The outlawed West Papuan Morning Star flag has become the focus of a new Indonesian investigation involving the wounding of Indigenous students.
The second criminal investigation over attacks on Papuan people within the past month comes on the back of Jakarta authorities receiving video footage, which was obtained by a prominent human rights
advocacy group on the scene of an alarming shooting incident.
The footage showed West Papuan youths throwing stones at an Indonesian security infrastructure in the country's occupied territory before the sound of gunshots rang out.
Indonesian authorities insist investigations are underway into the incident in the Mamberamo Tengah Regency of Papua's central highlands where high school students were allegedly seriously injured after police fired shots
during a morning graduation event.
Reports from West Papua say seven people were hurt and had to be treated when tensions flared at a parade for school graduates through the town of Kobakma last week.
Indonesian police allegedly fired bullets and tear gas, according to witnesses, in an attempt to break up the celebration.
The situation reportedly escalated after many of the community's residents watching the parade objected to attempts by police officers to stop graduates displaying the Morning Star flag. the flag has historically
has been a symbol of Papuan resistance in the occupied territory across the past six decades.
But brandishing the flag or painting its colours and symbols on school uniforms with great pride is also a relatively common occurrence across West Papua on graduation day despite the flag being outlawed by Indonesian authorities.
According to the Human Rights Monitor - an international service that documents and monitors violations of international law that affects people's rights, protection and peace - the West Papuans injured from gunshots
were aged between 17 and 24 years old, and included non-students.
Human Rights Monitor said Indonesia should conduct a "prompt and impartial" investigation into the incident that is "capable of identifying those responsible and ensuring accountability and reparations for the victims".
Australia West Papua Association spokesperson Joe Collins said the students had scuffled with police, and defended their actions against the occupying forces on West Papuan ancestral lands.
"Again, we have the usual heavy-handed approach to a peaceful celebration by students - all because they were carrying their national flag, a symbol of great importance to West Papuan people," he said.
Indonesian police say their officers in the regency had attempted to persuade students not to display the Morning Star, but their directions were ignored, and that is how the tense situation developed into unrest.
Police claimed that in response to the disobedience of students, the officers dispersed the crowd by using tear gas but gunshots were only fired into the air as warning shots.
According to police, people injured at the scene also included police personnel.
Indonesian security forces, including military, soon after patrolled the area following an outbreak of a melee quickly descended into rioting and looting at the Kobakma's central market.
An Indonesian government spokesperson alleged on Sunday that information it gathered at the scene indicated the parade for the students had been "infiltrated by another group that provoked to create discord related to an
unfortunate incident that happened in the area on the previous day".
"Local authorities in close relations with civic groups, including church authorities and traditional leaders, are currently trying to conduct a thorough investigation regarding the incident," the spokesperson said.
The spokesperson added that Indonesian national and local authorities are focusing their efforts to attempt to avoid any further "unfortunate similar incidents" happening in the future.
Indonesia's national commission on human rights is still investigating a more serious incident late last month where the Indonesian military have been accused of attacking a refugee camp and killing 12 people, I
ncluding a toddler and a pregnant woman in the Puncak Regency in the same Indonesian central province.
Weeks earlier, five additional West Papuans were killed, including a death of a minor, amid what traditional Indigenous custodians of the lands say is an increase in the presence of Indonesian security and military forces
on the ground in the territory this year.
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Indonesian Minister of Human Rights (HAM) Natalius Pigai said that resolving the conflict in Papua requires high-level political decisions and the involvement of multiple parties.
Pigai stated that the Papua conflict is a national strategic issue that cannot be resolved by a single ministry, institution, or specific agency. "The resolution of the Papua conflict requires a joint decision involving the executive,
legislative, judiciary, political parties, and national figures," said Pigai in his official statement on Sunday, May 10, 2026.
Pigai explained that so far, the Indonesian government, including institutions like the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM), has mostly dealt with issues on a case-by-case basis. However, he believes that this
approach is not sufficient to stop the root causes of the prolonged conflict in Papua. Therefore, a more comprehensive approach is needed, including dialogue involving all stakeholders.
