2) West Papua: How should Indonesian govt, international community, UN respond to OPM hostage demands?
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https://en.jubi.id/armed-conflict-in-papua-getting-worse-says-usman-hamid/
1) Armed conflict in Papua getting worse, says Usman Hamid
News Desk - Armed Conflict
15 March 2023
Jayapura, Jubi – Executive Director of Amnesty International Indonesia Usman Hamid said the armed conflict in Papua between the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) and Indonesian security forces has gotten more alarming and increasingly difficult to control. Violence and alleged human rights violations continue to occur against civilians and people working in the humanitarian field.
“In the last 15 years, there has been excessive use of force and security facilities, including in terms of legal processes. This method is often used when dealing with large conflicts,” said Usman Hamid during an online public discussion “Bloody Wamena: Is There an Element of Humanitarian Crimes” on Tuesday, March 14, 2023.
During the mass riot in Wamena recently on February 23, Usman said, there was excessive and unnecessary use of firearms by the security forces.
“The riot was triggered by an allegation of child abduction. There was misunderstanding among residents. The police’s method to resolve the problem need to be evaluated because a dialog was held in between the alleged victim and the alleged perpetrator. It was irrelevant and can potentially create new problems,” he said.
Usman Hamid added that with the excessive use of weapons in Papua, it was increasingly difficult to find common ground to resolve the armed conflict there.
He said the state needed to take serious steps right now because too many lives have been sacrificed in Papua because of the unprofessionalism of the security forces.
“Therefore, the armed conflict in Papua must immediately find a solution. For example, through peaceful dialog,” he said. (*)
The West Papua National Liberation Army, armed wing of the Free Papua Movement (OPM), known by the acronym TPNPB, released a video on February 15, showing hostage, Captain Philip Mehrtens — a New Zealander and Susi Air pilot — saying in a calm, but trembling voice: “I have been instructed to read this statement. No foreign pilots are permitted to work and fly in Papua, until Papua is independent. OPM requests the United Nations to mediate between Papua and Indonesia to work towards Papuan independence. OPM will release me after Papua is independent.”
After reading the statement, Philip thanked his family for “all your love and support”. He asked for his salary to be paid directly to his wife Maria so that there is money for food and bills. “It seems that this could go on for a long time,” he told them.
“I am being taken care of as well as can be expected given the situation. They always give me enough food and water; they provided some warm clothes for me, and any medicine as required due to my lack of conditioning for the long walks we take.
“The rest of my New Zealand families, I love you very much too, please try not worry too much about me, please also be patient and strong. I hope we all can be together very soon...”
Kidnapping
The tragedy began on February 7, when Egianus Kogoya and his TPNPB attacked and destroyed a small plane owned by Indonesian airline, Susi Air, and kidnapped Mehrtens, in Paro village, Nduga Regency in Papua’s highlands.
This incident opened the doors on an unending war whose roots can be traced to international mismanagement by the Dutch, the UN, the United States and Indonesia in the 1960s.
Some have condemned the hostage taking as terrorism, while others see it as a strategy by OPM fighters to further their liberation cause. Indonesian mainstream media portrays the fighters as an armed criminal group, while others are indecisive or sympathetic.
The Daily Mail (DM) Australia illustrated this conflicting view with its February 16 headline, “Revealed: Heavily armed kidnapper pictured with New Zealand pilot is a 'psychopath' terrorist whose rebel group carried out horrifying massacre of 31 in lawless region of West Papua”.
DM omits the identity of many “sociopath” terrorists within the UN, along with the treacherous Dutch, US and other forces who created this lawless region that led to the murder of more than 500,000 Papuans and those 31.
International media (Aljazeera, BBC, ABC, CNN, Reuters, Guardian, Washington Post and others) chose to use the rebel group's name, the West Papua National Liberation Army of the Free West Papua Movement (TPNPB) as preferred by most Papuans standing for independence.
Historically, West Papua has been dissected, renamed and redefined by foreign powers for all kinds of purposes by making it simply an outpost of foreign imperialism on the periphery, where plentiful resources are exploited and scrounged. Papuans are being mutilated at all levels due to this. Jakarta has consistently branded Papuans who oppose its rule as terrorists and criminals to justify wars since the 1960s.
For more than a month since the kidnapping, Jakarta has refused to listen to OPM's demands and has also refused to seek international assistance for Mehrtens’ release, as per the OPM's conditions.
Everyone involved in this ordeal has high demands, positions and interests. The kidnapped pilot's safe return to his family and friends is of the utmost importance. For Egianus and his OPM army, it is the independence of Papua. For Jakarta, it is territorial integrity. The concern of the international community and UN may be for world peace and security. For ordinary Papuans and Indonesians living in West Papua, it is the impact of these conflicts.
