Tag: torture

Statement of deep concern by Coalition of Human Rights Defenders in Papua

Bintang  Papua, 17 June 2011Human rights defenders in Papua very worried

Acts of violence and terror that have been perpetrated against human rights defenders as well as against journalists have led to a  sense of deep concern among human rights NGOs and religious organisations which are members of the Coalition of Human Rights Defenders in the Land of  Papua

The following NGOs held a press conference in Jayapura  on Friday 17 June, to convey their problems:

KomnasHAM- Papua, the Synod of the Kingmi Church in Papua, the Synod of the Baptist Church in Papua, Foker NGO (NGO Working Group) Papua, Kontras Papua, LBH – Legal Aid Institute in Papua, and BUK, United for Truth.

Foremost among the agencies criticised was the TNI, the Indonesian army whose members were involved in a number of acts of violence. They drew attention in particulate to five incidents that had occurred during the past five months in which members of the TNI were involved:

‘Up to June this year, there have been at least five incidents which reflect the  arrogance and random actions perpetrated by members of the TNI,’ said Olga Hamadi, the co-ordinator of Kontras Papua. Others present at the press conference included the Rev. Benny Giay, chairman of the Synod of the Kingmi Church in the Land of Papua, Mathius Murib, representative of Komnas HAM-Papua, Eliezer M, LBH-Papua, Julian Howay of the ALDP, and a number of human rights activists.

They said that the much-vaunted  reforms within the TNI were rarely reflected in the activities of members of the TNI on the ground. ‘Is this what the commander of the TNI was praising so profusely during his recent visit to Papua,’ wondered Rev Giay.

Mathius Murib  said that the incident that occurred in Puncak Jaya a few months ago had drawn a great deal of public attention, nationally as well as internationally. [This refers to the acts of torture against Papuans that were circulated by video.]

‘All their talk about Love and Peace is far from been applied by members of the security forces on the ground. Isn’t it time for them to change their tune?’

They said that the continued occurrence of acts of violence and intimidation by members of the TNI is a clear indication that no actions have been taken against members of the TNI who have violated the law.

‘We are concerned about the impact this is having on the reputation of the Indonesian state and wonder  what is being done to protect the rights of human rights defenders,’ said Olga Hamadi.

She said that in cases where members of the TNI had been involved in acts of violence, all that had happened was that they had been moved sideways. ‘Or, in those instances where they had been taken to court, they had appeared before a military tribunal and the verdicts were often unclear or had had little if any effect.,’ said Peneas Lokbere, co-ordinator of BUK.

The Coalition of Human Rights Defenders in the Land of Papua therefore issued the following statement:

1. Protection is needed for human rights defenders in Papua in carrying out their humanitarian activities throughout the Land of Papua. Such protection can be provided by the introduction of a special law, while at the same time setting up an independent commission at state level for the purpose of monitoring and advocacy as well as taking sanctions against those individuals who commit violence against human rights defenders.

2. As a short-term measure, we regard it as important to set up a special bureau within Komnas HAM to focus on the protection of human rights defenders.

3. In view the many acts of intimidation and violence perpetrated by members of the armed forces, we urge the military commander of  Cenderawasih XVII military command  to take firm measures in the law courts and administration against all violations perpetrated by members of the TNI on the ground.

4. To provide moral guidance  to all officers of the armed forces  as well as disseminate an understanding of human rights so as to ensure that acts of violence  perpetrated by members of the armed forces are not committed against civil society or against human rights defenders in the Land of Papua.

[Translated by TAPOL]

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‘If You Mess With Us You’re Dead’

via NewMatilda.com

By Jason MacLeod

indo soldier in west papua

There was nothing clandestine about the beating of human rights activist Yones Douw in West Papua last week. Jason MacLeod reports on the latest in a long pattern of public violence by the Indonesian military

“You can mess with the police,” said the Indonesian soldiers, “but if you try it with us, you’re dead.”

According to witnesses that was what was said to Yones Douw, a 42-year-old Papuan human rights defender as he was beaten with lumps of wood by soldiers from Kodim 1705, Nabire’s District Military Command in the Indonesian province of Papua. Immediately after the beating Douw went to the local Siriwini hospital but was refused treatment. Local staff demanded a letter from the police before they would treat his wounds. Douw now fears for his safety and has gone into hiding.

The incident occurred on the 15 June. Douw, a church worker with the Kingmi Church’s Bureau of Justice and Peace in Nabire, heard that a protest was going to take place at the 1705 District Military Command (Kodim) base in Nabire, Papua province, and he went to the base to monitor it. Thirty minutes after he arrived, a group of protesters turned up in three trucks, broke into the front entrance of the base and started to shatter the windows and throw objects. Douw immediately rushed into the base to calm the protesters.

