Tag: Bintang Papua

Verdict on violence in Papua unjust, says Kontras

Verdict on violence in Papua unjust, says Kontras
Bintang Papua, 3 February 2011
[Translated in full by TAPOL]
Jayapura: Although the three members of the armed forces who were sentenced  for acts of violence against civilians have accepted the verdict and are now serving their sentences in a military prison, some sources believe that the verdict is far from just.
The chairman of KontraS Papua, Johanis Maturbongs SH, is of the opinion that the sentence passed against the three soldiers at the military tribunal is far from just. The sentences of ten months for Sergeant Riski Irwanto, nine months for Private Yapson Agu  and eight months for Private Thamrin Mahangiri were far too lenient. This punishment cannot be compared to the trauma suffered by the victims of their acts of violence.
Cases of this nature should be tried before a civil court or a human rights court as stipulated in the Special Autonomy Law.
‘If such a case of human rights violations is heard before a military tribunal, the result is bound to be far from adequate.,’ said Maturbongs, a law graduate from Cenderawasih University. He said that things like this have been happening for a long time, and with violations that are even worse than this one, but nothing is known about what has happened.
He also said that the  National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) in Papua should be far more active so as to ensure that such cases are read about in the public domain.
‘Our friends in Komnas HAM in Papua have not been working to full capacity. They need to work far harder with regard to human rights violations which occur in Papua,’ he said.
The same also applies to the legislature, which should do everything in its power to ensure that a human rights court is set up in  Papua.”

 

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DAP leader rejects police moves to question him

Bintang Papua, 11 January 2011

Forkorus Yaboisembut, the chairman of the Papuan Indigenous Council, DAP
has reported that two members of the police force came to visit him at
2pm the previous day, saying that they wanted to take him to Jayapura
police headquarters to question him about a case of bribery in
connection with attempts to kill him some time ago.

Speaking by phone to Bintang Papua, Forkorus said that he was confused
by the police officers’ visit because, according to him, the case they
wished to discuss had been resolved in a collegial fashion within the
kampung. He said that there had been some misunderstandings between
himself and some of his grandchildren but the matter had been resolved
peacefully in November 2010. If the police now intend to investigate the
matter, this would be quite wrong because the matter had already been
resolved within the family.

‘There is no need for the police to investigate the matter,’ said
Forkorus, ‘because I have already told the media that the matter has
been resolved.’ He said that the money involved had already been
returned to its rightful owners within the family. The incident had
occurred when one of his grandchildren, under the influence of drink,
had made threatening remarks against him.

The local chief of police has denied that they had made any attempt to
take Forkorus in for questioning.

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Selection of MRP members should stop, say church leaders

Abridged in translation by TAPOL

Bintang Papua,11 January 2011

Given the growing concern about the implementation of Special Autonomy
(OTSUS) as reflected in the decisions of the Grand Assembly of the MRP
and the Papuan Indigenous People held on 9-10 June 2010, several church
leaders have called on the Indonesian president, the governors of the
provinces of Papua and West Papua and the chairmen of the provincial
legislative assemblies to halt the process of selecting members of the
MRP (Majelis Rakyat Papua – Papuan People’s Assembly) until such time as
there are clear answers to the eleven recommendations that were
submitted to the provincial assembly (DPRP) on 18 June 2010, according
to a joint communique by the churches The signatories include the head
of the Evangelical Church, the GKI, Rev. Jemima Krey, the head of the
Kingmi church, Rev. Benny Giay, Rev. Socrates Yoman and the head of the
Pentacostal Church, Rev. Tonny Infandi.

The assembly held in June 2010 which was facilitated by the MRP was an
official forum representing the voice of the Papuan people, well within
the framework of the rule of law in Indonesia. On that occasion, the
Papuan people clearly expressed the view that the OTSUS Law 21/2001 had
failed to result in any improvements in the living conditions of the
Papuan people which is why the Papuan people had returned the law to
Jakarta.

The handing back of the law to the two provincial assemblies occurred in
Jayapura and Manokwari on 18 June 2010, when a deadline of one month was
set for members of the asemblies to hold plenary sessions to respond to
the people’s aspirations, but since that time, neither of the assemblies
had adopted any measures to respond to these demands.

