UPDATE

Indonesia Resorts to Mass Repression in Face of Widespread May 1 Papua Demonstrations

On April 30 and May 1 2015, 264 people were arrested and arbitrarily detained in Jayapura, Nabire, Merauke, Manokwari and Kaimana, Papua," according to Zelly Ariane, Coordinator #papuaitukita, human rights advocacy group for Papuan based in Jakarta. Ariane added that most of those arrested were "young people and students members and sympathizers of the West Papua National Committee (KNPB)," along with journalists covering their protests.

May 1 marked the 52nd anniversary of Indonesia's effective annexation of West Papua. On that day in 1963, Indonesia assumed control of West Papua under the aegis of a UN mandate. The mandate required that Indonesia accord the people of West Papua an "act of free choice" ensuring that Papuans be able to exercise and act of self-determination.  Indonesia notoriously reneged on this mandate obligation staging a fraudulent, controlled "act of free choice" in 1969. Although Indonesia had staged military operations in West Papua before May 1, 1963, that date has symbolic significance for the Papuan people who regard that date as the beginning of over four decades of military repression and occupation.

May 1 is therefore an important calendar date for Papuans who utilize the anniversary to manifest opposition to Indonesian rule.  May 1, 2015 was no different as Papuans throughout West Papua joined in peaceful demonstrations.  Unfortunately, this May 1 also saw the typical Indonesian state response to peaceful protest. Hundreds of Papuans, engaging in peaceful protest in many Papuan cities, often organized by the KNPB and supported by the United Liberation Movement of West Papua (ULMWP), suffered assault and arrest by Indonesian security forces.  Arrests and detentions began in Manokwari where 12 KNPB activists were detained April 29 for simply leafleting about May 1 demonstrations. Additional protested took place in Bali and elsewhere in Indonesia.

A woman who was at a rally in Jayapura where 30 were arrested said that there was a heavy security presence: "Once the demonstrators started to walk or march the police threatened them and said 'if you step forward we will shoot you', so then they had an argument and just in a short time they were arrested, like, they caught them and put them into the police truck."

The Australian West Papua Association (Sydney) compiled reports of arrests on May 1 involved approximately 150 (in addition to the 12 detained on April 29) in Manokwari, 30 in Jayapura, 16 in Merauke, 2 in Kaimana, 2 in Fak Fak and 3 in Surabaya. The number of those arrested varies in several reports with one local media article reporting 269 arrested in total including 2 shot in Nabire.  

A KNPB report on the May 1events is available at  http://awpasydneynews.blogspot.com.au/2015/05/update-on-rallies-on-1-may-in-west-papua.html.

Sign from May 1 protest. Photo from http://majalahselangkah.com	Arrest in Manokwari. Photo from  http://suarawiyaimana.blogspot.com.au.	Scene from May 1 in Jayapura. Photo from http://majalahselangkah.com .

#Openpapua Global Protest Over Indonesian Restrictions on Access to West Papua

Protesters in 22 cities around the world, April 29, urged Indonesia to end restrictions on access to West Papua for international journalists, human rights and humanitarian workers, UN officials and others. In calling for an end to 50 years of isolation of the region, the #openpapua demonstrations ask Indonesia "What Are You Hiding in Papua?"

London protester. Via TAPOL

The " Global Day of Action for Free and Open Access to Papua" saw demonstrations in England, Australia, New Zealand, the Solomon Islands, Scotland, Germany, France, Italy and Spain as well as in West Papua and Indonesia. In the U.S., protests took place at Indonesian consulates Los Angeles, New York and San Francisco.

The coordinated effort, the first of its kind, shows that worldwide solidarity for West Papua has reached unprecedented levels.

New Yorkers joined by West Papuans who were attending the UN's annual indigenous peoples' forum, as well as Indonesians, Australians, and Hawaiians, and others gathered to demand Presidents Jokowi Widodo fulfill his promise to open the region. The protest was organized by the East Timor and Indonesia Action Network (ETAN).

