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West Papua Report
January 2012
This is the 93rd in a series of monthly
reports that focus on developments affecting Papuans. This
series is produced by the non-profit West Papua Advocacy
Team (WPAT) drawing on media accounts, other NGO
assessments, and analysis and reporting from sources within
West Papua. This report is co-published with the East Timor
and Indonesia Action Network (ETAN). Back issues are
posted online at
http://www.etan.org/issues/wpapua/default.htm Questions
regarding this report can be addressed to Edmund McWilliams
at edmcw@msn.com. If you
wish to receive the report via e-mail, send a note to
etan@etan.org.
Summary:
Indonesian security forces,
including the U.S. and Australian supported Detachment 88,
conducted "sweeping operations" in the Paniai area of West
Papua that destroyed churches, homes and public buildings,
and forced hundreds of civilians from their homes. The
Indonesia's National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM)
urged the Police Commander to remove forces from the region,
echoing civil society leaders in Paniai. Jakarta's failure to provided basic health services to
Papuans has led to a high rate of death among mothers at
child birth according to a recent report. An unconfirmed
report claims that President Yudhoyono has committed to
withdraw non-organic troops from West Papua and to suspend
the operations of a special unit proposed to address
fundamental Jakarta-Papua problems. The cost in human life
for Papuans of Jakarta's decades of neglect of the Papuan
population is well documented. Amnesty International met
with a senior official in Jakarta to press for release of
political prisoners, particularly in West Papua and Maluku.
The three-month old strike by workers at the Freeport
McMoRan mines appears to be headed toward resolution.
Contents:
Brutal "Sweeping
Operation" Continues to Displace Civilians in
Paniai
Despite efforts by the Indonesian government and its
security forces to block all monitoring of developments in
the Paniai region of West Papua, courageous journalists,
human rights advocates and others have been able to report
on the ongoing tragedy there. Since the first days of
December, Indonesian security forces, including the
U.S.-trained and funded Detachment 88, Brimob elements, and
units of the Indonesian military, have been conducting a
massive "sweeping" campaign, purportedly targeting local
leaders of the pro-independence Organisasi Papua Merdeka
(OPM). Hundreds and in all probability thousands of
villagers have been driven from their homes due to the
violence unleashed by government forces which has destroyed
churches, homes, and public buildings.
An early
December report carried in the Jakarta Post revealed the
dimensions of the human tragedy now unfolding:
- About 500 inhabitants of Dagouto village in Paniai
Regency, Papua, have opted to leave their homes and seek
refuge following the deployment of 150 Mobile Brigade
officers to their area, Paniai tribe council chief John
Gobai said Wednesday.
- "Our people have become refugees at Uwatawogi Hall
in Enarotali, Paniai, for several weeks. They are now
afraid they may not be able to celebrate Christmas at
home," John told reporters at the National Commission on
Human Rights (Komnas HAM). John, along with four other
Paniai people, was at the commission to complain about
the presence of police officers in the area, which they
said "exacerbated the security situation."
- The National Police has increased its numbers of
personnel in the regency following several deadly
shootings, reportedly claiming the lives of eight
traditional miners working on the Degeuwo River, near
Dagouto, last month.
Indonesian Human Rights Commission
Calls for Withdrawal of Security
Forces from Paniai
On December 17,
Jubi reported that the Indonesian Human Rights
Commission (Komnas HAM) called on the Indonesian Chief of
Police to immediately withdraw all Brimob troops (the
militarized police) from the West Papua district of Paniai
and to refrain from sending any additional personnel there.
The request came in the wake of widespread reports (see
above) of brutal security force sweeping operations that had
targeted civilians.
The deputy head of Komnas HAM, M. Ridha Saleh, wrote the
chief of police in response to a formal complaint made by
the chairman of the Regional Traditional Council (DAD) in
Paniai. The letter cited two recent incidents involving
members of the police force: A shooting near the
copper-and-gold mine in Degheuwo which led to the death of a
civilian. And the situation following the dispatch of 150
additional Brimob troops who arrived in Enarotali on
November 11-14, 2011
The letter called for the removal of a Brimob post set up in
the midst of several kampungs and for a police investigation
into the death of Mateus Tenouye. The letter noted that only
a Brimob withdrawal could enable Paniai to return to their
daily lives which have been badly disrupted by security
operations by Brimob and other Indonesian security
personnel.
