2) Papua, 8 dead and 7 thousand displaced in flash floods
3) Ministry takes swift steps to handle post-flooding impacts in Jayapura
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1) Maire Leadbeater: Why it's getting harder to ignore the war next door
11 Jan, 2022 05:00 AM4 minutes to read
Supporters of West Papua raise the Morning Star flag on December 1, 2021 in Auckland. Photo / Supplied NZ Herald
By Maire Leadbeater
OPINION
In December, Indonesia came in for unusually direct criticism from the UN over its treatment of human rights defenders, especially its treatment of exiled Veronica Koman, outspoken advocate for West Papua.
Indonesia reacted angrily to being put under the spotlight, but the evidence is compelling.
The Indonesian Government and its proxies have subjected Veronica and her Jakarta-based family to menacing threats because she has been effective in bringing attention to the escalating crisis within the Melanesian territory.
In recent months, the conflict between the Indonesian military and police and the West Papua National Liberation Army has resulted in a humanitarian crisis in six regions, from one end of the country to the other.
According to local documentation supplied to church leaders, at least 60,000 Papuan people have been displaced. Some have fled to Papua New Guinea while others live in temporary camps without adequate healthcare or food.
In Nduga, where conflict has been intense since the end of 2018, there are reports that some 600 people have died of preventable causes over the three-year period. Yet the territory - unlike the neighbouring Solomon Islands - remains locked off from journalists and international aid agencies.
In May, the Indonesian Government designated the armed resistance a terrorist group and accelerated the situation by a troop surge in the shape of the Nemangkawi Task Force. Calls for a ceasefire, such as that by 194 Catholic priests in November, go unheeded.
By anyone's standards, it is a hugely uneven conflict and as always in these situations it is civilians who bear the brunt. Recently a shocking video has been circulating on social media showing military helicopters firing indiscriminately at civilian villages in the Yahukimo Regency.
December 1, 2021, marked a sad anniversary: 60 years since the indigenous Papuans first raised their national Morning Star flag and sang the national anthem of their nation-in-waiting.
At the time the Dutch were in control and there was a clear plan in place for independence.
From that point on the West Papuans were excluded from any genuine participation in decisions about their future, as Indonesia stepped up its military incursions.
New Zealand stood aside, despite having previously supported the Dutch self-determination programme. In 1969, when Indonesia cemented its rule in a phoney referendum, a New Zealand diplomat was on the spot to record his impressions of an "oppressive" atmosphere, and a coercive and stage-managed process.
Despite that first-hand experience, New Zealand's UN vote still went Indonesia's way.
The heavy military and police presence everywhere has meant that commemorations of the December 1 anniversary were limited. Eight brave young people in the capital Jayapura did attempt to raise the banned Morning Star flag only to be arrested and charged with treason.
Remarkably, the new year has seen a new peaceful initiative, a drive to collect up to 2 million signatures on a petition to Jakarta calling for self-determination, and for the release of Victor Yeimo, jailed for his role in anti-racism demonstrations.
New Zealand is still ignoring West Papuan rights in favour of the mantra that Indonesia has the right to preserve its "territorial integrity".
However, the cost in Papuan lives is now absolutely inescapable.
Our Foreign Minister is on record as wanting to ensure that indigenous rights and values including kaitiaki are to the fore in our international relations. We stand to be accused of callous hypocrisy if our Government remains mute.
So far, West Papua Action Aotearoa's representations to Foreign Minister Nanaia Mahuta have achieved little more than an assurance that our officials raise concerns with their Indonesian counterparts.
The Government should take a stand in support of self-determination as Vanuatu consistently does.
However, right now the crisis is so serious that at the very least we should heed the moral call of the West Papua Council of Churches for Indonesia to stop the deadly military operation and initiate dialogue.
Crucially, the churches insist that Indonesia follow through on its undertaking to allow the UN Human Rights Commissioner to visit - a call made in 2019 by the Pacific Islands Forum. Humanitarian agencies must also be given immediate access.
Maire Leadbeater. Photo / Greg Bowker, File
We need to back this call publicly and loudly, preferably by calling in the Indonesian Ambassador.
Private chats among officials won't cut it, whereas a serious New Zealand initiative stands a good chance of bringing others in our region on board.
• Maire Leadbeater is a member of West Papua Action Auckland.
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2) Papua, 8 dead and 7 thousand displaced in flash floods
by Mathias Hariyadi
Heavy rains have led numerous rivers to break their banks flooding entire areas of the province. In recent days, Sumatra (three children dead and 32,000 displaced) and North Aceh have also been hit. Unregulated deforestation and illegal logging at the origin of the floods,.
