INDONESIA: Ongoing violence in Papua and the need for dialogue

date: March 12, 2013
document id: ALRC-COS-22-13-2013
HRC section: Item 4, General Debate
Speaker: Mr. Budi Tjahjono

A Joint Oral Statement to the 22st Session of the UN Human Rights Council fromthe Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC), the Commission of the Churches on International Affairs / World Council of Churches ( CCIA/WCC), Dominicans for Justice and Peace (Order of Preachers), Franciscans International (FI), the International Coalition for Papua (ICP), Survival International (SI), United Evangelical Mission (UEM), Vivat International (VI), and the West Papua Netzwerk (WPN).


INDONESIA: Ongoing violence in Papua and the need for dialogue

This is a joint statement by the Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC), the Commission of the Churches on International Affairs / World Council of Churches (CCIA/WCC), Dominicans for Justice and Peace (Order of Preachers), Franciscans International (FI), the International Coalition for Papua (ICP), Survival International (SI), United Evangelical Mission (UEM), Vivat International (VI), and the West Papua Netzwerk (WPN).


A wave of persecution against political activists under the cover of anti-terrorism measures since summer last year has resulted in arbitrary arrests and fabrication of charges with the aim to silence political activists and human rights defenders in the Papuan provinces of Indonesia.


On January 21st, 20 inmates of the notorious Abepura prison, in which many of Papuan currently 33 political prisoners are located, were tortured and ill-treated. The prisoners were beaten with electro wires. We welcome the removal of the prison head following interventions from rights groups. However, to end the ongoing climate of impunity in Papua, criminal proceedings need to be started against these and all other perpetrators of torture, ill-treatment, intimidation and other human rights violations.


In another case on February 15th, 7 Papuans were stopped and arrested in Depapre, Papua and later brought to the Jayapura Police station. The victims were tortured while being interrogated about contacts to political and human rights activists who already had to go into hiding for several months. While 5 of the victims were released on the following day, Daniel Gobay and Matan Klembiab were falsely charged with illegal possession of sharp weapons under the emergency regulation 12/1951 as reported by the Asian Human Rights Commission

Source Published: http://www.alrc.net/doc/mainfile.php/hrc22/749