Catholic officials and rights activists have called for a thorough investigation into the shooting and subsequent rioting in conflict-ridden, Christian-majority Papua region that left three civilians killed and seven injured.
In a report sent to UCA News, Papua-based Franciscan Secretariat for Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation said a riot broke out after a resident, Yosua Keiya, 20, died on July 13 after being shot in the chest by security forces in Dogiyai district.
The riot erupted as the victim’s family, and the mob demanded accountability for the shooting. Security forces fired at the protesters, leaving two others, Stepanus Pigome, 19, and Yakobus Pekey, 20, dead, while seven other people were seriously injured, the report stated.
The Franciscans’ report, which also included eyewitness testimonies, dismissed the police's explanation.
It said Keiya was not involved in barring the security forces' vehicles, but "was shot by officers from inside the car for no apparent reason."
Gobay stated that an independent investigation team was needed to examine this case considering the disputed claims.
He also requested that the National Commission for Human Rights "immediately form a team to monitor the law enforcement process carried out by the police."
He also asked the police to immediately announce the results of the investigation to reveal the motives behind the shooting and asked the Dogiyai district government to immediately provide compensation to the civilians whose houses were burned down in the riot.
Mathius D Fahiri, head of the Papua Provincial Police had dispatched two main officials to investigate the incident, the Head of the Operations Bureau and the Head of Professionals and Security.
"If the investigation finds an alleged mistake by members of the police, causing people or civilians to die, then the Head of Professionals and Security will immediately take firm action in accordance with existing law," he told reporters.
Augustinian Father Bernard Baru from Jayapura diocese's Justice, Peace, and Integrity of Creation Commission said the shooting was "a form of extrajudicial killings that appears to be a scheme of the state's political and security plans."
He said, even though the civilians were deemed to have made a mistake, as claimed by the security forces, "there is no reason to shoot them dead immediately."
"It seems that the choice to shoot dead immediately was because it had been set that the apparatus who did it would not be punished, as has happened in other cases of civilian killings so far," he told UCA News.
"This incident also shows that Papua is not safe, in stark contrast to President Joko Widodo's recent claim that Papua is 99 percent safe," he said.
Father Baru said that the Papuan people need solidarity in the midst of this situation, "to stand with us against the violations of human rights and the right to life that continue to happen."
“We need attention from the international community, including the Vatican. Don’t keep silent,” he said.
Nonble Pekey, a relative of Yakobus Pekey, said the perpetrators should be held accountable as those who were shot dead “were not animals, but humans."
"The family has made a firm statement, the perpetrators must be dismissed," he said as quoted by Jubi.id.
Papua declared independence in 1961 after the end of Dutch colonial rule. Indonesia annexed Papua two years later, promising an independence referendum. The subsequent voting in favor of staying as part of Indonesia was widely considered a sham.
This triggered a deadly pro-independence insurgency and the government responded with the deployment of the military.
In the past five years, at least 179 people have died in dozens of cases of extrajudicial killings involving security forces and Papuan pro-independence groups, according to Amnesty International.
SPECIAL REPORT: By Yamin Kogoya
Suspended Papua Governor Lukas Enembe, who is detained in Indonesia on corruption charges, was supposed to go on trial yesterday but this did not go ahead as he is gravely ill and could not attend.
Upon realising the governor’s health had deteriorated, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) tried to transport him to Gatot Subroto Army Central Hospital (RSPAD) last Saturday.
However, the governor refused due to what he said was KPK’s “mishandling” of the legal case.
A member of the Governor’s legal team, Petrus Bala Pattyona, said he had been contacted by the KPK prosecutor on Sunday.
Bala Pattyona was asked by the prosecutor to convince Enembe to be taken to the hospital. Enembe had not eaten for two days, was vomiting, nauseous, and dizzy, reports Odiyaiwuu.com.
The Governor is currently in an intensive care unit — suffering from a serious life-threatening illness.
Jakarta’s ‘legal mishandling’ of Governor
Governor Enembe was on trial a week ago on July 10, but public prosecutors failed to bring witnesses to the hearing.
After the trial was adjourned for another week until yesterday, he was taken to a KPK prison cell despite being seriously ill.
Prior to these two failed trial hearings, the Governor appeared in court on June 24.
However, the hearing wqs suspended after a panel of judges rejected Governor Enembe’s appeal for the charges to be waived.
Given the governor’s ill health, the judges ruled to prioritise his health and grant his request to suspend proceedings until he was medically fit to stand trial.
On June 12, an anticipated and highly publicised trial was scheduled to take place in Jakarta’s District Court. However, the trial was not held due to KPK’s mishandling of the ordeal.
To date, a total of nine attempts have been made to deliver a satisfactory closure of the Governor’s legal case since he was “kidnapped” from Papua in January 2023.
New August date set
The trial is now rescheduled for early August 2023. However, there is no guarantee that this will be the last hearing over what critics describe as a tragic and disgraceful mishandling of the case concerning a respected tribal chief and Governor who is fighting for his life.
For the government of Indonesia, KPK and judges, every moment that is mismanaged, mishandled, or delayed might mean just a delay in justice, but for the Governor and his family it means life and death.
According to the governor’s family, KPK are already waiting to bring this sick man back from hospital and lock him up in a KPK prison cell again.
The Governor’s family ask how could this “cruel treatment be happening”?
Yamin Kogoya is a West Papuan academic/activist who has a Master of Applied Anthropology and Participatory Development from the Australian National University and who contributes to Asia Pacific Report. From the Lani tribe in the Papuan Highlands, he is currently living in Brisbane, Queensland, Australia.
- Other Yamin Kogoya articles
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