Massacres, killings
Since the kidnapping, there have been many tragedies, displacements, shootings, killings and beheadings in the highlands of Papua.
Benny Wenda, leader of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP), reports that members of the Indonesian military murdered and mutilated a 35-year-old woman in Puncak Regency. Villagers' homes and churches were also emptied, as thousands of soldiers were deployed there. Tarina Murib’s naked body was found by residents on March 4. Her head was missing. During the military raid on the village, several civilians were shot, including a one-year-old baby and his mother.
This incident occurred in the aftermath of the massacre of 10 Indigenous Papuan civilians in Wamena by Indonesian security forces and police on February 23. In response, Papuans in Wamena burned Indonesian-owned shops, forcing their owners to flee. A student from Indonesia, Viktor Hadi Sampa, was shot and killed on March 8 in Dekai District, Yahukimo Regency, Papua.
Families of the victims hope the government will immediately resolve the conflict in Papua to prevent similar incidents from occurring in the future. The Indonesian government accused Kogoya of ordering his troops to murder Viktor. Verifying these killings independently is, however, almost impossible, since all parties involved are engaged in a deadly game of blame and counter-blame, in an environment where foreign journalists are prohibited from impartial reporting.
To help prevent further bloodshed, Papuan religious leaders, including Wenda, have sought to secure Mehrtens’ release. So far, the TPNPB has refused to negotiate with Indonesian or Papuan negotiators and has threatened to shoot them if they enter their territory.
In their recent video, there were three key points: foreign pilots are not allowed to work and fly in Papua until Papua is free; UN mediation between Papua and Indonesia is requested for West Papua's independence; and the TPNPB will release Mehrtens once Papua is free.
Mehrtens also warns that the crisis may last for some time.
If a hostage is taken in exchange for food, drinks or money, negotiations are easier, such as in the recent hostage crisis in Papua New Guinea. However, West Papua's hostage situation is difficult to resolve, since it has to do with ideology and not food or drink, as Kogoya explained in The Diplomat.
Jakarta is unlikely to even consider OPM’s demands, given their situation. Losing West Papua would be like losing Indonesia itself.
Occupation
Papuans’ existence under Indonesian rule has a bleak future, due to high levels of conflict and violence, mass migration, high maternal and child mortality rates due to poor health services, threats of deforestation caused by investment and exploitation of natural resources, a lack of political participation and poor governance.
A recent study conducted by the ULMWP’s, Markus Haluk, found that Indigenous Papuans make up a very small minority (0.6%) of Indonesia’s 275.36 million population. Voter data calculations in the 2014 general election show Indigenous Papuans numbered 1.6 million people, out of Papua Province's 4.3 million and West Papua's 1.13 million combined (or 29%).
Given this situation, the future of the Papuan people under Indonesian settler colonial rule, if not resolved soon, will be the same as that of the original Australians, New Zealanders, Americans, and Canadians, whose land was completely expropriated by foreign settlers.
At the outset, Jakarta's controversial policies, including the 2001 Special Autonomy Law, seemed promising for Papuans. But Papuans have consistently opposed them for years because they are empty promises and only fill coffins.
Despite Papua’s state of affairs, Jakarta continues to beat the drum of development and prosperity, while sending thousands of troops to hunt rebels in this frontier war.
Papuans view Indonesia as an illegal foreign colonial occupier, while Indonesians see themselves as legitimate rulers. This contested terrain of justice, legitimacy, right and wrong has yielded endless tragedies that, if continued, will see Papuans eliminated from their own land.
Given this, who will be the negotiators for Mehrtens’ release? OPM has rejected any attempt by Indonesians or Papuans to force his release without UN or international mediation. The New Zealand government has offered to help, but Jakarta has rejected this offer. Army Commander, Yudo Margono also rejected an offer of help from New Zealand, stating he is still able to free Mehrtens.
International issue
As Jakarta deems this an internal matter, if the offer is accepted, it may be perceived as showing incompetence and weakness. Further, seeking international assistance to deal with West Papua's issues, particularly dealing with a group Jakarta deems criminal or terrorist, such as OPM, will undermine Jakarta’s 60-year strategy to prevent Papua from becoming an unresolved international issue.
The TPNPB is urging Australia and New Zealand to sever military ties with Indonesia. It will not remain silent as Indonesians threaten to eradicate the Papuans, and while the UN, US, the Netherlands and other countries involved in this tragedy stand by silently.
