Credible but unconfirmed reports have been received by West Papua Media reporting that a major operation is currently being carried out by a combined force of of Australian trained and armed police and military special forces.
One extra company of Brimob police commandos from Manokwari have been flown in to take part in the raids on the civilian village of Anotaurei on Yapen Island, near the regional centre of Serui.
Witnesses have alleged that a joint-force of Indonesian Army (TNI), Brimob commandos and the elite counter-terrorism force Detachment 88 ( trained and funded by the Australian Federal Police) are intensifying their ongoing “Sweeping” against peaceful political activists and ordinary villagers.
The raid began at 11pm West Papua time in Anotaurei, and witnesses have claimed that 2 trucks, 3 police Avanza SUVs and a Kijang full of armed troops are patrolling and forcing entry in a house-to-house search and cordon operation.
Messages received by West Papua Media have alleged the troops are acting with great violence, and damaging property as they inspect homes, and seizing banned Morning Star banners and flags, sharp tools, kitchen equipment, and “documents” about the Free West Papua movement. These documents include flyers for rallies and pamphlets. Anyone found in possession of these are in danger of arrest, with Activists and human rights advocates expressing grave fears for their safety.
At time of writing the sweep operation is ongoing and likely to target outlying villages. This is a developing story – please stay tuned for more information.
Intensification of Indonesian security force repression on Papuan non-violent activists and ordinary villagers is allegedly occurring across Yapen Island, in response to escalating demands for freedom from violence, according to credible human rights sources on the island.
A massive raid has also been carried out by Australian-trained Detachment 88 and Kopassus special forces of the Indonesian National Army (TNI) early on May 29 on the jungle headquarters of the Yapen branch of the pro-independence National Liberation Army (TPN-OPM) near the village of Wadapi, Angkaisera district, Yapen.
Yapen Island – in yellow
Local human rights workers have told West Papua Media that many houses had been set on fire after the midnight raids and
weapons were discharged repeatedly by the combined Indonesian military and police force under the command of the Head of
Police (Kapolres) in Serui, Royce Harry Langie S.IK MH, and the District Military Commander (DANDIM), Letkol Inf Tornado. No confirmed reports of any shooting victims have come to light thus far, however West Papua Media has received credible claims that civilians who fled from the raids into the night may have sustained gunshot injuries from Indonesian troops firing into
houses, though this cannot be confirmed independently.
Reports that local police and military commanders have begun to call in major military reinforcements from across Indonesia are increasing fears of an imminent military assault on local villagers, causing many civilians to flee to forest for safety, human rights sources have told West Papua Media.
Forces from the pro-independence National Liberation Army (TPN-OPM) on Yapen have responded to fears of “all out war” between pro-independence and Indonesian occupation forces and have called for calm, ordering all TPN-OPM taskforces active in the area to not respond with violence to Indonesian brutality, citing concerns for the safety of local villagers, according to local independent local media source Warta Papua.
Local human rights sources have reported to West Papua Media that troops from the Police special forces Brimob and Detachment 88, backed up by Kopassus and Kostrad (Strategic Reserve) troops from Citanjung (Kopassus headquarters in Jakarta) and from Cenderawasih Battalion in Jayapura.
Additionally, Kopassus and Kostrad troops from the notorious Kapuas district, Kalimantan battalion of Kopassus have been deployed with the other units in many villages, in Wadapi, Wanampompi & Sasawalast and several other unnamed villages in the Angkaisera district. “We are very worried, as the addition of troops from Borneo… are known as army troops who are very sadistic in torturing civilians,” a local human rights worker told West Papua Media via SMS.
The joint taskforce troops have claimed to the TNI-owned Cenderawasih Post that they have broken a major TPN guerrilla base, however the only weapons seized were a traditional hunting poison blowpipe, a handful of traditional hunting spears, bows and arrows, two parang knives (used for preparing food), and two banned Papuan Morning Star flags. These items can be found in almost any rural dwelling in Papua, especially where residents have to supplement their food with animals from the forest.
Several other items were also seized, including cooking and farming equipment, and two 15 year old broken computer printers, which the TNI claimed was proof of a TPN headquarters.
Two men have been arrested and are currently being interrogated by Kopassus and D88 intelligence officers, with the TNI boasting that they are being intensively processed at the Yapen Police HQ in Serui. Local human rights sources have expressed grave fears for the safety of the detained men, amid credible fears that they will be subjected to harsh interrogation techniques and torture by the Australian trained and funded Kopassus and D88 officers. At this stage no legal representation has been afforded to the detainees, with one identified as Wanampompi man John Nuntian. There is also believed to be an unkown number of ordinary villagers who have been detained, and their whereabouts and status is currently unknown.
As the raids were occurring, several hundred TPN/OPM fighters have taken to the forests, and the TNI Dandim, LtKol Tornado, has told Cenderawasih Post that the campaign is intensifying to eradicate all those who are resisting the Indonesian military. He says that the estimated 230 fighters will be hunted down and the his forces will remain to conduct lightning sweeps on any village that gets named in intelligence investigations. These sweeps have traditionally subjected all its targeted villages to collective punishment, including mass burnings of houses and collective detention, acts clearly defined as war crimes.
Local sources have been unable to get a precise number of Indonesian combat troops occupying Papuan villages in Yapen, but credibly estimate to be upwards of two battalions of active combat personnel spread across twelve villages (at least 3000 combat personnel from standard battalion strengths – WPM), including specialists from Detachment 88.
Detachment 88 is fully funded by the Australian Federal Police, but the Australian government claims it is not funded to conduct operations against “separatist” or pro-independence forces, despite many documented cases of this occurring repeatedly in Papua. The Australian government has so far refused to make any sanction against the use of these forces in human rights abuses in Papua, instead increasing the budget and equipment it provides to D88.
