Indonesia’s Presidential Staff Office says it regrets the raising of the Morning Star flag – which is identified with Papuan independence – at the Indonesian Consulate General (KJRI) in Melbourne, Australia, this week.

Presidential Staff Office deputy for political, legal, security and human rights affairs Jaleswari Pramowardhani insisted that the area in and around the consulate must be respected.

Pramowardhani pointed to the stipulations in the Geneva Convention on respect for foreign consulates and international legal customs.

“The host country, in this case Australia, has an obligation based on international law to maintain security in the area of the Consulate General of the Republic of Indonesia,” said Pramowardhani.

“Above all breaking in or infiltrating without authorisation. So the incident which occurred at the Melbourne KJRI cannot be justified and conflicts with international law,” she added.

Earlier on Tuesday, December 1, a video of the Morning Star flag flying over the Melbourne consulate went viral on Twitter. The owner of the Twitter account @Tbuch2, Tim Buchanan, shared a video of six people standing on the Melbourne consulate’s roof.

Two of them were holding a banner with a picture of the Morning Star flag with the message “Free West Papua”, while four others held a Morning Star flag and a poster with the message, “TNI [Indonesian military] Out, Stop Killing Papua”.

Officials grappled with the protesters trying to prevent the flags and banner being unfurled.

LIVE RIGHT NOW! 5 People have scaled the walls of the Indonesian consulate in Melbourne & are currently on the roof, they have raised the Morning Star flag of the West Papuan independence movement & banners reading TNI OUT: Stop Killing Papuans & FREE WEST PAPUA” #FreeWestPapua pic.twitter.com/Pkwuv1A3bl

— ?Tim☀️Buchanan? (@Tbuch2) December 1, 2020

Pramowardhani has asked the Australian government to take a “firmer stand” so that a similar incident does not reoccur.

This is not the first incident of its kind. In 2017, a Free Papua Organisation (OPM) sympathiser also managed to climb the wall surrounding the Melbourne Indonesian consulate and raise the Morning Star flag.

Translated by James Balowski for IndoLeft News. The original title of the article was
“Bintang Kejora Berkibar di KJRI, KSP Sesalkan Sikap Australia”.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

By Benny Mawel in Jayapura

Three officers from the Mamberamo Raya Police force have died while two others sustained wounds following a reported clash with military personnel in Mamberamo Raya regency of Papua yesterday morning.

“Two police officers were killed in the clash. However, we have received a report that another officer succumbed to his injuries at the hospital this morning,” Papua police chief Inspector General Paulus told The Jakarta Post.

He added the incident was caused by a “misunderstanding” between the police officers and military personnel in the regency on Saturday.

READ MORE: Human Rights Watch calls for independent investigation into Freeport shooting

A family member of one of the deceased victims, who asked to remain anonymous for safety reasons, said the incident occurred when more than a dozen Memberamo Raya Police officers went to the Infantry Batallion (Yonif) 755 task force post in Kasonaweja at 7.15 am on Sunday following an alleged beating of their colleague by military personnel.

Two days earlier, a police officer identified as Chief Brigadier Petrus Duow reportedly agreed to rent a motorbike from a local ojek (motorcycle taxi) driver for Rp 50,000 (US$3.49) an hour.

However, the police officer only paid Rp 50,000 after borrowing the motorbike for three hours.

Amid the heated argument between Petrus and the ojek driver, other ojek drivers called personnel of Yonif 755 task force to come. Ten military personnel arrived and allegedly beat Petrus.

‘No revenge’ call
Memberamo Raya Police chief Adjutant Senior Commander Alexander Louw had told his subordinates not to seek revenge for the incident, saying he and the local military commander would work to resolve the matter.

However, around 20 police officers reportedly ignored the call and went to the military post in Kasonaweja on Sunday morning. A conflict ensued, with military personnel allegedly chasing after and shooting at the fleeing police officers.

Paulus said he had ordered the local police chief to transport the deceased and injured victims out of the area and told other officers and their families not to leave the police headquarters.

He added that he and Cenderawasih Military Command commander Major-General Herman Asaribab would go to Mamberamo Raya to resolve the conflict.

Cenderawasih Military Command spokesperson Colonel Eko Daryanto said the military command and the Papua Police had formed a joint team to investigate the incident, as quoted by kompas.com.

Benny Mawel reports for The Jakarta Post.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

By M Yusuf Manurung in Jakarta

An East Jakarta Metropolitan District police chief has given prosecution evidence at the trial this week of six Papuan activists charged with treason.

