1) Three USTJ students charged with treason, receive 18-month prison sentence
News Desk - USTJ Free Speech Makar Case Trial
20 July 2023
Jayapura, Jubi – On Tuesday, July 18, 2023, three students who participated in a protest at the University of Science and Technology Jayapura (USTJ) on November 10, 2022, were charged with treason and sentenced to 18 months in prison by the public prosecutor.
The accused students are Yoseph Ernesto Matuan, Devio Tekege, and Ambrosius Fransiskus Elopere. During the protest, they raised the Morning Star flags and voiced opposition to the Papua peace dialogue plan initiated by the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM).
Following the protest, the police dispersed the gathering and arrested several participants, leading to treason charges against the three students. The case was brought before the Jayapura District Court.
During the trial, the public prosecutor presented evidence that Yoseph Ernesto Matuan, Devio Tekege, and Ambrosius Fransiskus Elopere were proven to have committed treason. The prosecutor asserted that their actions fulfilled all the elements of Article 106 of the Criminal Code, in conjunction with Article 55 Paragraph (1) of the Criminal Code.
The prosecutor emphasized that the defendants had no justifications for their actions, and they should be held accountable for their unlawful conduct. Furthermore, the prosecutor pointed out that the defendants were considered recidivists in the same case, as they sought to secede from the Republic of Indonesia, causing disturbance in the community.
The prosecution requested the panel of judges to declare the defendants guilty of the crime of treason. The indictment proposed a sentence of one year and six months in prison, with a reduction for time already spent in detention. (*)
Papuan people throughout the territory of West Papua have held huge demonstrations of support for full membership of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) in the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG).
Delighted with the response but disappointed with the delay, organisers appealed to supporters to “keep going” with the solidarity.
The national action was scheduled to be held simultaneously throughout West Papua’s territory in seven provincial regions.
The MSG leaders summit was supposed to have opened on Monday but has now been postponed until August with the actual dates not yet decided.
In the highlands town of Wamena yesterday, thousands of people from the Laa-Pago Region thronged the municipality wearing traditional clothes and decorating their bodies with patterns of the Morning Star — Papua’s flag banned by Indonesia — and the five flags of the permanent members of the MSG — Fiji, Kanaky (FLNKS), Papua New Guinea, Solomon Islands and Vanuatu.
Other actions supporting the same MSG membership agenda were also staged in Jayapura City — outsid the residence of the chair of the West Papua Council, Buchtar Tabuni, at Kamwolker.
There were also solidarity demonstrations throughout West Papua, including in the Yapen Islands, Sorong, Manokwari, Merauke, Timika, Kaimana, Paniai, Biak, Serui, Merauke and several other regencies.
The ULMWP solidarity groups also delivered a four-point statement:
- The United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) is a political organisation that legally represents the political aspirations of the Papuan people in an effort to fight for the right to self-determination for the people and nation of Papua in the western part of the island of New Guinea to gain independence and sovereignty from foreign colonialism.
- We the people of West Papua declare that we fully support the ULMWP to become a full member of the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) as the official representation of West Papua from Sorong-Merauke;
- We the people of the West Papua firmly declare that the colonial existence of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI) in the MSG does not represent the people and nation of Papua from Sorong-Merauke; and
- We fully declare our support and recognition of the ULMWP, referred to as the West Papua Provisional Government, attending the MSG Leader Summit (KTT-MSG) or MSG Leader Summit in Port Vila, Vanuatu, representing the people and nation of Papua from Sorong-Merauke.
Jayapura, Jubi – Following a clash that resulted in the shooting of civilians, casualties, and the destruction of numerous buildings in Dogiyai Regency, Central Papua Province, joint patrols were conducted by Indonesian Military (TNI) and Police on Monday, July 17, 2023. The patrol covered various locations including the Dogiyai Resort Police Headquarters, Moanemani Terminal, Market Complex, Koramil Jalan Tengah, Tokapo Village, Ikebo Village, and Kimupugi Village.
The joint patrol in Dogiyai was led by several officials including the Head of the Operations Bureau of the Papua Police Sr. Comr. I Ketut Gede Wijatmik, Commander of the PapuaRegional Brimob Unit Sr. Comr. Budi Satrijo, and Head of the Profession and Security Division of the Papua Police, Sr. Comr. Gustav R Urbinas. There are also Sr. Comr. Joko Sulistio, deputy chief of Cartenz Peace Operation Task Force, and Dogiyai Police Chief Sr. Comr. Sarraju.
The objective of the patrol was to ensure a safe and peaceful situation, allowing people to resume their normal activities. Sarraju, the Head of Dogiyai Police, emphasized the importance of maintaining a secure environment and expressed hope for the swift lifting of the blockade, enabling the community to continue their daily routines, including teaching and learning at schools.
Papua spokesperson Sr. Comr. Ignatius Benny Ady Prabowo said the joint TNI and Polri patrol aimed to provide a sense of security and comfort for the residents of Idakebo Village and its surroundings. He further emphasized the importance of maintaining a conducive environment, preventing the recurrence of similar incidents in the future, and advised the public to be cautious about unverified information.
Previously, on July 15, a meeting was held by TNI/Polri at the Dogiyai Police Headquarters to deescalate the situation following the mass riot in Dogiyai. Brig. Gen. Franz Yohanes Purba, the 173/PVB Military Resort Commander, led the meeting.
During the meeting, Dogiyai Regent Petrus Agapa mentioned that at the time of the roadblock incident in Idakebo Village on July 13, 2023, the Dogiyai Regency Government was preoccupied with Vice President Ma’ruf Amin’s visit to Nabire, Central Papua Province. One of the purposes of the visit was to inaugurate the construction of the Central Papua Provincial Government Office.
Agapa expressed that the local government and Regional Apparatus Organizations had not received sufficient information regarding the sequence of events from either the police or the local community. He mentioned that several Regional Apparatus Organizations (OPD) and members of the Regional People’s Representative Council (DPRD) had visited Idakebo Village to gather information about the blockade, the shooting of residents, and the subsequent rampage. However, they were hindered by residents who had blocked the road in front of the North Kamu District Office.
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