2) Activists call on NZ govt to do more for West Papua
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1) Hostage situation reinforces tensions in Papua
Authors: Alexandro Rangga, SKPKC Franciscan Papua and Hipolitus Wangge, ANU
It has been almost ten months since the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) abducted New Zealand pilot Philip Merthens on 7 February 2023. There have still been no significant attempts by the Indonesian government to release him.
In July 2023, Indonesian President Joko Widodo emphasised his commitment to resolving the hostage situation through negotiation and other undisclosed means. But the TPNPB has rejected the central government’s initiatives and would still prefer to involve a third party for the release. The hostage situation merely confirms the failure of state-imposed autonomy to provide stability in Papua. The kidnapping displays the ineffectiveness of counterinsurgency in securing the highland areas and a lack of commitment to resolving the country’s longest political conflict.
In 2021, the Indonesian government extended a controversial special autonomy (Otsus) law without meaningful consultation. Over 100 Papuan organisations united to reject continued autonomy, demanding that Jakarta retract Otsus.
The concept of autonomy as a remedy for separatism is rooted in granting substantial power to reduce conflicts and provide stability through effective self-government for aggrieved minorities, while maintaining the cohesion of the host state.
Such an autonomy-based strategy has clearly failed in Papua, as the Indonesia’s highest poverty rates, and the continuing violence and unrest make clear. The 2021 Otsus law in fact recentralises state authority over financial, institutional and political matters in Papua. The law also aims to co-opt Papuan youth to compete for financial support and bureaucratic positions and abandon political mobilisation.
Amid these challenges, as the New Zealand hostage situation drags on, the central government has rejected any foreign intervention and relied mostly on a security approach, involving limited communication with Papuan communities, to resolve it. Unlike well-established counterterrorism methods to track down and prevent potential terrorism in Indonesia, the military-led counterinsurgency has failed to communicate effectively with and quell militant armed groups in Papua.
The military is losing its grip in some highland areas, where eight armed groups operate and have launched a series of attacks against state security forces. It has sought to secure the region under the cover of its conflict response, infrastructure protection, and border protection functions. All of these have been underway without transparency and accountability of formally-declared military operations, which under Indonesian law involve scrutiny from civilian authorities.
The recently signed security cooperation agreement between the United States and Papua New Guinea provides a pretext for the deployment of more troops and the establishment of military stations on the Indonesian side of the border. The new Commander of the Indonesian National Defence Forces, Agus Subiyanto, promised to crushthe armed groups and build more territorial commands, as well as create four new provinces in Papua.
The key actors in the conflict maintain divergent views on its resolution, including the hostage situation. The TPNPB has shown its capacity to inflict damage on civilians and Indonesian security forces. But the lack of organisational cohesion has impeded any progress in identifying a trustworthy mediator whom the government and the armed group can both trust.
The Indonesian government is not positioned to exploit this fragmentation — a reality which is unlikely to see violence in Papua reduced or aid the release of the pilot. The central government has also failed to predict and respond to TPNPB’s sporadic attacks. The absence of a central authority to control the relatively independent armed groups in Papua poses a significant challenge to the central government, as it has to negotiate with the Kogeya group in Nduga, where the pilot has been captured, while falling to contain other groups in Papua’s Highlands.
New Zealand, which participated in conflict resolution during the Bougainville conflict, also finds it has limited options for repatriating its citizen. Due to the sensitivity of the issue, the New Zealand embassy is following the Indonesian government’s approach in addressing the situation. The TPNPB group did initiate informal communications with the New Zealand and Indonesian governments, but no significant progress has been made.
The TPNPB understands that killing the pilot will generate backlash to its political aspirations and image. At the same time, the Indonesian government has also calculated that any raid will risk the pilot’s life and tarnish its reputation, as proven in other unresolved human rights cases in Papua. The armed group will not release the pilot without genuine communication and concessions between them and the central government, including reviewing security policies in the area.
The Papua conflict has become more protracted, with both conflicting sides refusing to initiate negotiation to release the pilot and reduce violent escalation. The organisational fragmentation within Papua’s political movement and the central government’s strong commitment to a hard-line approach have made the possibility of a genuine political dialogue to resolve the Papua conflict a distant dream.
Alexandro Rangga, OFM, is Researcher at SKPKC Franciscan Papua.
Hipolitus Wangge is Researcher at The Australian National University.
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2) Activists call on NZ govt to do more for West Papua
10:10 am today
New Zealand's government should confront Indonesia over its alleged human rights violations in West Papua, human rights activists and West Papua independence activists in Aotearoa say.
New Zealand's government should confront Indonesia over its alleged human rights violations in West Papua, human rights activists and West Papua independence activists in Aotearoa say.
The UN Human Rights Council has reported the human rights situation in West Papua has deteriorated, citing reports of torture and mass displacement.
"We know the violence that West Papuans are having to endure is getting increasingly worse," Green Party spokesperson Golriz Ghahraman said at a Morning Star flag raising ceremony in Auckland on Friday.
"It's become clear that New Zealand government after government has prioritised its relationship with the bigger nation Indonesia over the rights and safety of West Papuans … it is shameful.
"I would like to see our government say it ... will divest from buying goods and timber if it originates from West Papua, and to use all international forums, whether it's the UN or in direct trade talks with Indonesia to raise the issue of the rights of West Papuans and to push for decolonization.”
December 1st marks the day the Morning star flag - the West Papua independence flag - was first raised in 1961 by native West Papuan leaders. Flag raising ceremonies are held by activists around the world to mark the event.
The region was a colony of Indonesia before it fell under Indonesian administration in 1963. Since then, the independence movement has been heavily suppressed with widespread reports of killings, intimidation and torture.
"New Zealand has never taken a strong stance for the self-determination of the West Papuan people since Indonesia took over," prominent pro-independence activist Maire Leadbeater said at the flag raising event.
"We will never let our government forget that it has gone the wrong path in regards to West Papua.”
In Indonesia, raising the Morning Star flag is banned unless it is raised alongside the Indonesian Flag and at a lower height. In September last year, seven people were arrested and jailed in West Papua for raising the flag.
"It's criminalized for West Papuans to express any form of independence or self-determination," Ghahraman said.
"Events like this are important to raise awareness of the situation in West Papua … what we're saying is that we see you and we know your rights are being violently breached.
"We keep talking about China, we keep talking the United States and how we can support our superpower allies, when actually it should be about raising the voices of the people of [the] Pacific such as the West Papuans."
An armed conflict between separatists of the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) and the Indonesian military recently escalated following the kidnapping of New Zealand pilot Phillip Mehrtens in February this year. Reports and footage of battles were released by both sides.
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