Jayapura (20/12) – Ruben Magay, Chairman of Committee A of the Papuan Legislative Council (DPRP), strongly insisted that it is not correct for certain parties to link the activities of the West Papua National Committee (KNPB) to terrorism.
“For quite some time now, some parties have referred to the KNPB as a terrorist organization but I wish to reiterate that KNPB is not a terrorist group. On the contrary they are an organization which promotes democracy in Papua and that is part of the controlling function and the ability to evaluate the performance of the government in the region,” said Ruben Magay on Thursday (20/12).
According to him, if so far, for some reason, weapons, ammunition and explosives have been found in Papua, the task of the intelligence is to uncover and find out the origin and the source of this material.
“We question the efforts put into this matter by the intelligence. Where did they obtain those guns? It is really the task of the police and the intelligence to answer that question. At the governmental and institutional levels we need to make sure that we clearly define the status of terrorist groups and prove with strong evidence how such groups plan and carry out their actions,” he said.
According to Chairman Ruben, enforcing anti-terrorism laws in Papua, as envisaged by the Indonesian National Police (Polri), is also unnecessary.
“I believe such measures should not be deemed as necessary. If it is said that there are terrorists in Papua, I think we should turn our attention to the level of performance of the security apparatus. It would be wrong to address one issue with another issue. There are terrorists that are known to be implicated in explosions. The question is now: to what extent is the police able to ascertain them and subsequently how many further threats can be identified. This is what is important,” he said.
He went on to say that it is not the people who talk about democracy that should be called terrorists; certainly not the people who were shot and whose actions were then put in such a scenario that later on it was stated that they were the terrorists. “No, that should absolutely not be the case. For example, weapons and ammunition are being discovered in all kinds of places lately. My question is: where did these guns come from? It’s not as if we are talking about gold that can be panned by the local communities from underground. So it would not be appropriate to apply these so-called anti-terrorism laws to Papua. Let’s tackle this problem together in a responsible way and straighten out the issue of clarifying who the real owners are of these arms, ammunitions and explosives that were found in Papua. It is obvious that the material was brought in from outside, so a first step would be to take measures to heighten the safety and tighten security checks at ports and airports. That’s what is important,” said Ruben Magay. (Jubi/Arjuna/LT)
ELSHAM PAPUA
Lembaga Studi dan Advokasi Hak Asasi Manusia
(Institute for Human Ri ghts Study and Advocacy of Papua)
Reverting to the DOM era: Papua back to being a Zone of Military Operations
There was a significant increase in the intensity of the conflicts and violence in Papua between August 2011 and December 2012. ELSHAM Papua reported on several incidents that had resulted in serious casualties and although the growing severity of the incidents was disturbing, these did not prompt the Government to react. These events include the overwhelming offensive called “Operasi Aman Matoa I 2011”, terror actions and shootings by unidentified perpetrators (OTK), cases of internal displacements, as well as cases of extrajudicial killing of civilians by the police.
“Operasi Aman Matoa I 2011” is the designation for an armed crime prevention operation that was set up in the areas of Puncak Jaya and Paniai. This operation was under direct command of the Chief of Police, and was run by the Operations Task Force (Satgas Ops) through police telegram letter No. STR/687/VIII/2011 dated 27 August 2011.
The Operations Task Force for Operasi Aman Matoa I 2011 was led by Drs. Leo Bona Lubis, the Commissioner of Police. During the execution of Operasi Aman Matoa I 2011 in the Paniai Regency, a number of grave human rights violations were perpetrated, which include:
(a) the taking of the lives of two civilians, Salmon Yogi (20) and Yustinus Agapa (30) who died as a direct result of the armed conflict,
(b) the inflicting of injuries to at least four civilians: Yulian Kudiai (22), Melkias Yeimo (35), Yohanis Yogi (25) and Paskalis Kudiai (21), who became victim as a result of the armed conflict,
(c) great material loss due to the armed conflict in Eduda District which includes 78 houses that were burnt by the Operations Task Force; educational activities at 8 elementary school (SD) and 2 Junior High School (SMP) that had to be halted; religious and worship services could no longer be ensured in eight Catholic churches, seven Kingmi churches and four GKII churches; hundreds of machetes, knives, saws, hammers, bows and arrows were confiscated;
(d) villagers no longer felt secure in their own homes and they fled. As many as 37 people perished while in displacement: 13 toddlers, 5 children, 17 adults and 2 elders;
(e) communities from the Districts of Komopa, Keneugida, Bibida, East Paniai and Kebo have endured material loss due to their displacement. The villagers were forbidden from going to their gardens by the members of the Operations Task Force. As a result, this primary source of livelihood for the communities was left neglected and unattended. Prior to the evacuation, 1581 heads of livestock were forcibly slaughtered, including as many as 478 pigs, 3 cows, 11 goats, 132 rabbits, 381 ducks, and 576 chickens. After returning to their homes and villages, the residents experienced severe food shortage. Members of the Operations Task Force had also damaged the fences built by the residents, as they used those as firewood.