ETAN also delivered a letter to the consulate and the Indonesian embassy in Washington, DC, demanding "the end to restrictions on access to Papua" and adds "the media blackout in Papua denies the Papuan people the right to have their voices heard and allows human rights violations such as killings, torture and arbitrary arrests to continue with impunity." The letter was organized by Tapol and signed by 52 Papuan, Indonesian and international groups and parliamentarians (including ETAN and the West Papua Advocacy Team).

Esther Cann from TAPOL, a London-based NGO coordinating the day of action said, "This is the first time we've seen anything like this level of support for West Papua. NGOs, parliamentarians and solidarity groups all around the world are telling Indonesia that human rights abuses in Papua can no longer be ignored. Papuan voices must be heard. In this age of information, it's astounding that there are black spot regions like West Papua."

Since Indonesia  seized control of West Papua in 1963, successive administrations in Jakarta have drawn a curtain across West Papua to prevent the international community from witnessing firsthand the brutality of Indonesian security and intelligence forces against Papuan civilians. Foreign journalists trying to report on West Papua have been arrested, deported, and even imprisoned. One by one, international humanitarian organizations have been forced to close their West Papua offices. UN human rights investigators have been denied permission for the past eight years. Local journalists who uncover the truth risk harassment, arrests and worse. These restrictions have enabled and encouraged Indonesian security forces and paramilitaries to act with impunity. The restrictions have been useful to the U.S. and other governments as it has mitigated popular outrage and democratic pressure for them to address the genocide perpetrated in West Papua by their ally Indonesia. 

International journalists and NGOs seeking to visit and work in Papua must undergo a stringent application process involving the unanimous approval of 18 separate government agencies, including the military and police, known as the Clearing House committee.

"Journalists must be able to work without intimidation, threats or restriction. We should be able to report independently and without fear for our security. Why is this not guaranteed to journalists in Papua? As Indonesian citizens, why are our rights not safeguarded?" said Oktovianus Pogau, a journalist with Suara Papua, a Papuan news site.

During his presidential campaign, President Jokowi publically stated that there was nothing to hide in Papua and promised to open the region. Yet six months into his presidency, Papua remains closed off to the international community. While President Jokowi has pledged his commitment to resolve past rights abuses, the execution of eight people for alleged drug trafficking offences less than 24 hours ago puts the future direction of Indonesia's human rights into serious question.

Earlier in April, the Youth, Student and Papuan Peoples Movement (GempaR) called for the Indonesian government to "open democratic space" in West Papua and to immediately allow foreign journalists access to West Papua. A youth representative, Philipus said Papuans lack space to express their aspirations without any pressure. "If Indonesia is a democratic state, then it must open the space for democracy," he said.

Indonesian Journalists Association Names Police "Enemies of Press Freedom"

The Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) called  the police enemies of press freedom at an event held to commemorate World Press Freedom Day, May 3. "We declare the police enemies of press freedom, with 11 reported attacks on journalists by police from May 2014 to May 2015," said AJI advocacy department head Iman D Nugroho. 

The AJI also urged "We urge the government to open access for journalists to Papua. There is no reason to isolate it from the world," AJI head Sujarwono told The Jakarta Post. President said while campaigning in June 2014 that he intended to remove obstacles for foreign journalists and international organizations to visit Papua.

Eko Widianto, head of the Malang AJI chapter, highlighted the impact of Indonesia's 2008 electronic information and transaction law. He said there have been 80 cases against those expressing their opinions on the Internet. "[The law] has caused fear among people, preventing them from speaking up," he said.

Ongoing Trial Exemplifies Tactic of Planting Evidence
 

Areki Wanimbo. Photo from Papuans Behind Bars.