In response, the military fired shots into the air and started hitting the protesters. Douw was struck on the head with pieces of wood many times. He also sustained injuries on his shoulder and wrists from the beatings. The protesters fled the scene, pursued by members of Kodim 1705 and armed troops from neighbouring Battalion 753. This is what gave Douw time to escape.

Yones Douw was not the accidental victim of some random act of violence. And the protesters he was defending were not some random mob of outraged Papuans or an attack by the Papuan Liberation Army, Papua’s lingering guerrilla force. The attack on the Nabire District Military Command was an expression of a grief stricken family angered at the senseless killing of one of their own. The family wanted to hold the military accountable for the killing of Derek Adii, a man who was beaten to death by soldiers a few weeks earlier.

In mid-May Douw, a chronicler of human rights violations in the troubled Paniai region for some years now, published a report that was picked up by Jubi, West Papua’s only independent news service. Douw’s report detailed the killing of Derek Adii on 14 May 2011. Adii, a 26-year-old Nabire man had just completed his application to join Papua’s burgeoning civil service.

According to Douw’s report, Adii was boarding the crowded passenger vessel KM Labobar at Nabire’s dock when he was beaten by six members of the military. One of the soldiers allegedly pulled out a bayonet and stabbed Adii in the head. The six men then threw his body overboard. Adii died at the scene.

Douw believes he was beaten by the military for retribution — not only for reporting Adii’s killing but also for continuing to shine a spotlight on human rights abuses in West Papua, an area the Indonesian police and military are trying to close off from international scrutiny by locking out journalists and even diplomats.

The circumstances surrounding Adii’s very public murder and Douw’s public beating in the front yard of a military base located on a main road in the middle of a town is typical of the patterns of human rights abuses in West Papua. Australian National University scholar and former Director of the Catholic Office of Justice and Peace in West Papua, Br Budi Hernawan OFM who is studying torture in West Papua, says that torture and human rights abuses in Papua are a kind of “public spectacle”.

In the 400 odd cases of torture that Hernawan has studied it is mostly poor and innocent Papuan civilians are rounded up and publicly abused. The perpetrators are nearly always the Indonesian military and police. It is classic state terror, the purpose of which is to violently pacify the population, to enforce the security apparatus’ control over human bodies and the body politic — and to intimidate and silence Papuan dissent.

It is a script that Yones Douw has refused to buy into. In the meantime other Papuans have stepped into Douw’s shoes. They are now chronicling the military’s attack on him and sending reports out to a domestic and international network in the same way that Douw has been ceaselessly reporting on the human rights abuses of others.

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Human rights NGOs in Papua may seek international action about violations in Papua

Bintang Papua, 14 June 2011
Jayapura: On the occasion of the tenth anniversary of the Wasior
incident, which was described by Komnas HAM – the National Human Rights
Commission – as a gross violation of basic human rights, two leading
human rights organisations in West Papua, BUK – United for Truth – and
KontraS-Papua – Commission for the Disappeared and the Victims of
Violence, held a press conference in Jayapura.

They said that there has been a failure to show any serious concern
about the violation of basic human rights in Papua. In view of this,
they said that they now intend to bring these cases up before an
international mechanism. ‘There has as yet been no international move
to take action on these cases, but we intend to raise these issues by
waging a campaign in the hope that this will bring pressure to bear on
the Indonesian government to resolve these cases,’ said Selpius Bobii,
the BUK co-ordinator. who was accompanied as the press conference by
the co-ordinator of KontraS-Papua, Olga Hamadi.

He also said that they would make formal approaches by letter to a
number of government institutions as well as NGOs.

‘Immediately after this press conference, we will be sending letters to
Komnas HAM, to the attorney-general’s office, to Amnesty International ,
to the media in Papua as well as to NGOs in Germany and elsewhere.’

The organisations felt that such action was now called for as a way of
exerting pressure so as to ensure that these cases are recognised as
gross human rights violations and are brought before a court of law.

‘It seems that it is necessary to bring pressure to bear on the various
NGOs and on the government to persuade them to be more serious about
resolving a number of human rights cases in Papua,’ they said.

According to data that has been collected by BUK, these cases resulted
in the deaths of six people at the time of the incidents, while seven
others died subsequently as a result being subjected to torture. Seven
people are reported to have disappeared, while no fewer than 305 others
were subjected to sweeping operations known as ‘Tuntas Matoa’.