Violent acts committed by the security forces, both the military and the police, are still common and they are in flagrant violation of a number of international humanitarian standards and principles. Some of the cases that we note are as follows:
a. The heavy-handed assault carried out by the police against Persipura fans at Mandala Stadium on 13 May 2012, which led to 18 people suffering from respiratory problems due to tear gas that had been fired indiscriminately and six others being detained arbitrarily.
b. The shooting of four people in Degeuwo by the police on 15 May 2012, by which one person was killed and the other three were seriously wounded.
c. The assault against civilians in Honai Lama Wamena on 6 June 2012, by members of the Indonesian army (TNI) Battalion 756 Wimane Sili, which resulted in one person dead and 14 others seriously injured.
d. The arbitrary arrest and torture by the police of 10 people in the town of Serui, as they were commemorating the International Day for Indigenous People on 9 August 2012.
e. The forced disbanding by the police of a KNPB-led demonstration that was about to start in front of the campus of the State University of Papua in Manokwari on 23 October 2012. A total of 15 people were detained by the police, nine of them were tortured, and 2 others suffered gunshot wounds.
Summary executions by the police of pro-democracy activists who are active within the West Papua National Committee (KNPB) continue to occur. The extrajudicial shooting of Mako Tabuni (34), First Chairman of the KNPB on 14 June 2012, is clear evidence of acts of police brutality against civilians. A similar killing occurred in Wamena on 16 December 2012, when the police shot dead Hubertus Mabel (30), militant KNPB Chairman for the Baliem region.
Other violent acts such as terror acts and shootings by unknown assailants increased, both in 2011 and 2012. From 5 July to 6 September 2011, there were 28 shooting incidents where 13 people were killed and at least 32 people were wounded. Meanwhile, throughout 2012, there were 45 attacks by unknown assailants, killing 34 people, injuring 35 people and causing severe trauma to 2 people.
One of the worrisome events that received very little attention from the Government was the crisis which lasted from July to November 2012 in the Keerom where villagers fled their homes as they no longer felt secure because of activities conducted by the security forces. A joint effort between ELSHAM Papua and the Keerom Catholic Church enabled the return to their homes of 38 internally displaced people (IDPs) who had fled into the jungle.
Various cases of violence and human rights violations that occurred in Papua totally escaped the attention of the central Government and that of local Papuans. Conditions such as these indicate that the status of Papua as an autonomous region has turned into a status of “Special Operations Region”, similar to what was experienced in the decades between 1970 and 2000 when Papua was designated as a Military Operations Area (DOM). Legal impunity for the perpetrators of the violence becomes flagrantly visible as the perpetrators of such violence are practically never brought to justice, nor do they receive fitting sentences.
Prohibiting international humanitarian organizations, international journalists and foreign researchers from accessing the Papuan region inevitably gives way to the increasing acts of violence by security forces in that region. Elite units, such as Anti-Terror Special Detachment 88, are conducting activities that are contrary to their mandate as they themselves are the ones creating terror against activists of the pro-democracy movement in Papua.