The impression is that the the central government as well as the
provincial assemblies are not in any way interested in taking any
action to improve the implementation of OTSUS, which is in direct
contradiction with the wishes of the Papuan people.

The situation has been further aggravated by current moves to set up a
new MRP, a body that has now been rejected by the Papuan people.

There is even the impression that the central government via the
intermediary of the United Agency of the Papuan Provinces, is about to
create a ‘puppet MRP’ within the framework of the OTSUS law that will be
incapable of granting protection and upholding the basis rights of the
indigenous Papuan people.

Church leaders regard the creation of such an MRP as being in serious
violation of the dignity of the Papuan people. The church leaders
therefore state the following:

Firstly, we respect the aspirations of the indigenous Papuan people as
declared in the decisions of the Grand Assembly on 9 -10 June 2010, that
OTSUS has failed and has been returned to the central government.

Secondly, that the central government and the provincial assemblies
should immediately stop all moves to select members of the MRP until
such time as there are concrete responses to the results of the Grand
Assembly that were made public on 16 June 2010.

Thirdly, we call upon the governors of the Papuan provinces to stop
ignoring the aspirations of the Papuan people and to sit down with the
people to hold comprehensive talks about Papuan aspirations in rejection
of OTSUS, democratically and in a spirit of justice.

Fourthly, we call on the central government to enter in dialogue with
the Papuan people so as to bring to an end the protracted legal and
political uncertainty which has brought despair to the Papuan people
who we lead in this Land of Papua.

Fifthly, we reject all attempts or formulations that spread confusion
about the demand for dialogue between the Papuan people and the
government of Indonesia which has for many years been expressed by the
Papuan people.

Sixthly, we urge the Indonesian government to stop all forms of
intimidation and terror and other repressive measures that are aimed at
stifling critical opinions from our community regarding development
that is now under way in the Land of Papua which has failed to respect
the interests of the common people.

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Buchtar Tabuni and friends are still in police custody

[Slightly abridged in translation by TAPOL]

Bintang Papua, 30 December 2010

Buchtar Tabuni and friends are still in police custody

Jayapura:

Two convicted prisoners charged with treason [makar], Buchtar Tabuni and Filep Karma, along with three other prisoners, Dominggus Pulalo, Alex Elopere and Lopes Katubaba are still in police custody. Buchtar and the others are in police custody and face charges of causing damage and incitement in Abepura Prison on 3 December 2010.

Confirming this in a press release on the security situation at the end
of 2010, Police Inspector-General Bekto Suprapto said that although
Buchtar and his colleagues were convicted prisoners and already serving sentences in Abepura Prison , they now had the additional status of facing new charges. ‘This means that their sentences will certainly be increased,’ he said. (sic)

The police chief said that with their removal from Abepura Prison,
conditions at Abepura Prison had improved. It was much easier now to
keep control of the prisoners in Abepura than it was when Buchtar and
the others were there, he was quoted as saying. ‘We have received
reports that the prison inmates are easier to control, they are more
obedient and now do as they are told, whereas before they were not easy to control.’

He said this was an indication that Buchtar and the others had been
inciting the other prisoners to be disobedient.

Asked about the number of prisoners who had escaped from the prison, he said that they were all on the wanted list [DPO] and their capture was the top priority for 2011 but he did not mention the number of prisoners involved. According to information from other sources, at least fifty prisoners have escaped from the prison.

He said that Buchtar and the others would face several new charges such as causing damage (Article 170) and incitement (Article 160), and could face up to seven years in prison.

When Bintang Papua requested permission to take photos of Buchtar and his friends in police custody, this was refused. The police officer said that this would only infuriate the general public.

As previously reported, Buchtar and his friends [allegedly] caused
damage after an inmate Wiron Wetipo disappeared from the prison and was shot dead by a joint patrol of the police and the army, while they were raiding a house in Tanah Hitam which is suspected as being the
headquarters of the OPM/TPN.

On hearing that Wiron had been shot dead, the six persons [not five
which is the number of names given in this article] now face charges for causing damage and inciting the other prisoners.

Filep Karma is serving a 15-year sentence while Buchtar is serving three years. The other prisoners are serving sentences of two or three years.