‘There has also been discrimination against the families of the victims
because their parents have been branded as separatists. This is apparent
from the way that /respect /funds have been distributed, bearing in mind
the fact that the families have been treated differently than others in
the community.’

With regard to the human rights violations that have been perpetrated in
Papua at the hands of members of the Indonesian army (TNI) and the
Indonesian police (POLRI), in all these cases, it has been virtually
impossible to bring them before a court of law. ‘In the case of those
incidents that were actually taken to court, nothing was done to side
with the victims; the perpetrators were protected with the argument that
whatever had been done was in the interest of the security of the state.
An example of this was the Abepura case where those who were found
guilty are no longer behind bars.

The Wasior incident occurred on 13 June 2001. It was triggered when a
person demanded compensation for the theft of his traditional land
rights but this failed to solicit any response. On the contrary, the
people concerned were accused of disrupting security and were arrested,
tortured, and in many cases killed or made to disappear.

‘Cases that have been identified by Komnas HAM as gross violations of
human rights have reached a stalemate.after disputes between Komnas HAM
and the attorney-general’s office, with the latter using formalistic
excuses.

They went on to say that the Wasior case as well as the Wamena case (the
fatal shooting of Opinus Tabuni in August 2010) had been acknowledged by
Komnas HAM as gross violations of human rights but it had been virtually
impossible to deal with such cases because the administrations of the
provinces of Papua and West Papua which came into being following the
special autonomy law (OTSUS) had also failed to respond.

In view of all this, the representative of BUK made the following demands:

1. The president of Indonesia should immediately resolve the Wasior and
Wamena cases and in doing so recognise the fact that Papuans are
citizens of the Unitary Republic of Indonesia, NKRI which means that
their standing and dignity within the state is in keeping with the
values of the Papuan people as citizens of Indonesia.

2. The attorney-general’s office should end its machinations with regard
to the Wasior and Wamena cases and co-ordinate with other state
institutions so as stop their activities which have resulted in
reinforcing the cycle of impunity.

3. The administration of the province of Papua, along with the DPRP,
Komnas HAM-Papua and the MRP (Majelis Rakyat Papua ) should act together
as quickly as possible to ensure that the Wasior and Wamena incidents
are brought before a human rights court in the Land of Papua.

4. A Papuan Human Rights court should be set up immediately.

5. If the government fails to deal seriously with the Wasior and Wamena
cases, we as representives of all the victims of human rights
violations in the Land of Papua will bring these matters before an
international court of law.

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Urgent need for Truth and Reconciliation Commission and Human Rights Court in Papua

Press Release from LP3BHLaw 21/2001 on Special Autonomy for Papua as amended by Law 35/2008 states the following in article 46, para (1): ‘In order to strengthen unity of the people in the province of Papua, a Truth and Reconciliation Commission should be set up while Article 46 reads as follows: ‘ Within the framework of strengthening unity and unanimity, a Trth and Reconciliation shall be set up.’

‘The task of the Commission (KKR) shall be (a) to reach a clarification of Papuan history to solidify unity and unanimity of the nation within the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia and (b) to draft measures towards reconciliation.’

In further elucidation of Article 46, it states the need for reconciliation which shall include the acknowledgement of errors, the need for apology, the offer of forgiveness, peace, the rule of law, amnesty, rehabilitation or other alternatives  necessary to upholding the sense of justice with the community in order to uphold unity and unanimity.

In the opinion of LP3BH-Manokwari, the Association for Research, Advocacy and Development of Legal Aid,  a Commission for Truth and Reconciliation is an integral  part of the implementation of special autonomy that should as a matter of urgency be implemented the Indonesian Government and the regional government in the Land of Papua, namely the governments of Papua and West Papua.

The formation of the KKR is very urgent. There are four issues that need to be dealt with: first, the marginalisation and effective discrimination against the indigenous Papua people as a result of economic developments; political conflicts; and the mass in-migration into Papua since the 1970s.Affirmative action needs to be taken in order to empower the indigenous Papuan people.

The second problem is the failure of development, especially in education, health and economic empowerment. This requires  new paradigms directed towards development that is focussed on improving public services so as to advance the welfare of indigenous Papuans living in the kampungs.

The third issue is the contradiction between the history and political identities of Papua and Indonesia. This problem can only be resolved by means of dialogue such such happened in Aceh.

The fourth issue is the responsibility for state violence committed against Indonesian citizens in Papua. This needs reconciliation between  a human rights court and the truth; to uphold the rule of law and justice for the victims, their families and all Indonesian citizens now living in Papua.