Bearing in mind the socio-political conditions faced by Papuans today, ELSHAM Papua is calling for:
1. the Indonesian Government, to open access to international humanitarian agencies, international journalists and foreign researchers to the region so they can freely visit and monitor the human rights situation in Papua;
2. the police of the Republic of Indonesia, to immediately reveal to the public the identity of those responsible for the numerous attacks and mysterious shootings that have occurred lately in Papua;
3. the Indonesian Government and groups opposing the Government, to choose dialogue as a way to end the conflict and the ongoing violence in Papua;
4. the military and the police, to uphold and respect the universal principles of human rights that have been ratified by the Government of the Republic of Indonesia.
Jayapura: The fatal shooting of an activist of the KNPB, Hubertus Mabel, has been condemned by his family and by the KNPB – National Committee of West Papua – as unlawful. According to the law, if a person is deemed to be engaged in unlawful acts, he should be arrested and charged before a court of law but this did not happen in the case of Mabel and his colleague.
A spokesman for the KNPB, Wim Medlama, said that Hubertus had been immobilised by being shot in the legs. The security forces then pushed him into a police van where he was tortured and stabbed.
When he was arrested along with Natalis Alua, the two of them did nothing to resist arrest yet nevertheless they were shot.
‘We understand,’ said Medlama, ‘that Hubertus was severely beaten and stabbed in the chest. Natalis was also badly injured and is now being treated in hospital,’ said Medlama. He accused the security forces of acting without having any thought for the lives of their victims. ‘The security forces behaved like sadists and won’t even allow members of his family or his KNPB colleagues to see his body or demand an autopsy.’
Hubertus and his colleagues were not involved in the attack on Pirime Lanny Jaya. His activist colleagues believe that the police were feeling very frustrated and had opened fire on Hubertus and his colleague out of a sense of revenge for the deaths of three members of the police force who died during an attack on the Pirime police station.
‘The scenario was to convict Hubertus for showing resistance but this is simply not true.’ According to the law, a person should be taken into custody and brought before the court, not shot dead.’
‘When taking someone’s life, the police should be able produce powerful evidence before taking the law into their own hands like this,’ said Medlama.
If Hubertus did violate the law, he should be tried, not shot dead as happened to Mako Tabuni.
‘What the security forces are trying to do is to stamp out the issue of Papua Merdeka but the way they behave is having precisely the opposite effect, making Papuans more determined than ever to achieve an independent Papua.’
‘For every single Papuan who is murdered, a thousand Papuans will rise up and struggle for their freedom,’ said Medlama
‘They have accused us of being terrorists but we don’t have any bombs yet the allegations still persist. We have no idea what other tricks the security forces have up their sleeves in order to discredit us and the people of Papua, he said.
(West Papua Media Note: despite WPMs article yesterday on the fake journalism (allegedly done by a staff member with connections to Indonesian intelligence agencies) that made it through Bintang Papua’s editorial process, WPM can verify each and every statement made in this report is accurately reported, as we have received independent statements from the KNPB that verify this, and of course WPM broke the original story. All our syndicated articles from Papuan media outlets must go through the same verification standards as our other sources, and we must take the time to point out that the majority of reporters at Bintang Papua are professional journalists and are not Indonesian intelligence agents. We do believe there needs to be a tightening of their editorial process however to eliminate fake journalism – same as any media outlet.)
Shooting victim believed to be either Hubertus Mabel or Natalis Alua (CONFIRMED PHOTO; unconfirmed identity) in Wamena hospital, 16 Dec 2012. Both Victims died from their wounds by sunset, according to human right reports. (Photo via Buktar Tabuni/KNPB)
compiled from reports of Tabloid Jubi, Victor Mambor and West Papua Media stringers in Wamena
December 17, 2012
A West Papua National Committee (KNPB) activist has been killed, and a farmer has died from his wounds in hospital, after being shot by members of the Australian-trained anti-terror unit Detachment 88 outside Wamena on December 16, following raids that arrested at least six activists on Sunday morning, according to multiple sources.
KNPB activist Hubertus Mabel (aged 30) died shortly after being taken by police to Wamena hospital after the shooting at 1030am in the village in Milima (or Kugima) in Kurulu district outside Wamena. Local farmer Natalis Alua (34) died in coma in hospital after being shot in the same incident, according to latest reports from human rights sources in Wamena.