Pigai also responded to the Komnas HAM report, which recorded 97 violent incidents and armed conflicts in Papua throughout 2025. The report also mentioned 26 cases of violence in Papua from January to April 2026.
According to Pigai, every act of violence occurring in Papua today quickly becomes public knowledge because the development of information technology has made the flow of information more open and difficult to restrict.
Therefore, he emphasized that every act of violence must be prevented and should not occur.
Pigai stated that various acts of violence in Papua today are widely documented and have drawn public attention, both at the national and international levels. He believes that this situation should be a serious concern
for all parties, considering that every incident will shape the global perception of the human rights situation in Indonesia.
According to Pigai, the ongoing escalation of violence also indicates that the resolution of the Papua conflict cannot be done in a conventional manner. Furthermore, Pigai emphasized that Komnas HAM is a state institution
mandated constitutionally to monitor, investigate, and collect data and facts related to human rights conditions.
"Based on records from both domestic and international sources, there is an escalation. In just under a month, no fewer than 20 people died in 5 incidents in Dogiyai, Yahukimo, Puncak Papua, Timika, and Tembagapura," said Pigai.
The Ministry of Human Rights, Pigai continued, will continue to advocate for the emergence of a more integrated, fair, and human rights-based resolution approach. He emphasized that the government has a responsibility
to ensure the protection of citizens throughout Indonesia, including in Papua. He said the government continues to seek a peaceful solution that can address the root causes of the conflict.
The Representative of the National Human Rights Commission of Indonesia (Komnas HAM) in Papua noted that at the beginning of 2026, there were four prominent violent incidents resulting in the deaths of approximately
14 people. "Then 13 civilians were tortured, and dozens of people fled their villages," said the Head of the Komnas HAM Papua Representative Frits Ramandey in his statement in Jayapura, on Wednesday, April 15, 2026, quoted from Antara.
According to Ramandey, these four incidents included the murder of two pilots at Korowai Batu Airport, Boven Digoel Regency, South Papua in February 2026, an attack on the TNI (Indonesian Military) Guard Post in Sori Village,
Maybrat Regency, West Papua in March 2026.
Subsequently, the murder of Indonesian healthcare workers in Bamusbama District, Tambrauw Regency in March 2026, and the shooting of local residents in Dogiyai Regency, Central Papua, on March 31, 2026.
JAKARTA (Bernama): Indonesia has launched the Pukpuk Submarine Cable System (Puk-Puk 1), the first direct cross-border undersea cable linking the country with Papua New Guinea, aimed at strengthening digital connectivity and infrastructure resilience in the Asia-Pacific region.
Telkom Indonesia said the cable system directly connects Jayapura in Indonesia’s Papua province with Vanimo in Papua New Guinea, and is the first cross-border cable system in the Asia-Pacific region to directly connect Indonesia’s telecommunications network with Papua New Guinea.
The government-owned telecommunication company said the landing station in Jayapura operated by its international arm Telin serves as a connectivity gateway to Papua New Guinea’s Kumul Telkom Holdings, delivering capacity from the international SEA-US cable system to remote provinces in Papua New Guinea via Vanimo.
"With the operation of the cable system, Jayapura now has two independent international connectivity routes.
"The first route connects Sulawesi, Maluku and Papua, while the second route connects Vanimo in Papua New Guinea to Jayapura, and onwards to Manado and Los Angeles in the United States through the SEA-US cable,” it said according to ANTARA News Agency, on Saturday.
The cable system was inaugurated on Friday at Telkom Witel Jayapura in Papua by Indonesia’s Communication and Digital Affairs Deputy Minister Angga Raka Prabowo, together with Telkom Indonesia president director Dian Siswarini and other Indonesian and Papua New Guinean officials.
Telkom said the project also strengthens digital infrastructure resilience in Papua by providing an alternative "diversity route” to help ensure telecommunications services remain operational and reliable. -- Bernama
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