Senior Commissioner Ardian Rishadi gave testimony in the Central Jakarta District Court on Monday (February 3) about when he was guarding a protest action in near the State Palace that was held on August 28, 2019.

At the time, Rishadi held the post of Central Jakarta Metropolitan Police deputy chief. He claimed to have seen the demonstrators singing songs or “shouting things” which went against the principles of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia or NKRI.

“Papua is not the red-and-white [flag], Papua is the Morning Star – I apologise, but that’s what I heard”, said Rishadi, singing the verses that he had heard being sung by the demonstrators at the rally while testifying in front of the panel of judges.

Rishadi also said that the demonstrators brought Morning Star flags to the protest and that the symbol of the Morning Star was drawn on several of the demonstrator’s faces. The symbol was also drawn on one of the roads.

Rishadi claimed he had heard the defendants singing and shouting these things. He also said the defendants made “problematic speeches”.

“They [said they] wanted to separate from the unitary state, and declared that Papua was not part of Indonesia. Then a referendum was also discussed,” he said.

On the issue of the Morning Star symbols, one of the defendants’ lawyers asked Rishadi which regulation prohibited the Morning Star flag from being flown.

Rishadi said the lawyer was testing him and refused to answer the question.

“What’s clear is that the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia has only one flag, the red-and-white. There are no other flags,” said Rishadi, who at the time of the demonstration still held the rank of assistant superintendent of police.

The six defendants in the treason case are Paulus Suryanta Ginting, Charles Kossay, Ambrosius Mulait, Isay Wenda, Anes Tabuni and Arina Elopere.

They have been indicted under alternative articles, namely Article 106 of the Criminal Code (KUHP) in conjunction with Article 55 Paragraph 1(1) of the KUHP on makar (treason, subversion, rebellion) and Article 110 Paragraph 1 of the KUHP on criminal conspiracy.

Translated by James Balowski for Indoleft from Tempo. The original title of the article was “Saat Eks Wakapolres Jakarta Pusat Bersaksi di Sidang Makar Papua”.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

By Domingos Gomes in Dili

Timor-Leste national police (PNTL) have arrested 46 students at a West Papua independence solidarity protest in Dili, amid accusations the group failed to get permission to hold their demonstration in public.

The Dili protest, which moved from the Government Palace to the Indonesian Embassy in Farol last Thursday afternoon, was part of an international West Papua solidarity protests that have swept across across Indonesia and West Papua over the past two weeks.

The protesters are calling for independence from Indonesia for the people of West Papua.

READ MORE: East Timor-style referendum possible for Papua, says Jakarta Post editor

Police made the arrests for failing to have permission to hold the protest, obstructing traffic and breaches of the peace.

Those arrested were from the Progressive Student Movement (KEP), including 39 men and seven women.

A spokesperson for KEP, Adriano da Costa, said they made the demonstration to show that Timorese youth were in solidarity with the people of West Papua.

Costa said it was important West Papuans knew that Timor-Leste stood with them in their struggle for independence, as the people of Papua had done for Timor-Leste’s own fight to be a sovereign nation.

Police told the Independente that people have a “right to express themselves” but they must get permission from the police to hold demonstrations in public.

“As long as they meet all these requirements, PNTL is ready to carry out security, but because KEP did not fulfil this requirement the PNTL is boycotting their activities,” Armando Monteiro, the Commander of National Police in Dili, said.

Monteiro confirmed that protest organisers had met with PNTL and submitted a letter of request to conduct the protest, but that their demand had been rejected for “legal” reasons.

He said submissions to hold public protests must be made at least five days before the proposed day of action.

Domingos Gomes is a reporter with the Independente newspaper in Dili.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

By Johnny Blades of RNZ Pacific

Protests are spreading in Indonesia-ruled West Papua in response to harassment of Papuans during explosive incidents in Javanese cities last week.

Indonesia’s president has urged calm after some of the protests turned violent, but he’s been criticised for not directly addressing a festering racism problem.

The unrest was triggered when dozens of Papuan university students in Surabaya were assaulted by a mob on Saturday and later arrested.

LISTEN: Indonesia’s president criticised for failing to address racism – Dateline Pacific

READ MORE: 250 inmates escape from West Papuan prison during protests

One of the students had allegedly trashed an Indonesian flag on the country’s independence day anniversary.