According to journalist Victor Mambor, at this time Hubert was still alive and this was confirmed both by the police and Victor Yeimo (National KNPB Chairman). “Police told me that Hubert was shot in the leg at 09.30 (morning). Hubert was taken to hospital by police and then died at the hospital because of loss of blood…. At 6 (afternoon), Hubert claimed by police died in hospital.”
Hubertus Mabel’s body being prepared for burial, late December 16, 2012 (photo: KNPB/ West Papua Media)
“Some peoples in the Kugima Village, the place where Hubert was shot, told us police entered the village in full force. They brought two people who had been arrested before (Meky Kogoya and Wene Gombo) to the village to tell them where Hubert lived.”
Hubertus Mabel (Photo: KNPB)
At 9am, the same joint police/army and Densus 88 squad conducted a armed raid in the village of Kosi Hubi Holima, in Wamena. KNPB Wamena Chairman Simion Daby was arrested with human rights activist Baroy Sambon, Meki Jikwa (Kogoya), John Huby, Pie Huby, Herae Huby, and Ima Mebel, allegedly at the house of Meky Kogoya, who was accused by police of being responsible for a bombing incident in Wamena. They were all taken forcefully by police to Jayawijaya police headquarters.
It is believed that human rights worker Sambon was arrested as he was trying to alert international media to the situation, but this has not been verified.
The KNPB have repeatedly denied involvement in planning or carrying out acts of violence or bombings in Papua, a view supported by the Churches, human rights organisations and legal networks in Papua. Police have yet to provide any credible evidence that shows their involvement, despite millions of dollars being provided to Densus 88 by Australia for forensic evidence analysis.
Alleged TPN retaliation questioned
There have been reports of an alleged West Papuan National Liberation Army (Tentara Pembebasan Nasional or TPN) retaliation against police over the shooting of Hubertus Mabel, but human rights workers have cast doubt on the involvement of TPN forces, instead accusing Indonesian security forces of acting up to continue to create a false scenario for conflict.
According to a report in Tabloid Jubi, the sound of gunfire could still be heard up to 11pm on 16 December in Wamena.
‘On 10.25pm, there was an exchange of fire between the TPN-OPM (the military wing of the OPM) and the TNI/Polri , Indonesian army and police, somewhere between Misi Market and Sinakma, Yusodarso Road. The situation in Wamena was said to be tense and there were calls for help,’ according to a local report as quoted by Jubi.A local resident, Yason, confirmed reports of the sound of gunfire which was still continuing. It is alleged that this was in response to the shooting of Hubertus Mabel. Another local resident named Vita told JUBI that the local police station had been burned down in response to the shooting of Hubertus Mabel. According to Vita, ‘Mabel and member of the KNPB was shot by the security forces as he was suspected of a bombing the Wamena, which led to the police station being burned down.’The local police chief later confirmed to JUBI that there had been an exchange of fire, but West Papua Media was unable to find any witnesses or evidence that any armed TPN unit was in the area.
However long time human rights worker Markus Haluk told West Papua Media that local investigators had been visiting witnesses and have compiled a chronology that sits at odds with this account. According to Haluk, at around 8pm local time, a number of drunk people set fire to one market stall at Pasar Misi/Bungsu. Haluk also reported that at 11pm local time, police arrived on the scene with the Deputy Chief of Jayawijaya Police and opened fire with a barrage of shots, all from one side, with no clear target apart from civilians who had gathered. Police then moved to the Dewan Adat Papua offices less than a kilometre from the scene, and set fire to them in retaliation, despite the burning market stalls having no connection to either the DAP leader or council staff.
Markus Haluk said that the “Alleged drunks burning kiosks in the market (is) scripted by the security forces to divert attention from the arrests and shootings of civilians and KNPB activists, and is a conscious Scenario consciously to burn the office and create psychological pressure against the leaders and members of the Papuan Customary Council Lani Pago Baliem Region.”
Local human rights workers believe this latest round of security force misbehaviour is due to the payment to the new Papua Police Chief Tito Karnavian (former Densus 88 commander) of Ten Billion Rupiah (approx US$1 million) from the Papuan Governors office, for the provision of “Phase 2” security for the Papuan Gubernatorial Election campaign, which was also earmarked to maintain a peaceful environment in the lead-up to Christmas.
