Tag: brutality

PAPUA STUDENTS: Freeport should close; US must be hed responsible for Crimes Against Humanity

image

image

image

PAPUA STUDENTS ALLIANCE (AMP)

 

PRESS RELEASE

Freeport McMoRan copper and Gold should be closed down and the United States should be held responsible for crimes against humanity and against the environment in Papua.

 

(JAKARTA, 09 November 2010) – The history of Papua is a history manipulated by the political and economic interests of other countries, especially the United States which eventually encouraged Indonesia to carry out the annexation of West Papua.  The political process that occurred prior to the implementation of the 1969 Act of Free Choice is a process in which the ideological interests of the world played an important role in the process of the history of Papua.  The Capitalist Bloc (the West) led by the United States and the Socialist Bloc led by the Soviet Union played a major political part in the political bargaining which led to the decisions concerning the political fate of the Papuan people up until today.

On the one hand there was the United States which played a role in cutting off political access of the Dutch Government to its colony in West Papua and in encouraging the Netherlands to accept a project of political diplomacy drafted by American diplomat, Elsworth Buncker, which resulted in the so-called Buncker plan in which important political concepts were drawn in relation to the right to self-determination of the West Papua people.  The Buncker plan was at the origin of the famous document known as the New York Agreement (NYA) signed by the Dutch and the Indonesians, under the auspices of the United Nations, which established the technical principles regarding the implementation of a process of consultation of the people on their right to self-determination.  This so-called Act of Free choice (Pepera) took place in 1969 and it was unfair, undemocratic and highly discriminatory towards the people of Papua.

In addition to playing the role of political diplomacy in the Western Block, the United States was also acting out of personal economic interests in order to safeguard its access to the natural resources in West Papua, an area extremely rich in natural gas, mining deposits, minerals, petroleum, forest products, fishery, plantations  and a number of other economic resources which proved to  be very profitable for the interests of the exploitation of foreign capital, especially for the United States, in Papua.  Evidently, the economic interest is Freeport McMoran Gold & Copper, with its basis in New Orleans, one of the largest mining company in the United States, a company which would later cause great problems concerning the political rights of the People of West Papua.  The political intervention of the United States and its behavior towards the Netherlands resulted in an insignificant political support from the Dutch with regard to protecting the right to self-determination of the people of West Papua.   Also the backing by the United States of the clique within the Indonesian army between 1965 and 1966 which facilitated the coming to being of the New Order authoritarian militaristic regime under the leadership of General Suharto, had as a direct result the annexation of West Papua, turning it into a colonized area for economic purposes, as well as a killing field where gross human rights violations were and still are perpetrated by the Indonesian army, an area fully controlled by the United States and the economic interests of the capitalists.

It is common knowledge that the Freeport company funds the Indonesian military with billions of rupiahs to secure the exploration area of PT. Freeport. In a report from the New York Times entitled “The Cost of Gold, The Hidden Payroll: Below a Mountain of Wealth, a River of Waste” (27 Dec 2005)  it is clearly described how much dirty money is received by high-ranking Indonesian military.

Over the past 32 years of control over Papua by the militaristic regime of Suharto, there have been numerous cases of violations of human rights as a result of many Military Operations conducted in Papua.  This situation did not stop after the period of reform in Indonesia in 1998. Regime change was not accompanied by fundamental changes to the system in Indonesia. Evidence of continuous gross human rights violations by the Indonesian military forces up until today can be seen, as two torture videos were circulated on the Internet some time ago.  These two films depicting scenes of torture were published by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC), based in Bangkok, through the Youtube site. A few days later, after meetings with President Yudhoyono at the State Palace, Co-ordinating Minister for Political, Legal and Security Affairs, Djoko Suyanto, confirmed in front of reporters that gross acts of torture had indeed been perpetrated by members of the military, on two civilians who were suspected of being members of the Free Papua Movement (OPM) in the District of Puncak Jaya, Papua. These cases of torture were committed by the Indonesian army, which has long established ties with the American Government in the field of military cooperation.

Considering the complexity of the problems in which Papua finds itself today, where there is no recognition of the democratic rights of the people of Papua, the Papuan Students Alliance states its position as follows:

1. Freeport McMoRan copper and Gold in the land of Papua should be closed down immediately and the United States should be held responsible for crimes against humanity and against the environment in Papua.

2. We demand that the Government of the United States, the United Nations and Indonesia be held accountable for the political conspiracy surrounding the 1969 so-called Act of Free choice, which was in effect a miscarriage of justice and morality, an act full of intimidation and manipulation.

3. We strongly call on the termination of the bilateral military cooperation between the United States and Indonesia.

4. We demand that there be a thorough and comprehensive resolution of all cases of human rights abuses.

5. We demand the withdrawal of the organic and non-organic military troops from Papua.

6. We demand the implementation of the right to self-determination or a referendum for the nation of Papua.

We raise these issues in our statement to the American government, Indonesia, the United Nations and all parties associated with the dark history of the Papuan people to date, so that they may address these matters of concern in an urgent manner.