The angry scene was echoed in an incident in the city of Semarang where a Papuan student dormitory was surrounded by civilian groups demanding the students fly the Indonesian flag.

Nationalist sentiment was running high at the weekend, as it always does on independence day.

Anti-Papua sentiment
An Indonesian researcher with Human Rights Watch, Andreas Harsono, said anti-Papuan sentiment was also on the rise in the country.

“Military-related militias are starting to increase their campaign against Papua by showing that the Papuans (are) refusing to raise the Indonesian flag, hoping that it will exasperate the situation on the island of Java, Indonesia’s most important island,” Harsono said.

The students were repeatedly called “monkeys” and other racist slurs, sparking thousands to march in the streets back in Papua.

In Manokwari, videos posted to social media showed the parliament building on fire and roads blocked by burning tires.

The unrest prompted Indonesia’s President, Joko Widodo, to appeal for calm.

“I know that there are hurt feelings but as fellow citizens the best thing is to forgive each other,” Widodo told a media conference.

Widodo urges forgiveness
“It is okay to be emotional but forgiving is better. Being patient is also better. And be confident that the government will continue to safeguard your dignity and prosperity.”

Indonesia’s police chief, Tito Karnavian, has focussed blame for the destruction in Manokwari on the people who posted about the Surabaya incident on social media. He described it as hoax news.

But US-based Papuan independence leader Octo Mote said this response, along with that of the president’s, was disappointing.

“Now the Indonesian President, he ignored what’s going on. Then he said, ‘ok guys just apologise to each other’. So West Papuans should apologise for what? He doesn’t condemn the racism. He doesn’t say racism is not right.”

According to Mote, harassment of Papuans is a long running problem in Indonesia.

“From the beginning, this is an Asian [people] who invade Melanesian land, seeing us as sub-human beings with black and curly hair.”

He said the allegation about Papuans disrespecting the Indonesian flag in Surabaya was simply used as a trigger by the mob, who laid siege to the students’ dorm.

Everyday racism
“Because of that hatred, they try to find a way. That’s what happens not only there but that same incident happens in so many cities outside of Papua. As a journalist who worked there so many years, we experienced this in our daily lives under Indonesian colonialism, the discrimination and racism we experience in everyday life,” Mote said.

Monday’s peaceful protest in Jayapura was the biggest in Papua in years. There have been surprisingly few arrests, even where the protests turned violent such as in Manokwari.

On Tuesday a local resident, Ucu Sawaki, said the city’s streets had quickly returned to normal calm.

“Police is still everywhere and the security is also good this morning but still people are still afraid to go out from the house. So just couples, motorcycles and cars but it’s not like in the past.”

Indonesia’s government said it had restricted internet access to Papua and West Papua provinces as the protests took place.

In a statement, the Ministry of Communication and Information said it had acted to throttle access in several areas because of the potential for disinformation to create social disorder.

‘Throttling social media’
“We can say that the purpose of throttling is to prevent the wide spread of hoax (fake news) that trigger action,” the ministry said.

But it is unlikely that such measures will stop Papuans protesting this week. Indeed, the monkey slurs directed at their students have provided a new impetus.

Yesterday, large mobilisations took place in other Papuan cities, including Merauke, Biak and Nabire. However in Sorong, as Papuans took to the streets, 250 prisoners escaped from the local jail amid the chaos. A manhunt by local police is underway.

Also, in signs of an impending crackdown, Indonesia has deployed more military forces to Papua to quell the unrest.

• This article is published under the Pacific Media Centre’s content partnership with Radio New Zealand

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

By Ray Jordan in Lampung, Indonesia

President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo insists that work on the Trans-Papua road project will continue despite this week’s shooting of construction workers in the Papua regency of Nduga.

Widodo is asking that all infrastructure projects and Trans-Papua construction workers always be accompanied by security personnel.

For the moment, Widodo said that the government would prioritise the evacuation of the victims of the shooting by the West Papuan Liberation Army that is regularly branded by the authorities as armed criminal “separatists”.

READ MORE: West Papua independence leader urges calm after killings

“Yes this is because there is still a process there that isn’t finished yet, we will prioritise the evacuation as quickly as possible. After that construction will continue”, Widodo told journalists at the Mahligai Agung Convention Hall at the Bandar Lampung University in Lampung City, North Sumatra.

According to The Jakarta Post, the casualties include 19 workers of state-owned construction company PT Istaka Karya, who had been assigned to build a 275 km section to connect Wamena and Mamugu as part of President Widodo’s flagship trans-Papua road project.