When asked, “Why take the path of taking a hostage?” TPNPB spokesperson Sebby Sambon replied: “The UN failed to implement the rights of Papuans for self-determination. The UN was involved and failed. They handed over the Papuans to Indonesia like animals. Because of this, Indonesia has killed us for 60 years; killing more than a million people.”
Reuters describes this emerging consciousness among OPM fighters by quoting Deka Anwar, founder of the Jakarta-based think tank the Institute for Policy Analysis of Conflict: “What we are seeing is younger, new leadership among local rebel groups that is more aggressive and not necessarily strategic in the long term.”
Anwar alluded to the lack of a long-term strategy, yet nothing Jakarta has proposed in the past has worked in resolving this conflict, and nothing else will until this root cause is addressed, because Papuan nationalism is fuelled by historical injustice, as Sambon states.
In his seminal paper, “Self-Determination Abandoned: The road to the New York Agreement on West New Guinea (Papua),” David Webster, concluded: “Any prospect of lasting peace will need to include an honest re-examination of the period in which self-determination was abandoned, the two years leading up to the 1962 New York Agreement.
“To be fully effective, reconsideration needs to take place not only in Jakarta and Papua, but also in Washington DC, where self-determination evaporated in the interests of US Cold War realpolitik.”
Will the UN intervene to solve the conflict by freeing the two hostages held captive in West Papua — one (Mehrtens) by OPM's Liberation Army, and the other (West Papua’s sovereignty) by the Indonesian government?
Jayapura, Jubi – As of Tuesday, March 14, 2023, the Yahukimo Police has yet to name EG (23) suspect in the shooting of a Trigana Air plane despite him having been detained for four days, or since the day the shooting occurred.
Spokesperson of Papua Police Sr. Comr. Ignatirus Benny Ady Prabowo said on Tuesday that EG was still undergoing in-depth examination to reveal the role of the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) in the shooting of the Trigana Air plane type B 373-500 at Nop Goliat Dekai Airport, Yahukimo on March 11.
“While still in examination, EG has not been named as a suspect or anything else,” Benny said.
When asked about the length for EG’s examination, which has exceeded 1 x 24 hours, Benny explained that his party had special provisions for handling acts of terror such as the shooting of a plane.
On Saturday, a Trigana Air plane with call sign PK-YSC was shot four times while landing, and shot five times while taking off from Nop Goliat Dekai Airport. Police then announced the arrest of seven suspects, with evidence in the form of three motorcycles, one bow, one arrow, one knife, one sickle, and one bayonet.
On Monday, police announced that six of seven people arrested on Saturday had been released, as they were deemed to have no connection to the plane shooting. However, police are still detaining EG for further questioning. (*)
Papua New Guinea, after a decade’s delay, has ratified an agreement governing its 760-kilometer (472-mile) border with powerful neighbor Indonesia, its foreign minister said, possibly opening the way to relieving a longstanding pressure point in relations.
The two countries periodically review the border agreement. Papua New Guinea’s parliament until now had not ratified its most recent version, from 2013, freezing progress on managing the border.
“The ratification will pave the way for both governments to review the current status of the border and constructively address outstanding issues that affect both countries,” PNG Foreign Minister Justin Tkatchenko said Wednesday after parliament’s unanimous vote.
The border that cuts across soaring mountains, swamps and dense jungle is a straight line through the middle of the island of New Guinea except for a squiggly bulge that tracks a river for about 160 kilometers. The line on the map is a product of the colonial era, which split the rule of the Melanesian island between the Netherlands and Australia and arbitrarily divided indigenous peoples organized around extended kinship.
Indonesia took control of the western half of New Guinea from the Dutch in the early 1960s. A peaceful independence movement and armed insurgency by indigenous Papuans against Indonesian rule has continued for decades and has some grassroots support in Papua New Guinea. The Pacific island country’s government says it recognizes Indonesia’s sovereignty over the Papuan territory.
Earlier this week, Papua New Guinea’s foreign ministry said it expected Indonesian President Joko Widodo to visit in June, which would be the first time since 2015. Papua New Guinea Prime Minister James Marape made an official visit to Indonesia last year.
Tkatchenko said he also wanted to make progress on a long-stalled defense cooperation agreement with Indonesia, whose population, economy and military is far larger than Papua New Guinea’s.
“Now that this [border agreement ] has been approved, we are going to work with our Indonesian counterparts to review what needs to be updated, consult and work with Indonesia to look at how we can improve the border issues for the benefit of both our countries,” Tkatchenko said.
“The security of our borders with both our defense forces working together side by side doing joint border patrols is absolutely paramount to protecting both our countries’ sovereignties,” he said.
Researchers say that Indonesia is concerned by the prospect of Papuan insurgents moving between both countries. Over the decades Indonesia itself has periodically made incursions into Papua New Guinea’s territory, deliberate and accidental, they say.
