced people are all over the place in Papua, in Nduga Regency (2018), Intan Jaya Regency (2019 – 2020), Mimika Regency (2020), Maybrat Regency (2020), Puncak Regency (2021), , Tambrauw Regency ( 2021) and the Bintang Mountains Regency (2021). The Papua and West Papua Administrations must create a regulation to protect Papuan civilians who are displaced due to conflict or natural disasters,” Gobay said in a writing statement received by Jubi on Monday, Oct. 25. 2021.

Both administrations, according to Gobay, must immediately carry out their duties to find, accommodate, protect, and monitor displaced people in various areas. “As well as forming a regional regulation on the red cross. The red cross is [given a mandate] for emergency management, health services, and social services,” said Gobay.

Gobay emphasized that the government and the red cross must immediately handle the displaced people from four districts in the Bintang Mountains Regency, namely Kiwirok District, Oklib District, Okyob District, and Okika District. Residents in the four districts were reported to have fled after the security forces operation that occurred in the area on Oct. 10.

The operation took place following the attack on a health center and a crossfire between the Indonesian Military (TNI) and police and the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) in Kiwirok on Sept.13. Civilians reportedly fled to a number of places, including Oksibil, the capital of the Bintang Mountains Regency, and to the border of Papua New Guinea.

Gobay said that the government and the Indonesian Red Cross were obliged to treat people not involved in the conflict humanely, including combatants who had stopped fighting, as regulated in Law No. 59/1958 on Indonesia’s Participation in All Geneva Conferences on Aug. 12, 1949.

“They must be treated with humanity and without any adverse distinction based on race, color, religion, belief, sex, ancestry, or wealth. The Red Cross Law should apply in all of Papua and West Papua where armed conflicts between the TNI and police and the TPNPB occur, such is currently happening in the Bintang Mountains Regency,” Gobay said.

He added that the situation experienced by displaced people from four districts in the Bintang Mountains indicated the suspicion of widespread and systematic attacks directed against the civilians in the form of forced displacement and deprivation of liberty.

Further, Gobay said that the National Commission on Human Rights must carry out the duties of observing the implementation of human rights in Papua, investigating alleged violations of human rights, and reporting the results to the public.

Editor: Aryo Wisanggeni G

—————————————


4) JAYAWIJAYA REGENCY TO REDUCE POVERTY IN FIVE DISTRICTS

News Desk October 27, 2021 8:01 pm

Wamena, Jubi – The Jayawijaya Regency Administration will run its poverty reduction program in five districts suffering from extreme poverty according to Statistics Indonesia’s data this year.

Jayawijaya deputy regent Marthin Yogobi said that the local government working unit would match data and ensure that residents in each village who are considered extremely poor have IDs so that assistance can be given on target.

“This was highlighted by the vice president some time ago. We will do it in the next two months,” said Yogobi during a meeting with the local government working unit at the Jayawijaya Regent’s office on Monday, Oct. 25, 2021.

The five targeted districts are Wesaput, Wouma, Bolakme, Asologaima, and Usilimo. Data sampling will be done in five villages in each of the five districts. There will be 25 villages in total for data matching.

In dealing with extreme poverty, said Yogobi, the local government would provide social assistance for people in targeted districts for two months. “So far, assistance has also been available from the central government such as the Direct Cash Assistance,” he said.


The poverty rate in Jayawijaya, based on Statistics Indonesia’s data, stood at 30, which means 84 percent of the Jayawijaya population or 67,720 people fall into extreme poverty.

According to Yogobi, there are several indicators to determine an area as extremely poor, namely the availability of clean water and basic services such as education and health. “The five districts show extreme poverty due to very limited access to basic services,” he said.

In addition, people’s per capita income also affects indicators for determining extreme poverty, wherein each family member is measured how many calories from food are consumed according to the United Nations standards.

Head of the General Division of Statistics Indonesia’s Jayawijaya Office, Arther Ludwig Purmiasa said that Statistics Indonesia’s data was the result of the National Socio-Economic Survey (Susenas), which was conducted twice a year in March and September.