 

Jakarta, 9 November 2010

General Coordinator

Rinto Kogoya

 

Action PR

Okto: 082112808445

 
Related Articles
0

British taxpayers money used to sponsor degree course attended by members of TNI

A letter sent from the UK Foreign Office to human rights group Tapol has revealed that British taxpayers money is being used to sponsor a Master’s degree course in Defence and Security Management, attended by members of the TNI. This revelation comes hot on the heels of footage showing TNI members attacking villagers in West Papua, amid reports of widespread abuse by them in the province.

Foreign and Commonwealth Office
South East Asia Pacific Team
King Charles Street London SW1A 2AH
1 November 2010
Dear Mrs Budiardjo,
Thank you for your letter of 19 October to the Foreign Secretary about Papua. We are aware of the incident referred to in your letter and have seen some excerpts of the video footage.

We immediately raised our concerns about this case with the Indonesian authorities, in London with Ambassador Thamrin and in Jakarta with the President’s Foreign Policy Adviser. We have expressed our hope that there would be a full and transparent investigation into the incident and that those responsible would be held accountable.
We have encouraged the Indonesian Government to respond constructively to allegations of human rights abuses, and welcome the Indonesian military’s admission of wrongdoing in this case. We hope that details of the investigation will be made available to the international community.
We continue to stress to the Government of Indonesia that if there is credible evidence of wrongdoing, it should be investigated and those responsible brought to justice.
We believe that the best way to encourage further progress within the Indonesian armed forces is through constructive engagement and the delivery of appropriate training. This has included regular Indonesian placements on MOD flagship courses (e.g. Royal College of Defence Studies, Advanced Command and Staff College), regional training focused on Peace Support Operations and maritime/border security, including an annual Exclusive Economic Zone monitoring course, ship visits and senior level engagement.
The Ministry of Defence (MoD) sponsors a Master’s degree course in Defence and Security Management, delivered by Cranfield University, at the Defence University in Jakarta. This course has been very successful over the last 4 years and many of the students are from members of the TNI. The MoD also supports development of the TNI in human rights by offering training in the Law of Armed Conflict.
Yours sincerely
N Atmore
Indonesia Desk Sout East Asia Pacific Group

0

Elderly Papuan man tells of his ordeal being tortured by Indonesian military

Report from CNN

A torture victim from West Papua has spoken publicly for the first time about his ordeal being tortured by members of the Indonesian military.

0

Indonesia’s police are brutal and corrupt – and apparently untouchable

Report from The Economist

Nov 4th 2010 | Jakarta

TEN years ago, as Indonesia emerged from economic chaos and the military-backed Suharto regime, the government was everywhere planting seeds of democratic reform. Among them was to split the national police from the armed forces in 2000. Ever since Indonesia declared independence in 1945, the police had been the neglected, ill-equipped little brother of the army. The idea of detaching them was to make them solely responsible for law enforcement across the vast Indonesian archipelago, while the armed forces retreated to their barracks.

A decade on, this reform effort has worked—but not necessarily in the ways that its drafters envisioned. The army is relatively quiet these days, having been forced to begin selling its business interests and attempt, somehow, to modernise despite tiny budgets and antiquated equipment. What is more, it has not intervened in the democratic process.

The national police, meanwhile, have indeed managed to assert themselves as the country’s enforcers of law, including taking the initiative against Indonesia’s home-grown Islamist extremists. Unfortunately, capturing or killing terrorist suspects is just about the only thing they are applauded for these days. Most people see the police as a liability: deeply corrupt and untrustworthy.

The past several months have been particularly troubling, even by the force’s low standards. In late June Tempo, a prominent Indonesian news magazine, ran a cover story revealing that more than a dozen senior police officials had suspicious bank accounts, some of which held millions of dollars. A week later an anti-corruption activist who helped expose those bank accounts was brutally beaten by unknown men, apparently in retaliation.

In mid-August the police’s top brass were forced to admit that they had no evidence implicating two senior anti-corruption officials caught up in a sensational graft investigation in 2009. This gave credence to allegations that the police had conspired to frame the pair because of a personal grudge. Separately, on August 31st police officers in Central Sulawesi province fired into a crowd of people protesting the death of a local man in police custody. Five people were killed and 34 injured. In mid-September in West Papua province police killed two men and injured a woman after a traffic dispute boiled over.

Two days before the West Papua incident, the police’s counter-terrorism unit, Densus 88, was accused of torturing independence activists in Maluku province. The unit, funded by the United States and Australia, was alleged to have tortured the activists during a visit by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono in early August.