-Partners-

One Indonesian Military (TNI) soldier was also killed.

But the West Papua National Liberation Army (WPNLA), which claimed responsibility for the attack and said 24 people had been killed, alleged the workers were in fact soldiers in disguise, according to RNZ Pacific.

Independence rallies
Last Saturday, as members of the Liberation Army held a ceremony to commemorate Papua’s independence from Dutch colonial rule on December 1, 1961, as part of many rallies across Papua, Indonesia and internationally, a worker was said to have snapped a photo of the scene.

This enraged the militants.

In Sumatra, President Widodo said that wherever construction work was being carried out in Papua, workers must be accompanied by security forces in order to provide a sense of safety.

A Papuan freelance journalist John Pakage, who was reportedly beaten by members of the Indonesian Mobile Brigade Corps and his family threatened. Image: Wenslaus

“I want to convey that wherever construction work is going on it is always accompanied by security personnel in order to truly provide security guarantees for workers who are working in the field, in the jungles, in preparing infrastructure, particularly roads in the land of Papua which will never stop, but will continue regardless,” he said.

Widodo said the government’s goal was to continue development in Papua in order to create a sense of social justice in eastern Indonesia. Widodo said he wanted all of Indonesian society to experience this development.

“This is to provide infrastructure in the land of Papua and secondly also social justice for all Indonesian people to address the discrepancies in infrastructure between Java and Papua, between the east and west, that is what we can truly pursue”, said Widodo.

Earlier, national police chief General Tito Karnavian claimed that the West Papua Liberation Army led by Egianus Kogoya numbered no more than 50 people who had around 20 firearms.

‘Diplomatic’ resolution
The Guardian reports that Benny Wenda, the chair of the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP), said it was hard to know exactly what happened at Nduga, amid conflicting reports on the long-running tensions, and without free access for media or human rights groups.

Indonesian authorities had not responded to requests for comment from The Guardian.

Wenda told The Guardian he could not stop the liberation army but wanted to tell them the UMLWP wanted to solve the issue “diplomatically”.

“We don’t want any bloodshed, we want Indonesia to come to the international table to discuss and we can agree to a referendum That’s what our campaign is about,” he said.

Sebby Sambom, spokesman for the WPNLA, the military wing of the Free Papua Movement (OPM), said in a telephone interview that they attacked a government construction site last weekend because they believe the project is conducted by the military, according to Jawa Pos TV.

“Trans-Papua road projects are being carried out by Indonesian military and that is a risk they must bear,” Sambom said.

“We want them to know that we don’t need development, what we want is independence.”

According to Wenslaus, John Pakage, a freelance journalist who was also a former Reuters and Tabloid Jubi journalist, was beaten by members of the Indonesian Mobile Brigade Corps and his family threatened.

Detik News translated by James Balowski for the Indoleft News Service. The original title of the article was “Jokowi Minta Pekerja Trans Papua Selalu Didampingi Aparat Keamanan“.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

A protest action by the Papuan Student Alliance (AMP) in Indonesia’s East Java provincial capital of Surabaya yesterday demanding self-determination for West Papua has been attacked by a group of ormas (social or mass organisations).

Police later raided Papuan student dormitories in the evening and detained 233 students in a day of human rights violations as Indonesian authorities cracked down on demonstrations marking December 1 – “independence day”, according to protesters.

The group, who came from a number of different ormas, including the Community Forum for Sons and Daughters of the Police and Armed Forces (FKPPI), the Association of Sons and Daughters of Army Families (Hipakad) and the Pancasila Youth (PP), were calling for the Papuan student demonstration to be forcibly broken up.

READ MORE: Surabaya counterprotest, 300 arrested in West Papua flag demonstrations

“This city is a city of [national] heroes. Please leave, the [state ideology of] Pancasila is non-negotiable, the NKRI [Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia] is non-negotiable”, shouted one of the speakers from the PP.

At 8.33am, a number of PP members on the eastern side of Jl. Pemuda began attacking the AMP by throwing rocks and beating them with clubs. Police quickly moved in to block the PP members then dragged them back.

The AMP protesters had began gathering at the Submarine Monument at 6am before moving off to the Grahadi building where the East Java governor’s office is located.

However they were only able to get as far as the Surabaya Radio Republic Indonesia (RRI) building before they were intercepted by police from the Surabaya metropolitan district police (Polrestabes) and the East Java district police (Polda).