In the early 1980s, an Indonesian highway was discovered crossing into Papua New Guinea at three points, according to academic researchers Harry Purwanto and Dewa Gede Sudika Mangku.
It took more than three months to secure an acknowledgement from Indonesia that the road incursion had taken place and 16 months before the offending sections were closed off, they said in a 2017 report.
Papuans on the Indonesian side of the border have at times fled into Papua New Guinea to escape the conflict between insurgents and Indonesia. In 2021, an armed group in Papua New Guinea reportedly said it would support the Papuan independence fighters in Indonesia. There is also legal and illegal border trade of produce such as vanilla beans.
Ratification of the border agreement, Tkatchenko said, would allow the two countries to work on improving their immigration, customs and trade arrangements.
“It allows us to review the process of border arrangements and to look at the actual areas of border between PNG and Indonesia, customary and traditional land of PNG and its people,” he said.
Jayapura, March 13, 2023 – Indigenous leader, Hendrikus ‘Franky’ Woro, today filed an environmental and land rights lawsuit challenging the plan by a Malaysian-owned palm oil company to clear tens of thousands of hectares of West Papuan forest. The lawsuit at the Jayapura State Administrative Court calls for the revocation of a permit issued by the Papua provincial government to PT Indo Asiana Lestari (PT IAL) covering traditional Indigenous land of which Franky Woro is joint owner.
“We are customary owners of this land, but were not properly informed about the company’s planned activities. We were also not consulted in any Environmental Impact Analysis,” said Franky Woro.
Franky is the leader of the Woro clan, part of the Awyu people (also written ‘Auyu’). The Woro clan lives in Yare Village, Fofi District, in the richly forested Boven Digoel district located in the remote southeastern-most corner of the Indonesian territory known internationally as West Papua. He filed the lawsuit because the provincial government withheld information about the permits it granted to PT IAL, whose concession includes the lands of the Woro clan.
As Greenpeace reported in Licence to Clear: The Dark Side of Permitting in West Papua, PT IAL obtained a preliminary location permit for an oil palm plantation in 2017 covering an area of 39,190 hectares. PT IAL is owned by a Malaysian shell company suspected to be under the ultimate control of All Asia Agro, which also owns oil palm operations in Malaysia’s Sabah state. The area of land that PT IAL intends to convert into a palm oil plantation was originally the northernmost part of the notorious and now abandoned Tanah Merah/Menara Group project.
In the lawsuit lodged today, Franky Woro asks for the court to revoke PT IAL’s environment permit. “The environment permit was issued based on an improper Environmental Impact Analysis, ignoring the existence of customary Indigenous owners, and flawed because it was not accompanied by a conservation analysis. The result will be environmental damage and infringement of Indigenous Peoples’ rights,” said lawyer Tigor Hutapea, part of the Advocacy Team to Save Papua’s Forests.
The environmental permit is also out of step with Indonesia’s promise to tackle climate change. According to Indonesia’s Enhanced Nationally Determined Contribution under the Paris Agreement, the government is committed to reducing greenhouse gas emissions by 31 percent, or 43 percent with international financial support, by 2030. Indonesia’s largest source of emissions is from land use and deforestation, yet the issuance of PT IAL’s environment permit is expected to trigger deforestation of 26,326 hectares of primary forest.
“The potential deforestation emission due to this project is approximately 23 million tonnes of CO2. This would be five percent of the nation’s annual carbon emission level in 2030,” said Greenpeace Indonesia’s Sekar Banjaran Aji, a member of the legal team.
Many Awyu fear the imposition of a palm oil plantation will destroy their customary forest and livelihoods, as has happened elsewhere in West Papua. The landscape covered by PT IAL’s permit is not only the place where the Awyu People find food, medicine and earn financial income, but is also habitat for flora and fauna endemic to Papua. For the Awyu Indigenous People, their forests are also entwined with their cultural identity.
“We are not short of examples warning us of the disaster that follows the loss of customary forests in Papua after the government grants permits for oil palm plantations and timber extraction. This must stop, because it will only further marginalize Indigenous Papuans. Papua’s forests are also the largest rainforest remaining in Indonesia,” said Emanuel Gobay, lawyer from the Advocacy Team to Save Papua’s Indigenous Forests.
Note to editor:
Photos of the Awyu Indigenous plaintiffs demonstrating as they register their lawsuit
Media contacts:
Sekar Banjaran Aji, Greenpeace Indonesia, +62 812-8776-9880
Igor O’Neill, Greenpeace Indonesia, ioneill@greenpeace.org +61-414-288-424
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