(WPAT Note: There are consistent reports of the
involvement of Detachment 88, Kopassus, and other TNI
personnel in the sweeping operations. Neither the U.S. nor
Australian governments have made any comment regarding their
support for an organization that in this instance, and in
numerous previous incidents, has resorted to brutality in
dealing with peaceful non-combatants.)
The Komnas HAM appeal concluded with a call for dialogue
among all parties.
Inadequate Health Care Responsible for
High Rate of Death of Mothers at Child
Birth
The Jakarta Post reports that maternal deaths in
West Papua remain high. Victor Nugraha, an official with the
Papuan Health Agency, speaking to media in Manokwari, said
that the rate of deaths in 2011 would be at least as high
as in 2010. Real figures, he added,
were difficult to ascertain because many cases of death
during child birth are not recorded due to the shortage of
medical personnel to maintain records.
According to the official the main causes of maternal death
were hemorrhage, post-pregnancy infections, and
hypertension. Anemia due to iron deficiency can lead to
hemorrhaging. Beside low iron levels due to poor nutrition,
anemia can also be caused by malaria, which is common in
West Papua. The official also explained that late pregnancy
checks and poor surgery facilities for caesarean sections in
clinics also contribute to maternal deaths.
This report echoes a far more detailed study conducted in
the Kebar Valley of West Papua in 2008 (see
Health care in the Bird's Head Peninsula.
Its conclusions are stark:
- Out of 708 pregnancies 4.7% led to miscarriage and
1.4% of the children were born dead.
- Out of 665 child births, where the baby was born
alive, 213 baby's and children eventually died. This is
an infant mortality rate of 32.0%. This means that
almost 1 out of 3 children dies before its fifth
birthday.
- 57.3% of the died children (213) were younger than 1
year old. 27.7% is between the age of 1 to 5 when it
dies.
- Most baby's and toddlers (32.9%) died of fever or
malaria. Fever in combination with coughing (probably
pneumonia) causes a mortality rate of 13.9%.
- Diarrhea, icterus, prematures and pulmonary
affections like tuberculosis, pneumonia and bronchitis
also occur, but in smaller numbers.
- In 12.7% of the dead infants the cause of death was
unknown, according to the mother.
- 94.4% of the pregnant women give birth at home,
whether or not with the presence of a traditional
midwife .
- 14 children were born twins; 3 are still alive.
WPAT Comment: Inadequate health
services are common throughout those areas of West Papua
where the majority of Papuans live. Services are better,
sometimes substantially so, in towns where the majority of
the non-Papuan, government-assisted migrants live. Totally
inadequate health services, along with government failure to
provide education or employment opportunities, in majority
Papuan populated areas have inevitably contributed to lower
birth rates for West Papuans and greater deaths among Papuan
children under the age of five. This decades-old policy of
neglect of Papuans constitutes one of the bases of charges
of genocide leveled against the Indonesian government.
Report of Major
Jakarta Pledge on
Demilitarization of West Papua
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| Papuan religious leaders meet with President
Yudhoyono. (Frederika
Korain/PGI) |
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West Papua Media Alerts on December 18 reported that
President Yudhoyono made a commitment to Papuan Church
leaders in a December 16 meeting to withdraw non-organic
troops from West Papua. He reportedly said that he would
suspend the activities of the special Unit to Accelerate the
Development of Papua and West Papua (UP4B) which was to have
addressed fundamental issues in the Jakarta-Papua
relationship.
Key Papuan leaders in attendance included:
Chair of the Papua GKI Synod, Yemima Kret; Chair of the
Baptist Church of Papua, Socrates Sofyan Yoman; Chair of the
Kingmi Synod, Benny Giay; Martin Luther Wanma and Rika
Korain.