“Many parties are upset with these incidents,” said Haluk. “For catching, shooting in Wamena occurred on Sunday, when people were seeking to church to worship. While the arson of the DAP offices were do middle of the night, when the community was quiet for the night, ” he explained.
“On receipt of the funds, the Papua Police Chief conveyed the importance of maintaining the security and peace of Christmas and the election of Governor. Instead, he led police officers making arrests, shootings and arson of Balim Traditional Council offices,” an exasperated Haluk told West Papua Media.
These arrests come amidst a major series of operations by Indonesian security forces across Papua on the anniversary of the Densus 88 assassination of legendary TPN guerrilla leader Kelly Kwalik on December 16, 2009. Heavily armed Densus 88 personnel, including an unidentified Australian man, were seen to be guarding Kelly Kwalik’s tomb to prevent a memorial service from being held to commemorate the anniversary of Kwalik’s extrajudicial execution.
Papuan homage (16/12) to tomb of murdered OPM General Kelly Kwalik, blocked by heavily armed intelligence personnel (note Buleh Densus 88 advisor). (Photo courtesy Beni Pakage)
Also, in news from the Paniai, Brimob paramilitary police have reportedly shot and captured Yakobus Utii in Enarotoli on Sunday, alleging that he was a senior figure in Jhon Yogi’s TPN command.
Report of Human Rights Investigation by Monitoring Team from LP3PH (Institute for Research and Development of Legal Aid), Manokwari, as assembled from various local sources and members of the victim’s family.
December 6, 2012
Wednesday 5 December 2012, the weather was overcast without rain, seeming to restrain the usual busy activities of the local population, government and private company staff, white and blue collar workers, market traders, farmers, fishers, schoolkids and students, plus the security forces: army, police and intelligence.
From early morning the atmosphere was tense: from about 07.00 to 09.oo [Papua time] groups of local people could be seen moving to blockade various major road intersections in Manokwari Town. Primary official routes like Jl. Yos Sudarso, [near Sanggeng in front of the Bank Mandiri, Bank BRI and Bank Papua complex] as far as the three-way intersection on Jl. Merdeka & Jl. Gunung Salju [Makelew Fanindi complex] were blocked by mobs using wood, old tyres set on fire, tables, and tree branches, all thrown on the road. Various intersections of roads heading out to the residential areas of Fanindi beach [beside the Swissbel Hotel], Arkuki [beside the Bahagia store], Sanggeng market, and Jl. Serayu Sanggeng were blockaded by a populace brewing with anger.
While the atmosphere in Manokwari has been tense there has never been any trouble between groups in civil society or between the local community and the security forces. Several witnesses said that ‘people are very emotional, they are making these protests because of the shooting of Timo Ap’. The police secretively shot and killed Timo Ap, and then took his body to his house in Wirsi, Manokwari.
Demainus Waney [red circle] in the hands of authorities after demanding the crowd to break up using a loudhailer
Timo AP’s coffin is returned to the people by the Police
The atmosphere at Jl. Siliwang in front of the West Papuan Governor’s office: many street traders’ sites have been smashed and burned.
The victim Timo Ap has been bandaged around the chin after death [rigor mortis]
Mrs Nelestin, the victim’s aunt, opens the victim’s clothing to show his wound.(LP3PH)
Several news sources in Manokwari reported that the victim had been shot in the head, however it is clear there is no injury to his head.
