Date: Sat, 7 Oct 2000 22:07:24 -0600 (MDT)
Subject: KABAR-IRIAN: [EN] Wamena - situation

A number of people have asked us for eye wittness or in depth reports from Wamena. Unfortunately our contacts with our people there are intermittent and difficult to follow up on.

What we do know is that most if not all the expat community has been evacuated to Sentani/Jayapura. We also know that many non-papuans are attempting to flee or hide with the authorities.

Reports indicate that the police/army were not very controlled and fired weapons indiscrimately shooting houses, people and anything that moved. Unconfirmed reports indicate most of the papuans shot were shot in the back (implication: shot while leaving the scene).

Many of the local papuans who are in Wamena itself are also in hiding. One Pastor has contacted us to say the situation is terrifying and that there are many injuries and anger aginst the non-papuans though not the expats.

ANother individual has contacted us to say the situation is stabilizing and that dialogue has been opened between the groups (army/police and papuan).

With concern,
Admin/IRJA.org
=============================================
6 mayarakat papua meninggal / 6 papuans dead
34 masyarakat dari luar (Migrants) meninggal / 34 non-papuan (Indonesian
migrants) dead
9 tak dikenal meninggal / 9 unidentified dead

25 luka-luka / 25 injured
=============================================

The Australian
Military decay fans WPapua riots
From Sian Powell
09oct00

BLOODY clashes between Indonesia's security forces and West Papuan
independence activists that killed 26 people and wounded 40 at the
weekend are a symptom of the decay in the nation's military central
command, analysts claim.

The latest violence erupted on Friday in West Papua's provincial
town of Wawena after police and soldiers lowered the separatist Free
Papua Movement's Morning Star flag, which activists had raised.

By yesterday the town was calm, but non-Papuan settler refugees had
flooded into military and police posts.

Academics and commentators at the Indonesia Update conference at
Australian National University on the weekend speculated that
dissident elements of the Indonesian military were actually fanning
ethnic unrest in troubled provinces such as Aceh, Maluku, West Timor
and West Papua (formerly Irian Jaya) to undermine democracy and
prove the need for military security.

It is also widely believed that the chain of command is decaying --
both between Jakarta and the generals, and between the generals and
the troops on the ground. West Papua is part of the eastern
Indonesia military command of Major-General Kiki Syahnakri, who last
month warned that ethnic division would not be tolerated and that
Indonesia had to strengthen its national unity to prevent a foreign
invasion.

"We have to take measures to prevent Irian Jaya (West Papua) from
becoming the next target of international moves, following the
holding of a joint exercise by US, Singapore and Australian armed
forces near the territory," he was quoted as saying.

One of the speakers at the ANU conference, Atmadji Sumarkidjo, the
managing editor of the Suara Pembaruan newspaper in Jakarta, said
General Syahnakri should be removed from office, or at least from
eastern Indonesia.

Although all the Indonesian generals were appointed during the
Suharto regime, only some are known to be in favour of reform. Part
of the problem seems to be the intention of Indonesian president
Adurrahman Wahid to weaken the military's central command to prevent
the emergence of a strong military leader, which in turn has led to
a loss of authority over the regions.

One high-ranking general, according to a speaker at the conference,
described as "laughable" the recent appointment of Mohamad Mahfood,
a lawyer, as defence minister.

Mr Atmadji said the military had enjoyed paramount power for so many
years that fundamental change would take time.

Indeed, Mr Mahmood last week reportedly said there would be no
change in the armed forces leadership for at least a year.

"The military institution, for almost 30 years was based not on a
military structure, but more on the personal leadership of Suharto,"
Mr Atmadji said. "The generals enjoyed privilege, they were free to
do anything as long as they were no threat to the president himself.
Now they have to face the reality that this belongs to the past."

Mr Atmadji said certain laws had to change to alter the culture of
the military. He said the military command should be legally
answerable to the defence minister rather than the President, while
a sufficient budget should be provided for the armed forces to
prevent them "creatively" supplementing their resources from their
areas of command. Finally, a new Doctrine of Defence should be
introduced to create a more equitable balance of power between the
army, navy and airforce.
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Australian Financial Review
Monday, October 9, 2000
Wahid hit by riot, IMF row
By Tim Dodd, Jakarta

Indonesia's political stability and economic future are again under question after a riot in West Papua reportedly killed 26 people, and a new row between the Wahid Government and the International Monetary Fund over bank privatisation.

A human rights worker said police opened fire on the separatists who had stoned them as they tried to confiscate several Morning Star independence flags flying in the inland centre of Wamena, according to Agence-France Presse.

Indonesian authorities said mobs of tribesmen then attacked - raping, burning and beheading non-Papuan transmigrasi settlers who had been settled in the area from elsewhere in Indonesia. A military officer in Wamena said 20 settlers and six native Papuans died in the fighting.

After the killings, thousands of transmigrasi settlers were reported to be trying to get flights out of Wamena, an isolated town 290 kilometres from the provincial capital Jayapura. Last night the town, accessible only by air or on foot, was reportedly quiet after tribesmen fled to the hills.

The violent clash in Wamena is a telling sign that Indonesia may not be able, in the long term, to retain control of mineral-rich West Papua.

If frightened transmigrasi settlers continued to leave, Indonesia's control of the province would look more like military occupation and separatists would be able to build international support.

Australia's Foreign Minister, Mr Alexander Downer, said yesterday that Canberra supported West Papua remaining part of Indonesia but warned Jakarta to exercise restraint. "We don't want to see the Balkanisation of Indonesia and we hope that the differences that exist between Jakarta and various community leaders in West Papua can be handled in an appropriate and peaceful way," he said.

"They have to deal with the situation in West Papua with a degree of restraint and exercise of human rights."

Mr Downer also renewed the invitation for Indonesia's President, Mr Abdurrahman Wahid, to visit Australia, after the Indonesian Parliament urged the President on Friday not to go. The visit had been tentatively scheduled for late October or early November.

Meanwhile, Indonesia is in disagreement with the International Monetary Fund and the World Bank over bank privatisation and corporate debt restructuring.

On Thursday, the Government postponed selling stakes in Bank Central Asia and Bank Niaga, which was supposed to happen before the end of the year to help fund the budget deficit. But the Government bowed to pressure from the Parliament, where there is strong nationalist feeling against asset sales, which mostly go to foreigners.

On Friday, the IMF criticised the delay, saying it breached a commitment of Indonesia's economic program agreed to with the IMF. The latest row comes after the IMF and the World Bank criticised the $US2.7 billion ($5.05 billion) debt restructuring deal for the Texmaca group, and suggested the Government seek more advice on the
matter.

Jakarta's spat with the two international bodies could have consequences at the October 17-18 Tokyo meeting of Indonesia's main international donors, which will decide on next year's international financial support for Indonesia.