‘Independence’ day
The AMP demonstration was held to mark December 1, 1961, as the day West Papua became “independent” from the Dutch. For the Papuan people, December 1 is an important date on the calendar in the Papuan struggle which is commemorated every year.

The historical moment in 1961 was when, for the first time, the West Papuan parliament, under the administration of the Dutch, flew the Morning Star (Bintang Kejora) flag, symbolising the establishment of the state of West Papua.

Since then the Bintang Kejora was flown alongside the Dutch flag throughout West Papua until the Dutch handed administrative authority of West Papua over to the United Nations Temporary Executive Authority (UNTEA) on October 1, 1962, then to the Indonesian government on May 1, 1963.

The UNTEA was an international mechanism involving the UN to prepare a referendum on whether or not the Papuan people wanted to separate or integrate with Indonesia.

The referendum, referred to as the Act of Free Choice (Pepera), resulted in the Papuan people choosing to be integrated into Indonesia.

Since then, the administration of West Papua has been controlled by the Indonesian government and the flying of the Bintang Kejora illegal – as it is deemed an act of subversion (maker) – and have responded to protests with violence and arrests.

A video of the arrests in Ternate, North Maluku. Video: Arnold Belau/Suara Papua

Police arrest 99 Papuan activists at pro-independence rally in Ternate
Arnold Belau of Suara Papua reports from Jayapura that at least 96 activists from the Indonesian People’s Front for West Papua (FRI-WP) were arrested by police in Ternate, North Maluku, after they forcibly broke up a rally in front of the Barito Market.

A Suara Papua source from Ternate said that the FRI-WP action was closed down by police and intel (intelligence) officers and the demonstrators forced into trucks as they were about to begin protesting in front of the Barito Market.

The source said that several activists were dragged and assaulted as they were forced into the truck.

“Several comrades who were at the action were dragged and forced to get into a truck by police and intel in Ternate,” they said.

The source said that as many as 99 people were arrested, 12 of them from West Papua and the rest activists from FRI-WP. One of the protesters had to be rushed home because because of breathing difficulties.

“One of the people had difficulty breathing and was rushed home. Twelve people were from Papua and the rest from Ternate. Currently they are being taken to Polres [district police station]”, they said.

Ternate district police Tactical Police Unit head (kasat sabhara) Aninab was quoted by semarak.news.com as saying that the protesters would be taken to the Ternate district police station.

‘Given guidance’
“We will take them to Polres, question them. If in the process of delving into the matter it is discovered that they committed a violation then they will be charged, but we will bear in mind that are still young and [they should be] given guidance,” he said.

Earlier, the protesters sent a written notification of the action to the Ternate district police but it was rejected with police saying that the planned action was subversive (maker).

Upon arriving at the Ternate district police station they will be registered and those who originate from Papua will be separated from those from North Maluku.

FRI-WP is demanding that the Indonesian government must resolve human rights violations in Papua and that the Papuan people be given the freedom to hold a referendum to determine their own future.

Background
Although it is widely held that West Papua declared independence from Indonesia on December 1, 1961, this actually marks the date when the Morning Star (Bintang Kejora) flag was first raised alongside the Dutch flag in an officially sanctioned ceremony in Jayapura, then called Hollandia.

The first declaration of independence actually took place on July 1, 1971 at the Victoria Headquarters in Waris Village, Jayapura.

Known as the “Act of Free Choice”, in 1969 a referendum was held to decide whether West Papua, a former Dutch colony annexed by Indonesia in 1963, would be become independent or join Indonesia. The UN sanction plebiscite, in which 1,025 handpicked tribal leaders allegedly expressed their desire for integration, has been widely dismissed as a sham.

Critics claim that that the selected voters were coerced, threatened and closely scrutinised by the military to unanimously vote for integration.

Both of these articles were translated by James Balowski for the Indoleft News Service. The original title of the Surabaya article was “Peringatan 1 Desember Papua, Demo AMP Surabaya Diadang PP & FKPPI” and the Jayapura one “Peringati Hari Lahirnya Embrio Negara Papua Barat, Polisi Tangkap 99 Orang di Ternate”.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Pacific Media Centre Newsdesk

Hundreds of Papuan students faced off with counterprotesters in Indonesia’s second largest city of Surabaya today in a rally calling for the Melanesian region’s independence while pro-independence sources reported more than 300 people arrested in West Papua.