A wound has been stitched in the stomach where the victim was shot
All Photos: LP3PH/West Papua Media
Chronology
A chronology of events has been put together as follows, from various civilian sources including the family of the victim Timotius Ap:
1) More than 3 days ago the victim Timotius Ap, grandson of the late Timotius Ap, [former area head of Wirsi complex in West Manokwari], returned from Java to Manokwari: in Java he had been staying with family and working as a Marine;
2) Timo Ap returned home to Manokwari with his wife Iwanggin;
3) Timo was rarely present at the Wirsi house, he was mostly elsewhere due to being on the DPO [Wanted List], related to various cases that the Police accused him of;
4) On Tuesday, 4 December 2012, as morning was turning to midday, Timo Ap was hanging out with his friends at Wirsi and wanting to eat areca nuts [?] but after eating them, his friends cannot account for his whereabouts;
5) By the evening of 4 December, at around 09.00 Papuan time [21.00?] Timo was received and treated at the Dr Azhari Hospital [Navy Hospital] Manokwari;
6) Around 10.00 [22.00?] Papuan time on 4 December, a friend of the family brought a message to Timo’s aunt Nelestin Ap, to ‘please come to the hospital to see Timo, whether he is still alive or already dead’. So then Timo’s aunt and other relatives hurried to the Navy Hospital but on the way they passed police and medical vehicles taking Timo’s corpse home to his grandmother’s house at Jl. Simponi Rindu, Wirsi, West Manokwari;
7) On arriving at the house, there was only the victim’s grandmother, in her 70’s, living alone. She had no idea that her grandson’s body was being brought to her house. ‘The employees bringing in the corpse said nothing at all to the grandmother’, and then those employees just left the coffin there and went off;
8) After several minutes the aunt and several of the victim’s loved ones arrived, or came back from the hospital and cried hysterically upon seeing the body wearing only underpants and a clean T-shirt that he had been dressed in. His friends said that he had no other clothes apart from the clean T-shirt and underpants he had been dressed in. At the hospital he had been wrapped up in bandages around his chin and neck as though he were injured, but there appeared to be no injury to his neck, chin or head in general. His only wound was discovered to be on his stomach near the centre, where a surgical incision to remove the projectile [bullet] had been stitched up.
9) By 11.30 the news had started to spread widely, that the victim Timo Ap had been shot dead by Police, and the local community began arriving to pay their respects and condolences.
10) In the morning at about 06.00 [Papua time] various family members began blockading the route into Wirsi [Jl. Simponi Rindu]. Blockades then spread to various road junctions in Manokwari, while the local daily paper MEDIA PAPUA released in its Headline news that Timo Ap had been shot dead by the OPNAL [Professional Operations Team] of Polsek [Police sector] Manokwari town at Maripi beach, South Manokwari district at about 16.00 Papua time. This was due to his opposing the officers with an improvised pistol; he was killed with a shot to the head;
11) From around 07.00 to 09.00, Papua time, the community closed off the main roads of Mankwari such as Jl. Yos Sudarso, Jl. Merdeka, the route to Sanggeng settlement, Jl. Siliwangi, Jl. Soedjarwo Condronegoro [?], Jl. Gunung Salju [heading to Ambun];
12) At the same time, activities in Manokwari came to a complete standstill. The business centre, Hadi department store, Orchid Swalayan, the market, stalls and shops were closed en masse by their owners. Offices also shut their doors – the Manokwari Regency Government office of West Papua province, schools, banks: from early this morning until mid-morning as this report is written;
13) At 10.00 Papua time, large groups began violent action, smashing shops along the length of Jl. Yos Sudarso and Jl. Merdeka as far as Jl. Siliwangi. Tens of buildings along the road suffered quite serious damage, and many cars and motorbikes were wrecked by the mob;
14) Around 12.00, as the mob moved towards the town centre right in front of the West Papuan governor’s office, patrols of Brimob [mobile brigade], Dalmas Polres [area police] backed up with Indonesian Army forces were seen closing off the intersection that the crowd wanted to pass;
15) A local man, Demianus Waney held a megaphone in front of the security forces, asking the crowd to disperse and go home…. ‘I say go home’… said Demianus Waney….. but hearing those words, the crowd became more worked up. In the process of their demonstrations against Demianus Waney, a number of buildings, restaurants owned by transmigrants around the harbour and PT Pelni [national shipping line] became targets of their anger;
16) The police, Brimob and TNI [Indonesian army] started to rush forward but were stopped by an attempt at negotiation by a priest, who said he had been the victim’s priest [i.e. Timo Ap who had been shot and killed]. However at the same time Demianus Waney said that every avenue had been tried already, inviting the armed forces to action;
17) The security forces then moved forward to break up the crowd. The police, Brimob and soldiers using trucks, paddy-wagons and Barracuda vehicles moved rapidly to take over the main road that had been controlled by the mob;
18) Around 13.00, Papua time, the situation had become calm and back to normal.
West Papua Media Alerts 