Unfortunately, Indonesia President's Susilo Bambang
Yudhoyono in pre-sentencing
public remarks described
the torture, which included the burning of the genitals of a Papuan man
with a stick pulled from the fire, as "only a minor incident." This
dismissal of the seriousness of the crime reinforces a pattern of
impunity for security personnel.
WPAT, ETAN and TAPOL remain concerned that Indonesia has refused to make
torture a specific offence under Indonesian criminal law,
notwithstanding Indonesia's obligations under the United
Nations Convention Against Torture which
it signed in 1985 and ratified in 1998. We urge Indonesia to do so.
Indonesian military personnel, especially those operating in West Papua,
which has seen the worst security forces abuse over the past decade,
continue to perpetrate torture, rape, extrajudicial killings and other
well documented abuses in part because they are aware they will never be
effectively prosecuted for these crimes. By refusing to prosecute
military offenders to the full extend of the law in civilian courts the
Indonesian government is complicit in the military's continuing abuses.
The impunity long enjoyed by Indonesian security personnel for their
criminal behavior stands in stark contrast to the severe sentences meted
out to Papuans who assemble peacefully to protest decades of Indonesian
government repression and the denial of essential services to the Papuan
people. Dozens of Papuans have been imprisoned for years where, as
described by UN reports, these peaceful dissenters endure health and
life threatening treatment and conditions. Amnesty International and
other reputable human rights organizations have identified many as
"prisoners of conscience."
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The
U.S. should make any resumption of military-to-military
cooperation contingent on an end to Indonesian government
restrictions on access to West Papua by independent
journalists and other observers, as well as an end to
Indonesian security and intelligence force intimidation of
those Papuans peacefully advocating for their political and
other human rights..
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Government restrictions on travel to and within West
Papua have long impeded the ability of the international community to
monitor human rights and other developments. Indonesian security and
intelligence forces within West Papua routinely shadow and obstruct the
movement of the few international journalists and even diplomats who do
manage to enter West Papua. Papuans who speak to these observers are
often threatened and harassed.
The U.S. and other governments should act in a
substantive way to end the continued abuses by Indonesian security
forces against Papuans. The U.S., in particular, should exercise its
significant leverage by suspending its extensive and expanding military
assistance programs for Indonesia pending real reform of the Indonesian
military. This reform should, at minimum, include an end to human rights
violations by Indonesian military personnel, as well as effective
prosecution in civilian courts of military personnel who perpetrate
abuses and with sentencing commensurate with the crimes. The U.S. should
also make any resumption of military-to-military cooperation contingent
on an end to Indonesian government restrictions on access to West Papua
by independent journalists and other observers, as well as an end to
Indonesian security and intelligence force intimidation of those Papuans
peacefully advocating for their political and other human rights.
More generally, WPAT, ETAN and TAPOL appeal to the governments of the
United States and the United Kingdom and the European Union to promptly
and publicly register with the Indonesian government their deep concern
over what is only this latest example of decades of failed justice in
West Papua