Jakarta (AsiaNews) - At least eight people have died in the heavy floods that have hit Jayapura, capital of the province of Papua, in the far east of the Indonesian archipelago. The torrential rains - which have caused rivers to overflow, the collapse of banks in several points and caused major landslides in several districts - began on January 7 and have caused the displacement of about 7,000 people.
Among the areas affected by the floods and at the moment still covered in several parts by water are North Jayapura Utara, South Jayapura, Abepura, Heram and Muara Tami. The provincial capital, Jayapura, is divided into two different areas: the highlands, where the Sentani airport is located, and the lower part where most of the residential complexes, government offices and public facilities are located.
The heavy floods have affected the lowland areas, where three different rivers flow, whose overflow is at the origin of the emergency.
A critical situation, caused by a week of heavy weather, has also been recorded on the island of Sumatra, where there are currently at least 32,000 displaced persons and three victims, all children. The torrential rains that have been falling since December 31 have caused flooding in at least four districts and flooded much of the eastern sector, long below the water level. At least 11,000 houses were submerged, while the inhabitants sought shelter in makeshift places, temporary accommodation, public buildings and even mosques.
In some areas the waters have begun to recede, but the state of emergency remains in force and the same rescuers are struggling to reach the affected areas. The authorities of North Aceh, among the most affected areas, have declared a state of emergency until January 15. At the moment the priority is still to save lives and help the people in need, but there are those who have already begun to count the damage and fear heavy repercussions on activities. Muhammad Hatta, a resident of the village of Lhoksukon in Aceh province, confirmed to al-Jazeera the serious concerns because "the local economy has been destroyed.
Among the main causes of the floods that have affected several areas of Indonesia is the progressive deforestation taking place in recent years. Interviewed by AsiaNews, Jafar, also a resident of the village of Lhoksukon, points out that the "massive floods have become a common problem in the region of North Aceh in recent years" and "deforestation has aggravated the consequences of the phenomenon". Nur, former executive director of the local branch of Walhi (the Indonesian environmental fund), is certain: "The devastating floods that have flooded 15 sub-districts - he points out - are certainly linked to deforestation".
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3) Ministry takes swift steps to handle post-flooding impacts in Jayapura
5 hours ago
Jakarta (ANTARA) - Public Works and Public Housing (PUPR) Deputy Minister John Wempi Wetipo visited Jayapura City to take prompt actions in handling the post-flood impacts, such as by deploying heavy equipment to clean the drifted garbage.
"The equipment deployed from our centers in Jayapura City comprise 12 dump trucks, three mini excavators, and two large excavators," the ministry's spokesperson, Endra S. Atmawidjaja, noted in a written statement here on Monday.
In addition, he remarked that the police had sent three large excavators and a loader, while the Jayapura District Environment Office had lent two dump trucks.
Atmawidjaja remarked that in terms of the short-term handling efforts, the ministry was currently studying the Siborgonyi, Acai, and Makanoay rivers to conduct normalization.
"River normalization must be conducted, as according to our team’s evaluation, one of the causes of the disaster is river sedimentation and garbage blocking the watershed. Thus, the heavy rain causes the river to overflow," he remarked.
Related news: VP asks BNPB, ministry to assist Jayapura flood victimsFurthermore, several roads impacted by floods have been cleaned up to enable safe movement of vehicles.
Meanwhile, with regard to the long-term handling attempts, the expert staff stated that the ministry plans to establish several water conservation and flood control infrastructures.
"One of our proposals is the construction of a retention pond in the Organda Baru area, parapets on the Acay and Siborgonyi rivers, as well as a check dam in the upstream of Makanoay River," he revealed.
During the visit, the deputy minister was accompanied by the ministry’s Director of Rivers and Beaches, Bob A. Lombogia, as well as Director of Operations and Management of Water Resources, Adenan Rasyid.
Floods hit several sub-districts in Jayapura City and its surroundings, comprising North Jayapura, South Jayapura, Abepura, Heram, and Muara Tami on January 7, 2022.
According to the National Disaster Mitigation Agency (BNPB), in addition to flooding, the heavy rains also caused landslides.
The Papua Provincial Regional Disaster Mitigation Agency (BPBD) had noted that the disaster claimed seven lives and forced over one thousand residents to seek shelter.
Related news: Ministry sends 20 tons of rice to Papua's flood-affected victims
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