The Surabaya rally was organised by the Papua Students Alliance. The demonstrators chanted “Freedom Papua” in Surabaya city to mark December 1, which many West Papuans consider as the 57th anniversary of what should have been their independence, report news agencies.

The crowd, many of whom wearing headbands of the Morning Star flag – banned by Indonesian authorities, was blocked from marching to the city center by scores of counterprotesters from several youth organisations waving the Indonesian flag.

READ MORE: Mass arrests over West Papua demos in Indonesian cities

A screenshot from a secret video report of the mobilised Indonesian police about to raid the Papuan dormitories in Surabaya tonight. Image: Human rights sources

They confronted the pro-independence protesters with sharpened bamboos.

Several hundred members of anti-riot police prevented the two rival groups from clashing.

-Partners-

The protest ended after about two hours.

However, human rights sources reported tonight that Indonesian police and military had  surrounded Papuan student dormitories in Surabaya and arrested 223 people. They were being detained at the Surabaya City sector police station.

The Free West Papuan Campaign reports that more than 300 people have been arrested across West Papua.

Peaceful demonstrations
In several regions of West Papua, peaceful demonstrations took place. Protests were reported in Jakarta, Surabaya, Palu, Kupang, Ternate, Makassar, Manado, Ambon, Poso, Sula, Timika, Meruake, Waropen, and Tobelo.

In addition to police intervention during public gatherings, the London-based campaign’s website said it had received reports that Indonesian security forces had also raided several student dormitories, and the West Papua National Committee (KNPB) headquarters was vandalised.

From the monitoring team, below is the interim report of arrests throughout West Papua and other parts of Indonesia:

Philipus Robaha is among students still detained in Polsek KP3, Naval Base, Jayapura. Image: FWPC

1. Kupang – 18 people arrested.
2. Ambon – 43 arrested.
3. Ternate – 99 arrested. One of the activists was rushed to hospital due to suffocation
4. Jayapura around 85 people from 4 different locations: Dok IX, Abe, Jayapura and Sentani.
5. Jakarta – 140 arrested
6. Surabaya – hundreds involved in a long march towards Kamasan III student dormitary were confronted by tni-polri and some students were bruised from confrontation.
7. Manado – 29 arrested
8 Waropen – 7 arrested. Names: Jhon Wenggi, Yulianus Kowela, Monika Imbiri and Fiktor Daimboa
9. Sorong and Merauke, including KNPB HQ in Waena, Perumnas III: in lock down and an urgent need for advocacy at these places.

RNZ Pacific also reports mass arrests over West Papuan demonstrations in several Indonesian cities.

Today marks the 57th anniversary of the first time West Papua’s flag of independence, the Morning Star, was raised.

The banned West Papuan Morning Star flag on display at Auckland’s Pacific Media Centre today. Image: PMC

In commemoration of the historic event numerous non-violent peaceful demonstrations and prayer vigils were organised around the country.

Worldwide flag raisings of international solidarity increase each year as the support for West Papuan independence gains momentum. In New Zealand, flagraising events were held in Auckland, Wellington and Christchurch.

This protests comes at a time of increased violence in West Papua, including suspected extrajudicial killings in the region.

Urgent issues of concern also include increased military presence, the killing of civilians caught in crossfire in the mountain regions, and armed civilian movements of Papuans protecting their villages.

The International Coalition for Papua (ICP) compiles data on political arrests and violence in West Papua. This information has been made public through quarterly reports. The latest ICP reports are at www.humanrightspapua.org

A scene from the Surabaya rally today with the crowd chanting “Freedom Papua”. The men in the front of the image appear to be undercover police filming and recording events. A short distance away there was a counterprotest with Indonesian flags. Police kept the two groups apart. Image: Still from a West Papuan sourced video

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

By Ivany Atina Arbi and Nethy Dharma Somba in Jakarta and Jayapura

The 73rd celebration of Indonesia’s Independence Day last week was tinged with reports on actions from some Papuans outside and inside the provinces which upset authorities over their perceived refusal to celebrate Indonesia’s independence from the Dutch.

On August 15, a clash occurred between Papuan students and mass organisation members on Jl. Kalasan in Surabaya, East Java, as the students reportedly refused to raise the country’s red-and-white flag in front of their dormitory.

The men demanded the Papuan students comply with a regulation mandating the raising of the Indonesian flag every August 17.

READ MORE: Indonesian police detain 49 in attack on dormitory

A release signed by Azizul Amri of the National Students Front and Nies Tabuni of the Papuan Students Association in Surabaya said the students actually did not object to raising the flag.

