TEMPO.CO, Papua - The West Papua National Liberation Army-Free Papua Organization (TPNPB-OPM) attacked Indonesian Military (TNI) and National Police (Polri) personnel at Aminggaru Airport in Ilaga, Omukia District, Puncak Regency, Central Papua, on Wednesday, June 18, 2025.
According to Sebby Sambom, spokesperson for the TPNPB headquarters, the attack was carried out by the TPNPB Kodap XVIII Ilaga militia, led by Peni Murib. The goal was to target planes operating at the Class III domestic airport. "Because civilian planes are used for military drops in the Papua region," Sebby said in a brief message on Thursday, June 19, 2025.
Sebby reported no casualties on either side during yesterday's gun battle. However, he accused the TNI-Polri of committing "brutal acts" in residential areas, specifically alleging the burning of houses in Tabanggi Village and several areas in North Gome District. These locations had previously been battlefields between the TPNPB and TNI-Polri.
"We urge the TNI Commander and President Prabowo Subianto not to target civilians. Combatants should engage with combatants," he added.
TNI-Polri Denies Arson Allegations
Contacted separately, Commissioner Yusuf Sutejo, Head of Public Relations for the Cartenz Peace Task Force, denied the TPNPB's allegations of burning residents' houses. He clarified that the pursuit of TPNPB militia, conducted by Cartenz Peace Task Force personnel and Indonesian Air Force Rapid Response Command (Kopasgat) soldiers near Aminggaru Airport, did not enter residential areas.
"Sweeps were conducted around the forests near the airport. No one entered the village and set fire to houses," Yusuf asserted.
He explained that during the sweep, three TPNPB militia members were seen fleeing into the forest after being pressured by TNI-Polri counterattacks. Surveillance via unmanned aerial vehicles showed them carrying two M16 rifles, an AK-47, and a pistol. "Currently, the airport situation is deemed safe," he confirmed.
Separately, Brigadier General Faizal Ramadhani, Head of the Cartenz Peace Task Force, described the attack on vital public areas, including the airport, as a serious crime.
He assured that Cartenz Peace Task Force personnel would not allow the TPNPB to disrupt security, especially in ways that threaten civilian safety. "Legal actions will be enforced in a measured and professional manner," Faizal stated.
Regarding the accusations of burning houses in North Gome District, Faizal dismissed the claims as propaganda often used by the TPNPB to discredit security efforts by the TNI-Polri. "If there is evidence, then present it. Stop making baseless accusations," Faizal challenged.
The gun battle at Aminggaru Airport lasted approximately 90 minutes, temporarily halting flight activities. "The situation is currently safe and conducive. No military planes have landed here," Faizal concluded.
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As Parliamentarians, lawyers, and supporters of West Papua, we urge the leaders of the five Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) member groups to upgrade the membership status of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP) at the upcoming MSG leaders’ summit.
West Papua is a place of ongoing and severe human rights abuses, which occur with very little international oversight due to a strict ban on journalists entering West Papua.
We note that the ULMWP is already an Observer member of the MSG; that upgrading their membership status is within the remit of the MSG; and that a consensus must be formed in order to approve it. We appeal to the Agreement Establishing the MSG, which undertakes to “promote, coordinate and strengthen… exchange of Melanesian cultures, traditions and values, sovereign equality… to further MSG members’ shared goals of economic growth, sustainable development, good governance, peace, and security.” We consider that all these ambitions would be advanced by upgrading ULMWP membership.
We welcomed the statement delivered at the most recent MSG leaders’ summit in 2023, which urged the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to conduct a human rights mission into West Papua and to look at the root causes of the conflict. Noting the severity of the human rights situation in West Papua, we also welcomed the MSG’s request that the visit take place before the next leaders’ summit, then scheduled for 2024. Two years on, Indonesia has failed to honour their promise and facilitate a UN visit. As we stated in the 2024 Brussels Declaration, Indonesia’s continued refusal is a violation of its obligations as a UN member state.
The importance of upgraded MSG membership for the ULMWP is emphasized by the deteriorating human rights situation in West Papua. According to human rights defenders on the ground, over 97,000 West Papuans are currently internally displaced by Indonesian military operations. Meanwhile, arbitrary arrest, torture, and killing continue with impunity, with more than ten Papuan civilians killed by Indonesian soldiers in the last month alone. Indonesia is also destroying the unique West Papuan landscape on an unprecedented scale. We note with particular concern the construction of the Merauke rice and sugarcane project – described as the largest deforestation project ever launched – which is set to clear 3-million-acres of West Papuan forest, wetland, and savannah.
In light of Indonesia’s continued refusal to honour its obligations to the international community, it is incumbent upon all countries to use other diplomatic means to highlight human rights violations in West Papua. MSG leaders have a unique opportunity to do this.
From a political standpoint, we believe that upgrading the ULMWP’s membership of the MSG is a necessary first step towards resolving the six-decade-long West Papuan conflict. There can be no just or lasting peace in West Papua until the West Papuan people are allowed to voice their desire for self-determination.
We urge MSG leaders to upgrade the ULMWP’s existing membership status.
IPWP Chair: Alex Sobel MP, Labour Party, UK
IPWP Vice-Chair: Gorka Elejabarrieta, Basque Country, Spanish State
IPWP Vice-Chair: President Carles Puigdemont MEP Catalonia, Spanish State
ILWP Chair: Tim Hansen
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