[Note how this senior police has no doubt that Buchtar and Karma will
be found guilty of the new charges they face. Such is the rule of law in Indonesia. – TAPOL]

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Abepura prison director, staff, accused of violence towards prisoners

 

[Slightly abridged in translation]

Bintang Papua, 13 December 2010

Director of Abepura Prison and 14 of his staff accused of acts of 
violent towards prisoners

There is still no clear information with regard to two cases of violence 
that occurred in Abepura Prison in the past month and it is hoped that 
the police will carry out a serious investigation in order to  explain 
these two incidents that have led to the security forces conducting 
sweepings throughout the district of Abepura. The need for a more 
humanitarian approach in dealing with the victims of these actions was 
stressed during a press conference  held by Forum of People's Democracy 
(Forem) in Abepura on Monday.

The series of incidents included the shooting in Nafri and the enforced 
removal of five prisoners, Filep Karma, Buchtar Tabuni, Dominggus 
Pulalo, Lopez Karubaba and Eni Elopere which has raised questions by 
Forem, particularly why the men were forcibly transferred to police 
custody and to explain what their present status is.

Two of the prisoners are political  prisoners while the other three are 
being held on criminal charges.

The five men were transferred by the police on Friday, 3 December at 
around 11pm, on the orders to Abepura prison director , Berthy Sitinjak. 
Up to this day, the prison authorities have failed to  tell them the 
reason for their having being transferred to police custody. All the 
focus has been on the five men having allegedly provoked  others in the 
prison to  destroy things in the prison on that Friday afternoon. 
According to the prisoners themselves, these acts of destruction were an 
expression of their feelings of dissatisfaction with the attitude of the 
prison director who failed to tell them why five of their co-prisoners 
had fled from the prison on the same day at about 12 noon.

One of the men, Wiron Wetipo, was shot dead while Filep Karma and 
Buchtar Tabuni tried to calm people down, and asked to meet the director 
of the prison for  an explanation as to what happened to the prisoner 
who was shot dead in Tanah Hitam.

According to Forem, as stated by Simon Yumame, Dominggus Pulalo, Lopez 
Karubaba and Eni Elopere were not involved in damaging prison 
facilities, yet even so, they were maltreated by prison director Berthy 
Sitinjak  along with 14 members of his staff. These actions resulted in 
a damaged ear for Dominggus Pulalo and swellings on his head  as a 
result of being kicked repeatedly  all over this body.

According to Filep Karma and his co-prisoners, the five men who fled 
from the prison on Friday were criminal prisoners and were in no way 
connected with any political activities or the OPM. They had simply 
spent their time in the prison learning new skills and growing vegetables.

Forem has therefore urged the prison director Berthy Sitinjak and the 
deputy director of law and human rights to take responsibility and to 
ensure the return of the five prisoners so that they can serve the 
remainder of their sentences in Abepura Prison.and to explain publicly 
why the five prisoners were shot at even though they had been able to 
flee from the prison at a time when it was being heavily guarded. Forem 
also calls on the minister for law and human rights and the 
Diretor-General of  prisons to take firm action against the director of 
the prison for the arbitrary acts of violence taken against the 
prisoners in Abepura Prison.

According to Forem, at their press conference,  the prison authorities 
have shown that they are incapable of giving proper guidance to the 
prisoners; on the contrary, they  have caused widespread anxiety among 
the prisoners against the police and army for opening fire on prisoners 
that resulted in the death of Wiron Wetipo.

These two serious incidents, the shooting in Nafri and the flight of the 
prisoners, means that the army and the police should conduct a full 
investigation into the Nafri shooting and other matters, that violence 
should not be resorted to and they should behave in a more professional 
way and in accordance with the law, so as not to create an atmosphere of 
fear among the  prisoners.

The prisoner director, when asked about the accusations being made 
against his staff for using violence in the prison, showed no interest 
in the matter, saying simply that it was okay for the  prisons to 
express their views about allegations that the prison staff used 
violence. The truth was, according to him, that they had thrown things 
around in the prison office. 'Which is why was they have been moved to 
police custody for their involvement in the events of 3 December, and 
their cases are now being taken forward by the police.
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