They accused people from the mass organisations of attacking their dormitory before the dialogue between them had concluded.

-Partners-

According to the students, about 30 people from mass organisations asked them to raise the Indonesian flag. The students claimed they did not object to it but they needed time to “coordinate” with the dormitory’s caretaker, who was out of Surabaya at that time.

A clash ensued, in which a man was injured.

The Indonesian flag controversy: According to the Papuan students, about 30 people from mass organisations asked them to raise the Indonesian flag. The students claimed they did not object to it but they needed time to “coordinate” with the dormitory’s caretaker, who was out of Surabaya at that time. Image: Aman Rochman/Jakarta Post

Dormitory attack
Basuki, one of the mass organisation members, said as quoted by kompas.com that one of his men had been attacked by a dormitory resident wielding a sharp weapon.

The students said in their release that three members of the organisations had beat one student. The student later ran to the kitchen to retrieve a machete.

He brandished the weapon and the men ran away in a panic.

“One of them collided with another and he hurt himself from a fall,” the release stated.

Surabaya police officers then visited the scene and took dozens of students living in the dormitory to police headquarters for questioning.

But by Thursday, the students had returned to the dorm, and none of them were taken into custody.

“As many as 48 students have been returned to the dorm,” said Surabaya police criminal unit chief Senior Comrmander Sudamiran. He said the police would first gather evidence about the injured man.

Indonesian flag
After the clash, local residents of Jl. Kalasan eventually raised Indonesia’s flag in front of the dormitory, named Kemasan III.

Separately, during the orientation event for freshmen at Cendrawasih University in Jayapura, Papua, on August 14 and 15, senior students required the freshmen to chant free Papua slogans and bring Morning Star attributes to the campus.

The Morning Star refers to the flag used by the Papuan independence movement.

During the opening ceremony of the event, the seniors reportedly prohibited the freshmen from singing Jakarta’s national anthem, “Indonesia Raya”.

The university’s rector, Apolo Safanpo, confirmed the incident, accusing some people of imposing their “political motives” on the orientation event.

“The intruders required the freshmen to bring Morning Star attributes and chant slogans contrary to Indonesia’s ideology,” Apolo said, adding that the orientation events had been halted.

Meanwhile, Jayapura police chief Senior Commander Gustav Urbinas said the use of Morning Star attributes could be linked to treason, and therefore he had called Cendrawasih University student executive body chairman Ferry Kombo and the chairman of orientation events Agus Helembo to the police headquarters.

‘Asked for explanations’
“We asked for some explanations about the use of Morning Star attributes and the chanting of free Papua slogans,” Agus said.

Both of the students had signed a statement citing that they would not let the same incident happen again at their university, or else they would be prosecuted for “treason”.

A prominent youth figure in Papua, Samuel Tabuni, who is also the director of the Papua Language Institute, said what happened at Cendrawasih University was the students’ “spontaneous action to show their intention to create a future that is free from all threats”.

According to a 2018 Amnesty International report titled “‘Don’t bother, just let him die’: Killing with impunity in Papua”, unlawful killings by security forces remains high in Papua even after the 1998 reform began.

Amnesty International has recorded 69 cases of alleged unlawful killings between January 2010 and February, with 95 victims. Eighty-five of them were native Papuans, the report said.

The Jakarta Post provides an Indonesian perspective on events in West Papua.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

By Tony Firman in Jakarta

Calls for West Papuan self-determination were prominent during a demonstration in front of the offices of PT Freeport Indonesia in the Kuningan area of South Jakarta at the start of Easter.

The action was held by about 70 protesters from the Papuan Student Alliance (AMP) and the Indonesian People’s Front for West Papua (FRI-WP) who held the demonstration last Thursday to demand the closure of the Freeport copper and gold mine in Papua.

FRI-WP spokesperson Surya Anta said that the international community must take a position on the forced incorporation of West Papua into the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI).

“Since May 1, 1963, until now, West Papua was removed from the Dutch decolonisation list without the West Papuan people’s knowledge,” said Anta.

Surya also accused Freeport of being an entry point for the colonisation of West Papua on the grounds that the first work contract between Freeport and Indonesia was signed in 1967.

Meanwhile, the Act of Free Choice (Pepera) which resulted in the incorporation of West Papua into the Indonesia was held in 1969.

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Anta said that the Pepera was manipulated and undemocratic.