The trial of Areki Wanimbo in Wamena  involves the planting of evidence by Indonesian state intelligence. Wanimbo was arrested August 6, 2014 with two French journalists and was charged with conspiracy to commit treason. Police claimed an informer inside of Wanimbo's house had told them that the French journalists were planning to sell arms to Papuan guerilla leader Enden Wanimbo.  

In October 2014, the two French journalists served11 weeks in detention under immigration charges after  they tried to report the Papua conflict. During a UN Human Rights Council event in March 2015, Valentine Bourrat, one of the two journalists detained stated that 'keeping [Papua] closed to journalists means that the Indonesian authorities are hiding human rights violations. As journalists we cannot let a murderous silence prevail."

Indonesia to Establish Task Force to Resolve Some Human Rights Cases

The  Jakarta Post reports, 22, noted that the Widodo Administration will establish a task force to seek resolutions to some past human rights violations, including the security force crimes committed in Waisor and Wamena, West Papua, in 2001 and 2003.

The list of cases included is limited. Missing  from the list are other major human rights violations arising from security force repression in West Papua, such as the 1998 Biak massacre or the military's regular "sweeping operations" that have killed and displaced thousands of Papuan civilians.
 
The task force will involve many of the institutions directly responsible for the violations that the task force will investigate, including
the National Police, the National Intelligence Agency (BIN)  and the military (TNI). Also participating in the decision were the Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister, the Law and Human Rights Minister and commissioners of the  National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM).

In addition to the case in West Papua, the task force will also investigate 1989 Talangsari massacre in Central Lampung,  various forced disappearances, the Petrus killings in the 1980s, 1965 killings that followed Suharto's seizure of power and the May 1998 riots.

Human rights campaigners have criticized the planned task force. Feri Kusuma, an activist with the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (KontraS) dismissed the task force as a "sham" and "a publicity stunt for the attorney general." Komnas HAM has developed enough evidence for the Attorney General "to bring to trial perpetrators of gross human rights abuses," Kusuma told The Jakarta Post.

Attorney General Prasetyo left open the prospect of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission (KKR). He said a draft bill to establish a KKR has been submitted to the House of Representatives. According to the Post, it would "give a nine-member commission four years to investigate the cases that Komnas HAM declared gross human rights violations and to find the most appropriate way of restoring the rights of the victims and to seek reconciliation." Its decisions would be binding and final.

In a separate report a member of Commission I of Papua Legislative Council ( DPRP) called for the creation of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission in Papua. Tan Wie Long said  the establishment of a commission was called for in the Special Autonomy Law and local legislators should draft local regulations to establish the commission.

WPAT Comment:  Failure of multiple Indonesian administrations to move forward with the establishment of a Truth and Reconciliation Commission, as called for in the 15-year old 2000 human rights trials law, underscores the persistent impunity accorded those responsible for most of the gross human rights violations, the security and intelligence agencies.

Pacific Freedom Forum Calls for West Papua Full Membership in MSG
 
Titi Gabi, chairperson of the Pacific Freedom Forum (PFF), called for the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) to accept West Papua's application for full membership in the organization. The United Liberation Movement for West Papua has submitted an application for membership that is expected to be acted upon in time for the July MSG annual summit.

PFF has previously expressed  concerns about human rights abuses by Indonesian security forces in West Papua.

PFF co-Chair Monica Miller said that support for West Papua has grown significantly, especially in Fiji. The Fiji-West Papua Friends for Free West Papua Facebook group has more than 12,000 members.

Support groups for West Papua exist across the region, including in Fiji, Solomon Islands, Vanuatu, and Papua New Guinea, as well as in Australia and New Zealand.

Police Arrest Papuans Who Met with Indonesian Defense Minister

Police arrested seven people at Sentani airport in Jayapura on April 14 as they returned from  a meeting with Indonesian Minister of Defense Ryamizard Ryacudu in Jakarta.  Two were released, but the police five were members of the Papua Independent Committee (KIP). 

