Current Updates on West Papua, per 22 January 2003

Papuan people have sought Dialogue with Jakarta for the last five years, through various ways, approaches and at different occasions. We declared West Papua as a Peace Zone and according to the mandate of the Papua National Congress II 2000, the Papuan independence movement will be carried out non-violently without any kinds of armed conflicts or violence.

However, the Government of the Unitary Republic of Indonesia (NKRI) has ignored and responded brutally by carrying out various militia and Jihad Troops activities as well as operations of “mysterious gangs” all over West Papua. It has deployed battalions of troops, declared war against West Papua and deployed special troops for war with a “war flag” into West Papua. It has trained the Red-and-White militia troops under the command of Drs. John Djopari, MA, the NKRI ambassador for PNG as the Commander in Chief. It has deployed Jihad Troops and other Islamic Troops into West Papua in the name of Islamisation and Indonesianisation, i.e., national integrity and sovereignty of Indonesia.

Moreover, Indonesia has deployed its Special Forces to carry out clandestine operations under the name of “unknown gang men” or “mysterious gangs” or “mysterious killers” all over West Papua. The outcome has been obvious. The kidnapping and assassination of the Late Ondofolo Dortheys Hiyo Eluay (11 Nov. 2001)[i], the mysterious murders of Col TPN PB Simon Alom, Col TPN PB William Onde, Brig. Gen. TPN PB Hans Bomay (all in 2001) as well as the poisoning of Tribal Elder  from Wamena, Yafeth Yelemaken (May 2002) and the poisoning of Tribal Elders from Serui, Yusuf Tanawani are the work of these “mysterious gangs”. In addition, the Special Forces steered up conflicts that cost the lives of 34 innocent villagers in what is called “Bloody Wamena” (6 Oct. 2000) and also encouraged Papuan people to attack police post in Abepura and the police reacted and chased students into their dormitories, arrested and tortured them to death arbitrarily in what is known now as “Bloody Abepura.”[ii] The same “unknown gang” kidnapped Benny Wenda, S.Sos, the Secretary-General of Demmak on 26 October 2002. The Indonesian government blamed the Papuans taking him away from prison, even though the prison was under a heavy guard and “these special forces” were widely operating around and inside the prison.

Under the Umbrella of Matoa Operation[iii], this Special Forces successfully carried out an ambush on 30 August 2002, and killed two American teachers, one Indonesian and one Papuan. This was used to justify the cancellation of the Meeting of 7 Nations planned to be held in Timika on 7 September 2002 and to deploy more troops into West Papua.

On 16 December 2002, the same “unknown gunmen” under the same command carried out an ambush against the Papuan people along the border and attacked the TPN/OPM troops, killing five and injuring two of TPN/OPM troops. According to our sources in the village, two Papuan people were injured and five were shot dead. Five TNI troops were dead on the same day. The ambush was carried out on the same day and time when their ambassador for PNG, the commander of Red-and-White Militia Group was passing the PNG-West Papua border, Wutung. Following this, on 28 December 2002, an ambush was carried out, suspected by the same ‘unknown’ gangs operating in West Papua since the last five years. This incident injured three civilians; all are the families and members of human rights defenders in West Papua, the ELSHAM. On 1 January 2003, another clash between the Liberation Army of Free Papua Movement (TPN/OPM) and the Indonesian Armed Forces happened, causing at least one Indonesian troop injured. The Indonesian army responded by sending more troops into the region, and declared war against anyone they suspect. While the TPN/OPM Supreme Commander has claimed that the ambushes were orchestrated by the Indonesian armed forces to create violence in the region. [iv]

These are clearly typical tactics of the Indonesian armed forces to tell its central government and the world that the border areas are unsafe, and therefore the deployment of more troops in this region is urgently required. A classic way for the Indonesian military and police, who prefer war to peace, to create chaos, conflicts and deploy more troops and generate more income for the generals. The goal of these all is to put pressure on the Papua New Guinea Government to send back West Papua refugees who were denied their rights for asylum in PNG and to send them back even though their lives are under death threat at the hands of Indonesian police and armed forces.

The modus operandi of operations in West Papua is clear: trigger war and declare the territory as unsafe, then deployment of more troops is justified. This is one way. The second way is killing Papuan people under the command of so-called “mysterious gangs” or “Special Forces”. The third way is, by creating tensions among Papuan people and our organisations. The attack on the TPN/OPM post at this time is apparently current method set up when the TNI realized that peace talk between Free Acheh Movement (GAM) and Indonesia was about to become a reality.

Betrayal of Papuan people is not a new story. The Netherlands, the USA, and the United Nations betrayed Papuan people by promising independence for West Papua in 1970, by setting up scenario for handing over West Papua to Indonesia under the so-called New York Agreement of 12 August 1962[v], and by approving the fraudulent and undemocratic Act of Free Choice[vi] in West Papua in 1969.