“For Susenas, we use an approach of census block units. We then obtain the poverty rate from the survey results from the Susenas. In addition, we look at the expenditure of the people’s basic needs,” he said. (*)

Reporter: Islami Adisubrata

Editor: Kristianto Galuwo

--------------------------------------


5) Indonesian Minister backs plans for new copper smelter in Papua

27TH OCTOBER 2021   BY: REUTERS

JAKARTA  - An Indonesian cabinet minister is pushing for American mining giant Freeport McMoRan to be allowed to expand its copper concentrate output so as to supply a planned smelter in the easternmost region of Papua, he said on Wednesday.
Investment Minister Bahlil Lahadalia said many people in the provinces of Papua and West Papua had sought construction of what would be the first smelter in a region home to Freeport's Grasberg copper and gold mine.
"I am in intense communication with the president, following the requests from our Papuan friends to have a smelter," the minister told an online media briefing.
Bahlil said local arm PT Freeport Indonesia had annual capacity to produce three-million tonnes of copperconcentrate, or just enough for its existing smelter and another plant that is expected to start operations late in 2023 or early in 2024.

He had asked the mining ministry and other authorities to let Freeport raise its annual concentrate output to between 3.8 million and 4 million tonnes, he said, but gave no timeframe.
A spokesperson of Freeport Indonesia did not immediately respond to Reuters' request for comment.
Freeport launched construction this month of a new $3-billion smelter in Gresik in East Java, with input capacity of 1.7 million tonnes of copper concentrate.
An existing smelter, also in East Java, has capacity of about 1.3-million tonnes, Bahlil added.
In past hearings with mining officials, some lawmakers from Papua have voiced requests for a smelter to be located there so as to bring jobs to one of Indonesia's poorest and least developed areas.
In April, Indonesia signed a pact with China ENFI Engineering Corporation (ENFI) to build a copper smelter in its province of West Papua, with the capacity to turn out 400 000 t of copper cathode a year. icon_article_end.png
EDITED BY: REUTERS

———————————————
6) INDONESIAN INTERNET BLOCKS AMID SOCIAL UNREST LAWFUL, COURT RULES
BY AGUSTINUS BEO DA COSTA AND STANLEY WIDIANTO
OCTOBER 27, 2021 11:36 PM AEDT LAST UPDATED 8 HOURS AGO

JAKARTA, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Indonesia's decision to block internet access during periods of social unrest was lawful, its constitutional court ruled on Wednesday, in a move activists said sets a dangerous precedent for internet freedom in the world's third largest democracy.

During 2019 demonstrations in the country's easternmost region of Papua, Indonesian authorities throttled internet access in what the government said was an attempt to prevent violence that could have been sparked by the rapid spread of online disinformation.

Rights groups said the curbs violated freedom of expression and were enacted to suppress civil unrest, a view upheld by an administrative court last year.

But such moves were "within reason", given the threat to public order, and were in line with Indonesia's constitution, said Constitutional Court judge Enny Nurbaningsih, one of a panel of nine sitting judges, seven of whom ruled in the government's favour on Wednesday.

"This could threaten our freedom of press, and eventually our democracy could backslide," said Sasmito Madrim, chairman of Indonesia's Alliance of Independent Journalists, which was part of the coalition of civil society organisations that filed last year's judicial review.

Indonesian communications ministry spokesman Dedy Permadi said the government would study the ruling, which is final and binding, and use it to guide its decision to "prevent the spread of internet content that violates the law".

The sometimes violent 2019 demonstrations broke out in a number of cities from after Papuan students on Java island were allegedly taunted with racist slurs and some demonstrators called for Papua to be independent from Indonesia.

Access to some local media, including the Suara Papua website, was blocked during the protests.

The government also restricted internet access in the capital Jakarta in 2019 after deadly protests erupted following a divisive presidential election.

Arif Nur Fikri, from civil society organisation Kontras, said he was concerned the arbitrary restriction of local media could recur.

Writing by Kate Lamb; Editing by James Pearson Our Standards: The Thomson Reuters Trust Principles.
---------------------------------