No prosperity or peace
Dorlince Iyowau, a resident of the mining town of Timika who took part in the action, added that Freeport’s presence in Papua had not brought prosperity or peace to the West Papuan people.

“Violence against the people and damage to the environment by waste tailings discarded into the Ajkwa River is a concrete form of Freeport’s colonial presence”, said Iyowau.

In a media release received by Tirto, the FRI-WP and the AMP made nine demands, three of which were:

• the closure of PT Freeport,
• the withdrawal of the TNI (Indonesian military) and Polri (National
  Police) from Papua, and
• self-determination for the people of Papua

The media release also stated that based on a report by the Papuan Institute for Human Rights Studies and Advocacy (Elsham) in 2002, numerous cases of violence had been committed by security forces in Papua.

The report noted that thousands of people had died, scores had disappeared and hundreds more had been arrested and tortured.

In addition to this, it also noted places of worship that had been burnt down, villages and other locations that had been destroyed, many of which have yet to be properly documented.

The demonstrators began leaving the Freeport offices at around 3.15 pm. Similar actions are planned to take place simultaneously next Saturday in several different cities, including Yogyakarta and Semarang (Central Java), Bandung (West Java), Surabaya and Malang (East Java), Makassar (South Sulawesi), Palu (Central Sulawesi), Ternate (North
Maluku) and Papua itself.

Tony Firman is a reporter for Tirto news website in Indonesia.

Translated by James Balowski for the Indoleft News Service. The original title of the article was “Demo di Kantor Freeport Juga Serukan Penentuan Nasib West Papua“.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz

Pacific Media Centre Newsdesk

West Papuan students have demonstrated to reject Indonesia’s occupation and were joined by an unprecedented wave of solidarity from people across Indonesia, reports the Free West Papua Campaign.

The West Papuan Student’s Alliance (AMP) and the Indonesian People’s Front for West Papua (FRI-West Papua) held rallies in 14 Indonesian cities on Tuesday, December 19 – Jakarta, Denpasar, Manado, Solo, Ambon, Ternate, Yogyakarta, Sula, Moratai, Malang, Bandung, Bogor, Salatiga and Semarang.

The West Papua National Committee (KNPB) also demonstrated in Port Numbay and Biak, West Papua.

The growing support from Indonesian people in solidarity with West Papua is reaching new heights and shows similarity to Indonesian solidarity with the people of Timor-Leste (East Timor) in the late 1990s, reports the Free West Papua Campaign.

While all the rallies held were peaceful, Indonesian police and police militia tried to break up the demonstrators’ freedom of expression.

In Malang, East Java, 66 people were arrested and some of those arrested were assaulted.

Demonstrators being arrested at a Free West Papua rally to reject “Operation Trikora” in Malang, Indonesia. Image: AMP

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Elia Agapa from the West Papuan Students Alliance told Suara Papua: “Our mass action saw 66 of us surrounded and blocked for demonstrating peacefully.

“There was a clash and four of those from our mass action were wounded. One of those four people is a West Papuan woman.”

The West Papua National Committee (KNPB) demonstrating in Biak, West Papua, to reject “Operation Trikora” and to show their support for the United Liberation Movement for West Papua (ULMWP).

Operation Trikora

Indonesian forces in action during Operation Trikora in 1961. Image: Free West Papua Campaign

In 1961, the Dutch government (West Papua’s former colonial ruler) was moving towards granting West Papua independence and on December 1 the West Papuan national flag Morning Star was raised with the promise of full independence in the coming years.

In response, Indonesia’s President Soekarno ordered “Operation Trikora”, a military plan to take West Papua by force, on December 19.

In the next few months, with backing from the Soviet Union, the Indonesian military launched ruthless military attacks on West Papua, from naval shelling to artillery bombing.

Hundreds of Indonesian soldiers were airdropped into the country but the West Papuan defence force managed to successfully repel Indonesian attacks.

It was not until 15 August 1962 that West Papua was left unable to defend itself.

Due to growing Cold War fears of war with a communist friendly Indonesia, the US intervened and effectively forced the Dutch to hand over West Papua to Indonesia without the consulting any West Papuans.

The West Papuan defence force was disbanded and by 1963, the Indonesian military had taken full control of West Papua; their illegal occupation cemented through a so-called “Act of Free Choice”, described by critics as a sham.

This year more than 1.8 million West Papuan people signed a petition rebuking that plebiscite and calling for a legitimate act of self-determination.

Article by AsiaPacificReport.nz