The allegations came just as another Maluku separatist, Yusuf Sipakoly, died in custody of injuries his family claims were caused by torture at the hands of the police. The allegations fit a familiar pattern. Last year Amnesty International released a report detailing a pattern of widespread torture, sexual abuse and exploitation by police, and ill treatment of suspects during arrests, interrogation and detention in Indonesia. And the police have been accused of standing by as minority Christian groups in towns outside Jakarta have been repeatedly harassed in recent weeks by hardline Islamist groups. Police have even been accused of colluding with radicals in local extortion and thuggery rackets.

So far, aside from appointing an “anti-mafia” committee to help clean up the police as well as a corrupt judiciary, the president has shown little interest in reining in the force. Mr Yudhoyono, a retired army general, has refrained from punishing senior police officials for their long list of alleged transgressions. Sometimes he gives the impression of defending them. In early October the president nominated Timur Pradopo, the Jakarta police chief, to run the national force, despite allegations of his involvement in the killings of student demonstrators in the build-up to Suharto’s ejection from power back in May 1998, and again on a university campus later that year.

During his final press conference in late October the outgoing national police chief, Bambang Hendarso Danuri, attempted a mea culpa, apologising, profusely and repeatedly, for the excesses committed on his watch. The public, however, are unlikely to be forgiving. The force has had successes in its counter-terrorism operations, which have seen hundreds of terrorist suspects killed or put behind bars, including some of South-East Asia’s most wanted fugitives. But even that has come at a price. In September armed men attacked a police station in Medan, North Sumatra province, killing three officers, in an apparent retaliation for the capture or killing of terrorist suspects. The public was shocked by the ambush, but there was a notable absence of outward sympathy for the three slain officers. Given the force’s recent conduct, that kind of reaction could become depressingly familiar.

3

Papuan tells of torture by Indonesian soldiers

Tom Allard
Sydney Morning Herald

"I screamed on and on" ... Tunaliwor Kiwo.“I screamed on and on” … Tunaliwor Kiwo.   

A PAPUAN man depicted in a video being burnt, suffocated and hit by Indonesian troops says he was tortured for two days, according to his testimony recorded and translated by Papuan activists.

Tunaliwor Kiwo was shown in agony as the soldiers burnt his penis in the video, which was filmed in May and revealed exclusively in the Herald last month. It prompted a horrified response in Indonesia and around the world, and led to the rapid arrest of five Indonesian soldiers, who face a military tribunal today.

But in the new testimony Mr Kiwo, filmed two weeks ago, said the abuse was far worse than depicted in the first video.

He spoke of being repeatedly beaten and suffocated, of his head being crashed into a wall and of being burnt with cigarettes during the first day of torture, which followed his arrest as he travelled by motorcycle with his friend Telangga Gire on the road from Tingginambut to Mulia, the capital of Puncak Jaya regency, a hotbed of separatist activity.

An image from the video of Tunaliwor Kiwo being tortured by Indonesian soldiers.An image from the video of Tunaliwor Kiwo being tortured by Indonesian soldiers. 

”The next tortures were heating up a piece of iron or wire and it was put at my thighs and I screamed on and on,” he said in the video, conducted in the Lani dialect of Puncak Jaya and translated by Papuan activists. ”It got heated up again and put again on my left and right belly. I kept screaming. But they didn’t care of the pain I suffered. [The interrogators] tortured me incredibly since 9am to night to morning.”

That night, he was doused in freezing water.

The next day was even worse, according to Mr Kiwo, a 50-year-old farmer. Early that day, the soldiers threatened to burn him alive.

”The TNI [Indonesian military] put gasoline and light a fire and I was in the middle with the branches,” Mr Kiwo said. ”I couldn’t move, the flames were approaching me, trying to burn my body and my legs and hands were still tied up. I was continuously hysterical, in pain.”

At this point, Mr Kiwo said he was ”surrendering, ready to die”.

Then he says he was cut all over his body and face with a razor. The soldiers prepared a liquid concoction of chilli, shallots, onions, detergent and salt ”all smashed and mixed with water”.

The mixture was spread over his open wounds.

”I screamed loudly due to the pain but, in fact, it encouraged them to be more brutal and [they] kept showering me. They turned my body back and forth. The parts that were not showered [at first] were showered with chillies until the chillies was finished.”

Mr Kiwo was certain he would be executed. The soldiers repeatedly accused him of being a Papuan separatist fighter and demanded he reveal the location of a weapons cache. On the third day, he said, he escaped.

Mr Kiwo is living in hiding, as is Mr Gire. The filmed testimony was obtained amid great secrecy by Markus Haluk, from the Papuan Customary Council, which oversaw the translation from Lani to Indonesian. The translation could not be independently verified by the Herald.

Indonesia’s President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, has condemned the action depicted in the first video, and promised a transparent investigation.

But the head of Indonesia’s military, Admiral Agus Suhartono, has played down the seriousness of the offences.

The US Secretary of State, Hillary Clinton, during a brief visit to Papua New Guinea, would not comment on the incident but said any continuing human rights violations should be investigated and perpetrators held accountable.

0

Create a website or blog at WordPress.com

Up ↑