The way to resolve the third and fourth issues  means, according LP3BH, the formation of a truth and reconciliation commission and the setting up of a human rights court in Papua. This is very urgent and pressing and requires the support both of the Indonesian Government and and the governments of the provinces of Papua and West Papua and the various legislative assemblies (DPRP and DRP PB) Why is this so? Because the  historic contradictions and the political identities between Papua and Jakarta all too frequently become the trigger for social-political conflicts  in the Land of Papua. It frequently happens that  when Papuans take action to express their political aspirations in the form of peaceful demonstrations or events held to mark the anniversary of Papuan independence day on 1 December or the anniversary of  the independence of the West Melanesian Republic on 14 December, these incidents become politicised by the state and treaed as criminal acts by the security forces (POLRI) with the arrest of activists of peaceful demonstrators who are then accused of MAKAR or of disturbing the public order and treated as a criminal act in accordance with the criminal code (KUHP).

The security forces frequently use violence amounting to human rights abuses  towards victims either in the form of physical violence or violation of their rights as guaranteed in the KUHAP – the criminal procedural code.

On the other hand, ever since the Act of Free Choice (PEPERA), gross violations of human rights  have been committed by the military against Papuan civilians who are killed, tortured or forcibly disappeared.  Anything between 500 and 1,000 Papuan civilians have been murdered, tortured, forcibly disappeared, and subjected to other forms of violence by members f the military forces (TNI) in virtually all the towns and cities  such as Jayapura, Merauke, Fakfak, Sorong, Manokwari and Biak. In Biak, a number of Papuans who work in the civil service as teachers, nurses, as well as people working for private enterprises, as well as those who worked during the Dutch period  in Serui, Nabire and Biak have been arrested and imprisoned for more than two years at the TNI naval base in Biak.

In addition, properties have been unlawfully and forcibly seized from homes and shops belonging to Chinese inhabitants by members of the armed forces, it being alleged that  they are assets owned by the OPM, which is used as justification. The civilian community in the Land of Papua have themselves felt how  the Indonesian military security forces  entered people’s homes and seized people’s belongings such as transistor radios, tinned food and drinks from The Netherlands All these things were confiscated by the Indonesian military apparatus in 1969 and taken off to Java.

All this has left feelings of bitterness and hatred among the civilian population in the Land of Papua going back many years, which are still being felt today. This is what the Rev. Benny Giay calls Memoria Pasionis.

According to the LP3BH, these matters should have been settled many years ago in accordace with international standards and basic human rights principles.

The LP3BH therefore makes the following demands:

1.    The Indonesian Government should pay attention to the political need to immediately set up a Commission of Truth and Reconciliation in implementation of Law 21/2001, as well as set up a human rights court in Papua.

2.   The provincial governments in Papua and West Papua  should immediately introduce regulations with regard to  the creation of the KKR, its composition, location, and its mode of operation as well as its funding.

3. The DPRP and the DPR PB should take the initiative and play a key role in efforts to set up the KKR and the human rights court in Papua as the  way to solve the social-political conflicts which have continued to persist  from 1969 up to the present day., which should be continued into the future but which have until now been regarded as matters of no importance, and about which nothing has at yet been done to comply with universal legal standards  and basic human rights.

Manokwari, 27 May 2011

LP3BH,
Yan Christian Warinussy, SH

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Front Pepera: “Military and Police called upon to immediately restore sense of security to the people of Kamuu Valley”

WEST PAPUAN PEOPLE’S UNITED STRUGGLE FRONT (WPPUSF) –

NATIONAL EXECUTIVE

(EKNAS FRONT PEPERA PB)

Secretariate: Padang Bulan II – Abepura – Jayapura – Papua

=============================================================================

“Together for the History of the Star of the East”

 

Press Release

 

“Military and Police called upon to immediately restore sense

of security to the people of Kamuu Valley”

 

In the aftermath of the bloody tragedy that began on April 13 2011, the people of Dogiyai Regency have fled their homes.  On April 13 and 14, TNI (Indonesian Military) and POLRI (Police) units killed two local civilians (Dominikus Auwe and Aloisius Waine) and left three others in critical condition (Otin Yobe, Matias Iyai and Albert Pigai).  According to information obtained on April 15, joint Military/Police operations have combed several villages in Dogiyai, razing at least ten homes and destroying crops and livestock.  In an ongoing situation of effective all-day curfew in Moanemani, the capital town of Dogiyai, it is difficult to gather information about these incidents and it is therefore still impossible to confirm the exact number of people who have been killed as a result of these Military/Police sweepings.