Telephone communications with sources on the island have been sporadic, raising fears that security forces are restricting the phone network ahead of a major assault, making these reports difficult to verify independently by West Papua Media. However this activity is consistent with a more aggressive approach taken by Indonesian occupation forces against Papuan independence sentiment.
Indonesian police on Yapen have come under fire for their consistently brutal policies toward Papuan people. On May 1, thousands took to the streets to call for the expulsion of the Kapolres, Royce Harry Langie, and DANDIM, Letkol Inf Tornado, for atrocious behaviour, human rights violations, and violations of the Code of Conduct with the Indonesian military and police regulations.
According to sources, armed Indonesian police and military have conducted rolling raids on motorbikes across villages including Mantembu and surrounding hamlets outside of Serui town, seeking to arrest all those who were involved in the mass flying of the banned Morning Star independence flag. It is not known if the troops belong to the Australian trained anti-terrorist Detachment 88 or POLRI Gegana (Motorbike anti-terror commando) units, but those being targeted were simply engaging in peaceful acts of free expression – guaranteed under Indonesian Law.
All contact with local sources has been lost, and West Papua Media is concerned for the safety of our stringers.
This information is unconfirmed to West Papua Media’s normal standard of confirmation, however we believe the information is credible.
This is a developing situation. Please stay tuned. More information as soon as we receive and verify it.
There have been a number of shootings in Papua in recent months but mystery surrounds the problem of who is responsible.Ruben Magay, the chairman of Commission A of DPRP, the provincial legislative assembly of Papua, said that the failure of the police to deal with this problem was a sign of their lack of professionalism. This is what is worrying the Papuan people, ‘ he said ‘What they are doing is far from what the people expects. and hope for.’He said that he had warned the chief of police and the military commander to stop blaming the OPM. Making such claims is a sign of the lack of ability of the security forces.’
‘We can only accuse the OPM if there is clear evidence of their involvement.’ He said that the police should also stop talking about unidentified persons. It is only when someone is arrested and charged before a court of law on the basis of evidence that things become clear.’ We need to make things clear for the people. It is as though the police are trying to conceal their own incompetence.’
He said for a second time: ‘Dont keep talking about the OPM until you have evidence. And don’t talk about geographical problems as the facilities available are the ones that have been provided by the state.. Is anything lacking?’
According to a statement by the commander of the Cenderawasih military command, the OPM -Organisasi Papua Merdeka – was responsible for the recent shooting of the Trigana plane at the Mulia Airport, Puncak Jaya. This means that it is necessary for the OPM to be involved in trying to identify the basic problems surrounding the acts of violence in Puncak Jaya.
The co-ordinator of the Jaringan Damai Papua, JDP, (Papuan Peace Network), Dr Neles Tebay said it is necessary to involve the OPM, not only in order to bring to an end events that have been occurring recently as well as in the past, but also to seek a way of preventing such events from happening again. He was speaking following a meeting between the OPM and the government, and insisted that agreements that had been reached at that meeting should be adhered to.
‘A strategic solution can be put in place for the long term, bearing in mind that responses to events up to now have been re-active; for instance, when distubances occur, troops are deployed and after tranquillity has been restored, the troops are pulled back. That might be a good way to tackle things but is it only for the short term,’ he said.
He pointed out that the recent shooting in Puncak Jaya was the second time that shots had been fired. The first time was when a TNI helicopter was shot at, though on that first occasion, the plane shot at was a commercial plane.’
‘Such incidents have been occurring frequently in the recent past, which means that if the government wants to solve the problems in Puncak Jaya , it should recognise the fact that previous problems have not been solved.’
In view of this, the JDP offers two solutions to end the shootings in the region. In the short term, this would mean restoring peace and tranquillity to the area, but the second solution would require the involvement of various stakeholders, including the central government, the provincial government, the TNI and the police, bearing in mind that the military commander has already declared that the OPM was responsible.
The JDP co-ordinator said that these shooting incidents have been occurring at a time when no dialogue is taking place while also taking into account the fact that not only civilians but also members of the security forces have been among the victims.
‘Moreover, there has been no transparency on the side of the security forces about the results of their investigations. Were projectiles involved and if so, what kind of projectiles. Such things have never been explained to the general public.’
Dr Tebay also said that these shooting incidents had delayed local elections which are under way. ‘If these incidents are not resolved, it could also cause delays in the supply of essential goods for the population,’ he said.
Violence should not be answered with violence.
A member of the Papuan Customary Council, Fadel Alhamid said that violence should not be answered by violence as this can only result in yet more violence. He said that nothing was yet known about who was responsible for the initial violence; was it the TPN/OPM or unidentified persons? This only goes to show that the security approach is not the right way to improve the situation in Puncak Jaya. ‘In response to acts of violence, sweepings occur, but such operations spread fear among the people, who then flee their homes and go into the forests. A more persuasive approach is needed, and this requires the collaboration of all elements in society.’
This means involving political bodies, the churches, customary groups all of which should be actively involved, bearing in mind that the security approach has a direct impact on the civilian population. If everyone gets together, it should be possible to work out who was responsible for the shooting.
He went on to say that the security forces should carry out its investigations in greater depth so as to discover those elements that are behind the shootings.If it turns out to have been the OPM, there is a way out of the problem. But if unidentified persons are involved, we must be able to find out who they are, what their interests are in Puncak Jaya and in the Central Highlands such as in Timika, while similar investigations should be conducted with regard to the TPN/OPM.
ceived by West Papua Media reporting that a major operation is currently being carried out by a combined force of of Australian trained and armed police and military special forces.
ceived by West Papua Media reporting that a major operation is currently being carried out by a combined force of of Australian trained and armed police and military special forces.
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