1) TPNPB-OPM Claims to Be Defending Themselves When Attacking TNI Officers at Wamena Hospital
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Spokesperson for the West Papua National Liberation Army-Free Papua Organization (TPNPB-OPM), Sebby Sambom revealed the reason his group attacked the Indonesian military (TNI) officers in front of the Wamena Regional General Hospital, Papua at the end of May. According to him, although it violates international humanitarian law, the attack was carried out in self-defense.
Moreover, according to him, attacks by the military officers on civilians in Papua are considered more cruel. He alluded to the incident of the entry of state soldiers into churches in Papua.
In fact, he said, the house of worship is often used as a place of shelter for civilians when there is a gunfight between the TNI and armed groups. "We are defending ourselves, so we will do anything. One of them is shooting the police in front of the hospital," said Sebby when contacted on Sunday, June 1, 2025.
According to him, the attack on the security forces was to ward off the military presence in Wamena. Sebby accused some of the health workers on duty at a number of hospitals in Papua of being members of government intelligence and the TNI-Polri.
"Doctors, health workers are from government intelligence, TNI and Polri members," he said. Sebby's accusation refers to the statement of TNI Commander General Agus Subiyanto, who once said that his soldiers in Papua also served as educators and health workers.
On the other hand, Sebby did not deny that his group's actions in attacking security forces in front of Wamena Regional Hospital violated international humanitarian law. He said that in the law of war guidelines, hospitals are prohibited from being targets in attacks.
"Hospitals may not be targets in war," he said.
Sebby admitted that not all TPNPB-OPM militia understand the war guidelines or international humanitarian law. One of the reasons is because of limited access to knowledge, which hinders the militia spread across the Papua region.
Sebby said that in 2012 at the TPNPB-OPM Summit in Biak, his party had printed 1,000 international humanitarian law guidebooks to be distributed to combatants. "But Papua is big. The stock is now out, so the books have not been distributed in their entirety," he said.
The shooting incident occurred in front of Wamena Regional Hospital, Jayawijaya Regency, Papua on Wednesday night, May 28, 2025. TPNPB-OPM spokesman, Sebby Sambom, claimed that two officers were victims of the shooting. Meanwhile, the Cartenz Peace Task Force said that only one police officer was killed in the incident.
1) West Papua governor highlights Pancasila-inspired welfare programs
He identified these programs as the Healthy West Papua Card, the Smart West Papua Card, and the Productive West Papua Card.
"These three programs are part of the provincial government's efforts to apply Pancasila values for the sake of community welfare," he remarked after a ceremony celebrating the 80th anniversary of Pancasila in Manokwari on Monday.
Mandacan explained that the Healthy West Papua Card program is designed to help residents access medical services not yet covered by the National Health Insurance (JKN) program.
Elaborating on Smart West Papua, he described it as a program focused on enhancing education quality, expanding access to technology, increasing people's digital literacy, and augmenting the quality of human resources.
"Meanwhile, the Productive West Papua Card program is directed towards empowering local micro, small, and medium enterprises and tapping into regional potential in agriculture, fisheries, livestock, and tourism," he remarked.
Additionally, the governor noted that his administration had also devised initiatives aimed at driving the development of key facilities and infrastructure to boost the economy.
Mandacan stressed that all these programs had been tailored to the actual needs of residents and based on the spirit of cooperation and the principle of social justice promoted by Pancasila.
"Hopefully, our efforts will help us address poverty, ignorance, and other social issues," he stated.
He added that all elements of society share the responsibility of supporting the implementation of national and regional development initiatives.
Reflecting on Pancasila Day, the governor said he views it as a crucial momentum for the community to reinforce its commitment to safeguarding and treasuring Pancasila as a vital unifying force.
"Considering West Papua's vastly diverse population, it is essential for us to maintain tolerance and harmony among religious communities to achieve progress," he remarked.
He also called on West Papuan youth to avoid provocative narratives or issues that could threaten national stability.
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Translator: Fransiskus S, Tegar Nurfitra
Editor: Azis Kurmala
"Based on reports from all the regional heads throughout Papua, the formation of the Red and White cooperatives has reached 70 percent," he said after a launch and dialogue event on expediting deliberations at the village/sub-district level on the formation of village/sub-district KMPs.
Representatives from the Papua provincial government and Papua Mountains, Central Papua, and South Papua joined the event, which was held at the Papua Governor's Office in Jayapura city on Monday.
During the dialogue, Susanto asked regional heads across Papua to actively encourage the formation of the cooperatives. "We appreciate the cooperation and good response regarding the acceleration of the formation of KMPs," he said.
He added he is optimistic that the Papua KMPs will run well and help cut the supply chain, which is quite long.
"For that, we hope that through KMPs, the economy in villages in Tanah Papua will run well and smoothly, so that it can bring government services closer," he continued.
He said that his ministry is also hoping to continue collaborating with the Ministry of Law, as well as provincial, district, and city governments, so that the KMP program can have a significant impact on the village economy.
"We are optimistic that in Papua, by the end of June (2025), all cooperatives have legal entities (status), and by the inauguration of the Red and White cooperatives on Cooperative Day on July 12, all villages will have received legal approval," he added.
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Translator: Qadri Pratiwi, Asri Mayang Sari
Editor: Azis Kurmala
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