Military and Police troops with full combat weaponry continue to be deployed to Dogiyai Regency from surrounding regencies, including Deiyai, Nabire, Paniai and Timika; meanwhile Papua Provincial Police headquarters in Jayapura sent a platoon (two trucks) of troops on Sunday April 17.  Constant troop convoys are running between Moanemani and Paniai in a show of force on the part of the Indonesian Military and Police while villages surrounding Moanemani are combed by the troops.  Moanemani and surrounding districts are quiet, with the local population in hiding.  All government activities have ceased, including schooling.  Not a single person can be seen in Moanemani, save for soldiers and Brimob (Police Mobile Brigade) officers firing their weapons into the air.

All local civilians have fled to villages in nearby regencies, and many have sought refuge in the forest.  As a result, local people are suffering starvation and sickness that has led to several deaths, including that of eight-year old Detianus Goo who had escaped into hiding with his mother.  This child, from Putapa Village, Kamu Selatan District, Dogiyai Regency, died on April 16 at 9 AM (Papua time).  Besides him, Rosia Goo, a 40-year old woman who fled from Mauwa to Udekebo to seek safety, died in Udekebo on April 16.  Meanwhile, residents of Kimupugi and Ikebo whose physical conditions of old age or disability prevented them from fleeing have been in a severe state of torment, under threat of police violence.  Local Police threatened to attack homes if the weapons seized by residents were not returned by April 18 2011.

This drastic situation began to be rectified when the DPRP’s (Papua Provincial Legislature) Join Team, led by Commission A head Ruben Magai, travelled to Dogiyai on April 18 2011 and conducted meetings with local government leaders including Papua Police Special Team as well civil society representatives in Moanemani on Tuesday April 19 between 9 AM and 2:30 PM at the Regent’s (Bupati’s) office.  During this meeting, the DPRP Joint Team asked all parties, including local communities as well as Military and Police to maintain security, refrain from selling and consuming alcohol and gambling.  Meanwhile, local community representatives asked Papua Police and the Cenderawasih Division Military Commander to immediately pull all troops out of Dogiyai Regency, including “organic” (locally-based) and “non-organic” (deployed from other regional bases) troops.   They demanded that the local police chief be the only state officer permitted to carry a firearm, and offered to gather and return all weapons stolen by local civilians to the President as these weapons are the tools of the State, however they asked to meet the Papua Provincial Police Chief first.  This meeting in Moanemani ended after some commitments were agreed upon, including: 1) to return a sense of security to the local population of Kamuu, Dogiyai; 2) all Military and Police units to be pulled out; 3) all local economic and administrative activities to be resumed; 4) stolen weapons to be returned to the President, with DPRP as well as DPRD (Regency Legislature) asked to facilitate the transfer.

The DPRP Joint Team, led by the Commission A head accompanied by various DPRP members, Papua Human Rights Commission Vice-Head Matius Murib and Church representative Yones Douw (Coordinator of Justice and Peace for the Synod of Kingmi Papua Church), as well as student and youth envoys, began yesterday afternoon to circulate around the Kamuu Valley, asking local residents to return from their refuges in nearby forests and villages.  Today, regular local activities began to return to normal.  Still, the security situation has yet to fully return to normal given that the arbitrary violent sweepings by Security Forces over the past days have left local communities with severe trauma.  To respond to the current situation in Dogiyai Regency, we urge the following actions to be taken:

1.                           Military and Police immediately restore a sense of safety to the local population of Kamuu Valley, Dogiyai Regency;

2.                           Immediately pull all Military and Police troops out of Kamuu Valley so as to allow local people to feel secure;

3.                           Heads of Security Forces at the Provincial and Central (Jakarta) level, especially Papua Police Chief and the President of the Republic of Indonesia immediately accept responsibility for the deaths of two civilians who were shot to death (Dominikus Auwe and Aloysiuis Waine) as well as shooting victims (Matias Iyai, Albert Pigai and Otin Yobe) who are in critical condition at Nabire Hospital;

4.                           President of the Republic of Indonesia immediately replace all troops currently deployed from the District to the Provincial Level in the Land of Papua;

5.                           Gambling managers disciplined firmly and the perpetrators of the shootings of civilians fired and punished according to the law;

6.                           Dogiyai Regency Government and Papua Province Governor accept responsibility for material destruction (homes, crops, etc);

7.                           Provincial Government and DPRP in the Land of Papua immediately issue a Provincial Ruling banning illicit alcohol, gambling, bars and casinos in the Land of Papua so as to preserve security, order, morals and faith in humanity.

That is our press release, expressed with full sincerity in the hopes of immediate follow-up action by relevant actors.

Port Numbay: Wednesday, April 20 2011

 

“Unity Without Limits, Struggle Until Victory”

SELPIUS BOBII

(Public Head, WPPUSF (Front PEPERA PB))

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