1) Allegations on torture and killing of indigenous Papuans in Mebarok District: HRDs call for immediate independent investigation

Cases / Indonesia, West Papua / 15 April 2025

The independent media outlet Suara Papua has received information about another case of torture and extrajudicial execution in the Yuguru village, Mebarok District, Nduga Regency, Papua Pegunungan Province. This grave incident occurred amid an intensified military operation launched on 18 January 2025. Military members are alleged of torturing and subsequently executing Mr Abaral Wandikbo, an indigenous resident of Yuguru. The West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) has delcared Yuguru a safe zone for internally displaced persons (IDPs), calling upon the Indonesian military to stay away from the area.

According to Suara Papua, Mr. Wandikbo was arbitrarily arrested at his home in the Mane Hamlet on 22 March 2025 while caring for his ill father. Witnesses reported that he was handcuffed, interrogated at gunpoint, and forced to provide information on supposed West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) hide-outs in the area. Mr Wandikbo was brought to Yimiri Village. Military members reportedly tortured after he refused to provide information tot he military members. His body was found three days later on 25 March 2025, dumped near a gardening area about 200 meters from a military post.

On 23 March, military members reportedly tortured an indigenous pastor named Mr Eniel Gwijangge and several villagers in the Engendumu Kuid Hamlet. The counterinsurgency operations have generated widespread fear among villagers in Yuguru. They have called for an immediate withdrawal of military personnel from the Yuguru area. The Yuguru area is extremely remote without access to internet network, hence human rights defenders were not able to verify the informationor receive photos of the victim.

Table of victims

No.	Name	Age	Date of Incident	Additional information
1	Abaral Wandikbo	N/A	22–25 March 2025	Body was found on 25 March near the Merabut Plantation
2	Eniel Gwijangge	N/A	23 March 2025	Was tortured after military personnel

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https://www.thejakartapost.com/opinion/2025/04/19/letter-to-the-editor-russian-ambassador-responds.html

2) Letter to the editor: Russian ambassador responds

The Russian ambassador has responded to the views of an Australian researcher bout Russia's request to base its aircraft in Papua, published in an op-ed piece on April 17, in the context of bilateral cooperation.

News Desk (The Jakarta Post) Jakarta Sat, April 19, 2025

H aving noticed the article by Australian researcher Matthew Sussex, "A Russian base in Indonesia? Should Australia be concerned?", published in the Opinion section of The Jakarta Post newspaper on April 17, 2025, I would like to share my thoughts on issues touched upon in this piece of writing.

It is hard to imagine that any ordinary Australians should be concerned about what is happening 1,300 kilometers from their territory, about matters that concern relations between other sovereign states and have nothing to do with Australia. Perhaps it would be better for them to pay attention to the United States’ Typhon medium-range missile system in the Philippines, which will definitely reach the territory of the continent?

When it comes to any challenges to regional stability, they are more likely to arise from the rotational deployment of large military contingents from non-regional states on Australian territory, including the provision of airfields for the landing of strategic bombers and port infrastructure for visits of nuclear-powered submarines. Particularly alarming are the plans to deploy the US' intermediate-range missiles in Australia, as well as the acquisition by the Royal Australian Navy of nuclear-powered submarines under the AUKUS trilateral partnership.

The latter raises serious concerns about the effectiveness of established nuclear-weapon-free zones in the Asia-Pacific, such as the South Pacific Nuclear Free Zone (Treaty of Rarotonga) and the Southeast Asia Nuclear-Weapon-Free Zone (Bangkok Treaty). Once again, I would like to emphasize the thesis that I have repeatedly conveyed here in Jakarta to local and foreign journalists. Military cooperation is an integral part of intergovernmental relations between the Russian Federation and the Republic of Indonesia.

This strictly bilateral topic is based on a relevant legal framework and the national legislation of each country. Interaction between the armed forces of Russia and Indonesia encompasses various areas. Such cooperation is aimed at strengthening the defensive capabilities of both sides, is not aimed against any third countries and poses no threat to security in the Asia-Pacific region.

As for the national interests mentioned in the article, which are allegedly under threat, I would like to draw a parallel with human rights which, as we know, end where the rights of another person begin. Likewise, Canberra's national interests cannot extend to the territory of neighboring sovereign states that pursue active and independent policies. The most important aspect of this story about “Russian base in Indonesia” the author himself reveals in the first lines of his opus, when he mentions the upcoming elections of the Australian parliament on May 3, 2025.

It is clear that the leaders of the two main political parties, replacing each other in power and calling it democracy, are now trying to outdo each other, heating up the situation. They stop at nothing, and the time has come to play the so-called “Russian card”. This means to show to overseas mentors who is more anti-Russian and Russophobe. In this regard, I would like to remind them of the words of US President Donald Trump, which he pronounced in the White House on Feb. 28, 2025, to the Ukrainian citizen “Z”: “You have no cards.”

Sergei Tolchenov Russian Ambassador to Indonesia

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AWPA Sydney

Saturday, April 19, 2025