"This group just arrived from Jakarta on Batik Air and were  arrested after getting off the plane with assumption they wanted to build a state, an act of treason and against the State," according to police spokesperson Patrige Renwarin. He said the police chief's policy is to "be strict in dealing with any organization which threatens the sovereignty of the country."

Political choice is a part of human rights. They had good intentions, and met with the government. They did not do violence.

Radio New Zealand reported  that "The reason for the KIP trip was to follow up on letters sent to Indonesia's President by the President of the so-called Federal Republic of West Papua (NRFPB ), Forkorus Yaboisembut, regarding his organization's declaration of independence for West Papua." However, a spokesperson for KIP told the media that  “They are not part of NRFPB that accused by the Papua Police as traitors. We just held a meeting with Minister of Defense Ryamizard Ryacudu. Why after the meeting, they were arrested? Is the meeting regarded as an act of treason?”

Human rights groups criticized the arrests. Chrisbiantoro, deputy coordinator of the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (KontraS) said that the meetings in Jakarta were facilitated by Papua's provincial government. They should not be arrested, because the meeting was facilitated by the government's own staff and carried out by government officials," he said.

Natalis Pigai of Komnas HAM called the charges against the men "spurious." He said that "Political choice is a part of human rights. They had good intentions, [and] met with the government. They did not do violence.”

The five - Lawrence Mehue, Don Flassy, Mas John, Ebieb Suebu and Banundi Ones - are accused of rebellion (makar) under Article 106 of Indonesia’s Criminal Code and could face a minimum 20-year sentence.

WPAT has learned that as of late-April the five remained in detention. 

West Papua Among Leading Sites for Global Forest Loss
 
According to a  new World Wildlife Federation (WWF) report eleven places in the world, including three in Indonesia will account for over 80 per cent of forest loss globally by 2030.

WWF says that "Despite a recent slowdown, deforestation remains a major issue in Indonesia.... New Guinea, which includes Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, could lose up to 7 million hectares of forest between 2010 and 2030 if large-scale agriculture development plans materialize." WWF adds that "Sumatra has lost more than half of its natural forests due to paper and palm oil plantations." And "Forest cover in the Borneo deforestation front, including Malaysia and Brunei, could be reduced to less than a quarter of its original area by 2020 if current trends continue."

WWF's report says that "The New Guinea region retains significant forest cover (some 82 million ha), but faces a growing deforestation threat." The western part of the island  lost 373,000 ha of forest from 2001-2012. Threat to West Papua's forests include  the Merauke Integrated Food and Energy Estate that could transform up to 1.2 million ha of forest land into agribusiness plantations.

WWF  urged Indonesia to "shift from development plans that yield short-term gains to land-use approaches that will safeguard forests and provide economic opportunities." He added “The moratorium on new forest conversion permits provides an opportunity to assess what can be done to halt these deforestation fronts and develop a greener, more inclusive economy.”

WPAT Comment:  The Indonesian government "moratorium on new forest conversion permits is undermined by illegal logging, often condoned or carried out by Indonesian military and other security forces, especially in West Papua. (See also February 2015 West Papua Report.)

Senggi Society Urges Papua Council to Revoke Timber Permits

At least 40 people from Senggi District, Keerom, Papua rallied at the Papua provincial legislative council in mid-April to demand revocations of companies' permits to log timber. They said the  permits harmed the indigenous people.

"When we manage our forests and we sell the timber, we are called thieves. We want the timber management rights of indigenous peoples to be given back and we can sell freely, nobody will be arrested," protest coordinator Golden Salmon Yamanda told the council.

