Jayapura, Jubi – The West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) recently released a video that threatened to kill the pilot they held hostage, Philip Mark Mehrtens. Chairperson of the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) Atnike Nova Sigiro said such threat would worsen the human rights situation in Papua and perpetuate the cycle of violence in the region.
On February 7, 2023, the TPNPB led by Egianus Kogeya set fire to a Susi Air plane after it landed and discharged passengers at Paro Airstrip in Nduga Regency. They also abducted the pilot, Philip Mark Mehrtens. Subsequently, the Indonesian Military (TNI) and Police launched a rescue operation that resulted in a firefight in Mugi District on April 15, 2023.
After three months of holding the pilot hostage, the TPNPB released a video conveying their demands and threats against Philip Mark Mehrtens. In the video, Mehrtens was seen holding a Morning Star flag while being held captive by the TPNPB. He said he would be killed if there were no discussions about the status of Papua within the next two months.
In a video received by Jubi on Saturday, May 27, 2023, Mehrtens said that other countries were given a two-month period to engage in discussions with Indonesia regarding an independent Papua. “If no discussions take place within that time frame, the TPNPB will proceed to shoot me,” Mehrtens said.
Sigiro, in response, said her party considered the threat made by TPNPB as a provocation that could trigger the government to use a security-based approach in Papua even more. The act of holding Mehrtens hostage, Sigiro said, was a criminal act that had aggravated the situation in Papua, resulting in casualties and public unrest.
“Komnas HAM once again urges Egianus Kogeya to immediately and unconditionally release Philip Mark Mehrtens,” Sigiro said.
According to Sigiro, the act of taking hostages and issuing death threats undermines public sympathy, including from the international community, towards human rights concerns in Papua. The violent actions carried out by TPNPB, which include threatening to kill hostages, go against the principles of promoting dialogue. Taking Philip Mark Mehrtens hostage and endangering his life is not a suitable approach for initiating a dialogue.
She emphasized that dialogue can only be achieved by demonstrating goodwill and fostering trust among all parties involved.
Sigiro emphasized that the Komnas HAM consistently urged the government, including the TNI and Police to adopt a measured security approach when it came to the rescue of Philip Mark Mehrtens and addressing the situation in Papua.
Komnas HAM also calls upon all stakeholders in Papua, including civil society groups, churches, traditional customs, and local governments, to collectively engage in persuasive efforts towards Egianus Kogeya and his followers, urging them to cease violent methods immediately.
Furthermore, Komnas HAM requests the government to promptly initiate genuine peace initiatives, which can be initiated at the local level through collaboration with community groups in Papua. (*)
The crisis involving a pilot taken hostage in Papua has taken a turn for the worse, with the rebel group holding the New Zealand national Philip Mehrtens claiming that it will shoot him if its demands are not fulfilled within two months.
In a video released on Friday, the West Papuan National Liberation Army (TPNPB), the armed wing of the Free Papua Movement, demanded that the Indonesian government begin independence talks within two months.
As described by Reuters, the video shows “a visibly emaciated Mehrtens holds the banned Morning Star flag, a symbol of West Papuan independence, and is surrounded by Papuan fighters brandishing what one analyst said were assault rifles manufactured in Indonesia.”
“If it does not happen within two months then they say they will shoot me,” Mehrtens says in the video, referring to his captors’ push for negotiations.
Papua has been home to a separatist insurgency since the region was absorbed by Indonesia after what independence activists say was a flawed U.N. referendum in 1969. But the conflict has worsened considerably since 2018, as the Indonesian state has extended infrastructure and transport links into the heart of highland Papua. This has inflamed resistance, prompting more sophisticated and successful attacks by TPNPB and other pro-independence groups.
Mehrtens, a pilot for the Indonesian aviation company Susi Air, was abducted by independence fighters in February, shortly after his single-engine plane touched down at an airstrip in the remote district of Nduga, in the Papuan highlands. Accusing New Zealand of providing support to Indonesia’s security forces, the TPNPB subsequently announced that Mehrtens would not be released until the Indonesian government acknowledged Papua’s independence. The abduction is just the second that the TPNPB has committed, the first of which occurred in 1996.
In comments given to CNN, a spokesperson from New Zealand’s foreign ministry said they were aware of the video and that the pilot’s welfare was its “top priority” and that the government was “doing everything we can to secure a peaceful resolution and Mr Mehrtens’ safe release.”
For its part, the Indonesian government has promised to continue to secure Mehrtens through peaceful negotiations, but has also seemingly been attempting to locate him in Nduga, a remote and thickly forested region in the center of Papua. Last month, Indonesian soldiers came under fire from separatist rebels in Nduga while attempting to locate Mehrtens.
The latest video suggests that the TPNPB has diluted its demand for full independence. But even attempting to leverage Mehrtens’ release into formal negotiations over the region’s political future seems like an unrealistic goal, given Jakarta’s clear reluctance to cede anything that might loosen its hold over the resource-rich province.
As things stand, the hostage situation requires delicate handling that Jakarta has often been accused of lacking in its dealings with Papua, though pressure from the New Zealand government and its partners may force it to adopt a more nuanced approach to this crisis. Either way, the actions it takes in the coming months may well determine whether the situation is defused peacefully, or whether the TPNPB will follow through on its threat.
"The provincial government has allocated Rp40 billion, and (the budget) will add from each regional budget in each district and city," Acting Governor of Southwest Papua Muhammad Musa'ad said here on Sunday.
He said the budget allocation is needed to overcome the high rate of extreme poverty in Southwest Papua.
The extreme poverty rate in Southwest Papua was recorded at 9.05 percent in 2021 and dropped to 7.37 percent in 2022.
One of the regions that experienced a decrease in extreme poverty, he said, was Sorong District, where the poverty rate was recorded at 14.86 percent in 2021 and 12.09 percent in 2022.
While extreme poverty remains high in the Tambrauw and Maybrat Districts, with 22.40 percent or 3,140 extremely poor people, and 22.89 percent or 9,520 people, respectively.
"Based on our analysis, it is the dependence among family members that causes extreme poverty," Musa'ad said.
He explained that many elderly residents who have no longer had a source of income depend on their children to meet their daily needs.
When the youngest generation in the family is married, their parents and even their relatives can live together in one house, he said.
In such conditions, where only one person generates an income, he said, it will not be enough to meet the needs of all the family members.
Therefore, Musa'ad said, the provincial government is implementing the elderly protection program called Paitua to reduce old people's dependence on their family members.
"This is a social protection program. Every person aged 65 years and over gets an allowance of Rp250 thousand (US$16.66) per month," he said.
He said that the provincial government is designing integrated and focused programs to address extreme poverty to ensure the community can accept the implementation too.
He also asked the local governments to empower residents economically through the programs.
Related news: Minister Effendy lauds extreme poverty handling in West Papua
Related news: Southwest Papua seeks to tackle extreme poverty through Paitua program
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