Upon hearing an appeal for an end to the troop presence the
President reportedly asked the Police Chief and Commander of
the TNI to stop the violence. According to Rev. Benny Giay,
the President commanded the Chief of Police and the Armed
Forces (TNI) "to stop the violence in Paniai, at least
during the month of Christmas." However, Pastor Gomar
Gultom, also at the meeting, told the media that the
President did not mention a specific deadline for withdrawal
of non-organic troops.
With regards to efforts to launch a Jakarta-Papua dialogue,
Gultom said the two sides have not yet decided on the
dialogue format or issues to be discussed. Religious leaders
are scheduled to meet again in mid-January 2012 to formulate
the program in more detail.
Gultom added that President SBY spoke about
the UP4B led by Lt. Gen. ( ret) Bambang Darmono. The
Religious leaders said that UP4B was formed unilaterally,
without hearing the aspirations of the Papuan people. "There
is a meeting point agreed upon last night. All points will
be evaluated together, and UP4B will be stopped until
results of the joint evaluation are available," he said.
WPAT Comment: There is no evidence as of early January
that any of the undertakings reportedly set forth by
President Yudhoyono have in fact come to pass. Fighting in
Paniai continues and there has been no announcement of a
suspension of the operation of UP4B.
Amnesty
International Appeals for Political Prisoners Release
On December 6,
Amnesty International officials met with Indonesia's
Coordinating Minister for Law, Politics and Security, Djoko
Suyanto to urge the Indonesian Government free political
prisoners incarcerated for peacefully expressing their
views. Amnesty urged the government "to integrate human
rights in their efforts to address the situation in Papua."
The Amnesty International presentation focused on at least
90 people who are in prison in West Papua and Maluku for
peaceful pro-independence activities, including Filep Karma,
a Papuan independence leader currently serving a 15-year
sentence in Abepura, Papua. Filep's case has received
special attention by the human rights group.
The meeting took place less than one month following the
brutal assault on the Papuan Third National Congress during
which peaceful Papuan dissenters were beaten and killed and
many were arrested, only to join the growing ranks of Papuan
political prisoners.
Amnesty argued that "the Indonesian government should free
all those who are detained in Papua and Maluku for
peacefully expressing their views, including through raising
or waving the prohibited pro-independence flags, and
distinguish between peaceful and violent political
activists." Amnesty pointed out that although the government
had the duty and the right to maintain public order, its
actions restricting freedom of expression and peaceful
assembly had violated the International Covenant on Civil
and Political Rights, which Indonesia has ratified.
Amnesty stressed the need to set up a human rights court and
a truth and reconciliation commission to investigate cases
of human rights violations since Indonesia annexed Papua in
the 1960s.
According to
the Jakarta Globe, Minister Djoko
Suyanto at the meeting expressed the government's commitment
to ensure accountability for human rights abuses committed
by security forces.
Freeport Strike
Grinds Toward Resolution
In early December worker representatives and the Freeport
McMoRan corporation reached
a tentative deal whereby workers
would return to their job sites, thus ending a crippling
strike which left the world's largest copper and gold
operation at a standstill since workers began striking the
massive West Papua mine site in September. The Indonesian
government was losing $8 million worth of taxes, royalties
and dividends each day the strike continued.
As of late December, workers had not yet resumed work owing
to
unresolved issues outside the framework of the new
contract. Principal among these is the workers insistence that their leaders not be sanctioned either by Freeport
McMoRan, which had talked of firing them, or the police, who
have threatened to arrest them for "subversion." The status
of a number of contract workers were also at issue. Workers
have also insisted on security measures that will preclude
additional violence by unidentified elements thought
possibly to have ties to the authorities.
The workers achieved significant concessions in their over
three months long strike. The key provisions of the new
contract is an agreement by Freeport McMoRan to a pay rise
of 40 percent over two years. The current pay is $2-$3 an
hour. The union had demanded an hourly rate of $7.50.
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