Boy Dawir said the Papua Legislative Council would convene a special committee on illegal logging. The committee will check owners of concessions were granted permission by indigenous inhabitants 

Freedom House Cites Indonesian Restriction in West Papua

The latest edition of Freedom House's annual report on "Freedom in the World" details significant restrictions in  West Papua.  In the chapter on Indonesia the report says:

In the section entitled "Associational and Organizational Rights" the report notes:

Indonesian Military Villain To Be National Hero

Sarwo Edhie Wibowo

The Jakarta Post reports that Lt. Gen. Sarwo Edhie Wibowo could soon be named a "national hero." The designation follows a review process and a recommendation to the President. Wibowo is a major figure in Indonesia's dark past.  In 1965, he was a lead architect of the anti-communist purges in 1965/66. He was commander of the Army's Para-Commando Regiment (PRKAD), now Kopassus, at the time.

He also has an odious reputation for West Papuans. He was Commander of the KODAM XVII in Jayapura in the late 1960's and led his troops to prosecute a brutal campaign of repression against opposition to Indonesia's annexation of West Papua.  It was under Sarwo that the infamous "Act of Free Choice" was perpetrated against the Papuan People.

Last year, Wibowo's father-in-law, President SBY proposed Wibowo for hero status, but the award  was not given in the face of public opposition.
 
Ironically, the same Jakarta Post report notes that "national hero" status is also in store for Abudrrahman Wahid (aka Gus Dur).  For Papuans, Gus Dur was the only Indonesian leader to manifest a degree of understanding and tolerance for Papuans
struggle for self determination.

A petition to oppose the award is now circulating here. Last year, nearly 7000 people signed a successful petition opposing SBY's plan to reward Wibowo.

Freeport Can Renew Contract for Next 20 Years

An advisor to the Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Said Didu, told Jubi that the mining contract of PT Freeport Indonesia in Papua can be extended for 20 years."When using IUPK acceleration option (special mining license), the Freeport contract is extendable for 20 years," he said. If it can be done in 2015, then Freeport contract will expire in 2035.

An extension can be filed two years before the contract expires or before 2019, without the IPUK option. But he said that under that scenario mining would cease in 2017,
"because there is no certainty of renewal."

Papuan Governor Lukas Enembe signed a cooperation agreement with  a Chinese company to build a copper smelter in Timika, near Freeport's mine. The company, Felix Gold CEO Bao Dong Bin, will build the smelter on land set aside Poumako, Timika, for an industrial zone that will include the smelter.

CHRONICLE

All issues of the printed journal (1973-2008) are now available online here: Tapol – VU Research Repository. The archives contains downloadable PDFs of 188 issues of the Bulletin with its extensive coverage of events and trends throughout the Indonesian archipelago, including West Papua. 

West Papua: Mining in an Occupation Forgotten by the World

Nithin Coca's article focuses on mining giant  Freeport-McMoRan's role in the 50 year long Indonesian occupation of West Papua. Indonesia's security forces "are in charge of 'maintaining order' so that copper and gold can be safely extracted, and tax revenues can flow into Jakarta." Nithin writes.

West Papua Oil Palm Atlas

This atlas aims to shed light on the rapidly expansion of oil palm plantations in West Papua. Published by awasMIFEE, Pusaka and six other organizations, the atlas attempts "to provide a picture of this developing industry. Who are the companies involved? Where are they operating? Which areas will be the next hotspots?"

According to awasMIFEE "In 2005 there were only five oil palm plantations operating in West Papua. By the end of 2014 there were 21 operational plantations. This rapid expansion is set to continue with another 20 concessions at an advanced stage of the permit process, and many more companies that have been issued with an initial location permit."

Download the atlas here: English, Indonesian

Video Shows Aftermath of Massacre

A short video shows first-hand testimony from survivors of last December's Paniai massacre, as well as graphic footage taken in the immediate aftermath. Police and soldiers fired peaceful protesters, killing four teenagers and injuring another 17 Papuans. They were protesting an earlier instance of violence by Indonesia's security forces.

The video was released by the Minority Rights Group (MRG), which said that "the national human rights commission and the Indonesian police have launched investigations into the incident, known as the 'Paniai massacre'. However the police -- who initially blamed the shooting on armed ethnic Papuan rebels -- have been accused of stymying the investigation."

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