Human Rights

Tapol Reports from West Papua
12:36 August 14, 2010

Press Release – Scoop Coverage of West Papua

At the end of a trial that went on for five months, the court on Wednesday announced its verdict for the two defendants Semuel Yaru and Luther Wrait. They were both sentenced to one year minus the time already served in detention.Via Tapol Reports from West Papua [In some cases, the items are abridged in translation.]

Bintang Papua, 12 August 2010

[Note: Judges rejected charge of rebellion.]

One year sentence for two ‘makar’ defendants

Journalist's death overshadows launch of Papua food project
Press Release by TAPOL and DTE

11 August 2010 - The death of a local journalist has increased concerns about a giant food estate launched today in Merauke, Southeastern Papua by Indonesia's Minister of Agriculture.

TAPOL and Down to Earth, the International Campaign for Ecological Justice in Indonesia are calling for a moratorium on the food project, known as MIFEE (Merauke Integrated Food and Energy Estate) until independent assessments of the political, economic, socio-cultural, environmental and gender impacts of the project have been undertaken.

The suspicious death of the journalist, Ardiansyah Matra'is, in late July, following threats against him, has been linked to his coverage of this week's local elections for the district head in Merauke.

PRESS RELEASE

4 August 2010

WEST PAPUA CALLS FOR DIALOGUE AND ACTION FROM THE FORUM.

“We are the most vulnerable community in the Pacific”

West Papua welcomes the opening statement today from the Forum Secretary General, Mr. Tuiloma Nerom Slade highlighting that one of the themes of this year's Forum is to “Protect the most vulnerable communities within the Pacific”.

Australia West Papua Association (Sydney)

PO Box 28, Spit Junction, NSW 2088

AWPA update. July 2010

The 41st Pacific Islands Forum will be held in Port Vila, Vanuatu between 3-6 August. A number of organizations including AWPA have called on the PIF leaders to put West Papuan on the agenda and raise concerns about the human rights situation in West Papua with the Indonesian government (press releases/letters below).

Dear Friends,

Please help us help humanity by reading and encouraging other adults to read the graphic novel at www.papuanvoices.com. (Does not yet work on mobile phones.)

The Illustrator and I have chosen to release the first three chapters (60 pages) now, given the urgency of the content but also because we can update and add to this "flip book" over time. (Try your scroll wheel to flip pages.)

If you care about disappearing cultures and biodiversity, you can help raise the world's awareness of West Papua by forwarding this appeal to your friends and colleagues, or by letting them know about this through Facebook, Twitter or word-of-mouth.

If you enjoy the beautiful illustrations in this book and you come to appreciate the global significance and dire urgency of its story, please tell others about papuanvoices.com.

The Author

(Klik di sini untuk versi bahasa Indonesia)

Indonesia: Stop Prosecuting Peaceful Political Expression

EU-Indonesia Human Rights Dialogue Should Take up Cases of Imprisoned Activists

June 22, 2010

(Jakarta) - The Indonesian government should immediately release the more than 100 Papuan and Moluccan activists imprisoned for peacefully voicing political views, and change laws and policies to protect freedom of expression, Human Rights Watch said in a report released today. The government should act now to ensure that a European Union-Indonesia dialogue on human rights scheduled for June 29, 2010, in Jakarta will get off to a successful start, Human Rights Watch said.

The 43-page report, "Prosecuting Political Aspiration: Indonesia's Political Prisoners," is based on more than 50 jailhouse interviews with political prisoners conducted between December 2008 and May 2010. It describes the arrest and prosecution of activists for peacefully raising banned symbols, such as the Papuan Morning Star and the South Moluccan RMS flags. The report also details torture that many say they have suffered in detention, especially by members of the Detachment 88/Anti-Terror Squad in Ambon, as well as police and prison guards in Papua, and the failure of the government to hold those responsible to account.

Journalists Raise Voices in Protest Over French Colleagues Detained in Papua
Nivell Rayda
source: Jakarta Globe - May 25, 2010

Local members of the media have condemned Tuesday’s detention of two French journalists in Papua, saying the move undermined freedom of the press. Victor Mambor, chairman of the Papua chapter of the Independent Journalist Alliance (AJI), said the government had crossed the line. “We are condemning the government move to keep the journalists from doing their work. There should not be any limitation to what the reporters can or cannot cover as long as it does not violate press laws,” he said.

Resource-Rich West Papua, But Who Benefits?

The Jakarta Post - Friday May 14, 2010
by:Carmel Budiardjo

Indonesia is these days praised as a success story among the countries of Southeast Asia, with growth figures that compare favorably with its neighbors and an absence of conflict. It is also the largest country in the region which enjoys an abundance of natural resources that have lured foreign companies to its shores. Since the fall of Soeharto in 1998 and the end of his dictatorship, economic progress has fostered a growing middle class.

A referendum in East Timor 18 months after his exit secured that country’s independence after 25 years of devastating occupation, while in the other conflict-ridden province, Aceh, where thousands of people died from 1976 till 2004, a peace agreement has secured it an era of reconstruction, thanks largely to the devastating tsunami in December 2004 and to the agreement reached a year later between the Free Aceh Movement (GAM), and Jakarta.

However, the situation in its most easterly region, West Papua, is far from satisfactory and rarely draws international attention except when shooting incidents take the lives of foreigners employed by a mining company which is recognized as being Jakarta’s largest taxpayer.

U.S. Training of Kopassus: A Bad Idea Whose Time Has Not Come

The East Timor and Indonesia Action Network (ETAN) warned President Barack Obama against renewing any U.S. training for Indonesia's notorious special forces.

"Training Kopassus will set back efforts to achieve accountability for past and recent human rights violations and will do little or nothing to discourage future crimes," said John M. Miller, National Coordinator of ETAN. "This is a bad idea whose time has not come."

The Obama administration is considering resuming training of Kopassus and may announce a change in policy when President Obama visits Indonesia later this month.

"It's impossible to credit Kopassus with human rights reform when it retains active duty soldiers convicted of human rights violations," said Miller. These include soldiers convicted of killing West Papuan leader Theys Eluay and the kidnapping and disappearances of Indonesian activists in 1997 and 1998.

Activists say Papua food estate ‘not the answer’
by Arti Ekawati & Fidelis E. Satriastanti
Jakarta Globe – March 04, 2010

Activists warned on Thursday not to put too much hope in the Merauke food estate, saying it would do little to provide food security or eliminate starvation in Indonesia.

“It will eventually decrease our dependence on [importing] food crops, but it does not automatically reduce famine in our own country. It does not work that way,” said Witoro, the head of a food-crop working group from the Prosperity Village Alliance, which comprises 18 nongovernmental organizations focused on implementing sustainable living in villages across the country.