Two Urgent Action Appeals from Amnesty International

1) Amnesty International: Urgent Action

AI Index: ASA 21/009/2007 03 August 2007

UA 199/07 Fear for safety

INDONESIA Socrates Yoman (m), Head of the Baptist Churches (Papua)
Noahk Nawipa (m), Kingmi church leader
Benny Giay (m), Kingmi church leader

Benny Giay, Noahk Nawipa and Socrates Yoman, all Christian church leaders in Papua province, have reportedly been threatened. Amnesty International believes that the lives of the three men could be in danger.

Around midnight on 29 July, two men reportedly came to the home of Pastor
Benny Giav, a leader of the Kingmi church (the Papuan branch of the Gospel
Tabernacle Church of Indonesia, in the town of Jayapura, Papua, where many
local indigenous people worship), and walked around his house for about 15
minutes before leaving. The next day, Pastor Giay was informed that someone
had received a text message asking him to join a group planning to vandalize Pastor Giay¹s office at the Kingmi Church.

On 1 August, Pastor Giay was also told while he was travelling in the Sentani area of Papua province that he had to be Œextra careful¹ because there were plans by members of the national branch of the Gospel Tabernacle Church of Indonesia (Gereja Kemah Injil Indonesia, GKII) to kill or shoot pastors from around Sentani. This rumour echoed another warning by a pastor who reportedly said "tell pak [Mr] Benny Giay and pak [Mr] Noakh Nawipa to be extra careful as some pastors of GKII are planning to kill them. If they can't there are many ways to abduct them". Noahk Nawipa is also a leader at the Kingmi Church. Benny Giay has been outspoken on the political and human rights situation in Papua.

On 30 July, around 25 people who claimed to be members of GKII reportedly
went to the Kingmi Church. The mob threw stones at the Kingmi Church
building, injuring as many as eight people who were guarding the Church
office. Three of those injured required hospital treatment. Some people from the mob were heard shouting: "Take and kill Dr Benny and Dr Noakh; they provoke people and create too many problems in West Papua. They are true provocateurs".

The attack may have occurred as a result of tensions between the Kingmi
Church and GKII. In 2006, the Kingmi church officially separated from GKII,
but following allegations that the Kingmi Church was supporting the armed
Papuan independence movement (OPM, Organisasi Papua Merdeka), members of
GKII rejected the autonomy of the Papuan church.

Although reports indicate that about 50 police officers were present during
the attack on Kingmi church, it is claimed by witnesses that they did
nothing to stop the violence. Some reports indicate that some members of the Special Police Force (Police Mobile Brigade, Brimob) and military personnel took part in the violence by vandalizing church property.

According to his testimony, in a separate incident on 29 July, Reverend
Socrates Yoman, President of the Communion of Baptist Churches in Papua, was threatened and intimidated by armed police officers and military
intelligence personnel outside the Baptist Church in Jayapura, Papua
province, following a service. Reverend Yoman said that the security forces personnel pointed a pistol at him and he was verbally threatened, although details of these threats are not known to Amnesty International. Reverend Yoman has spoken out a number of times about human rights abuses committed by the authorities in Papua.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

There is an active independence movement in Papua province, and the
Indonesian security forces have responded at times with excessive use of
force including extrajudicial executions, torture and arbitrary detentions.

Members of local human rights organisations have been harassed and
intimidated because of their work, and some have been forced to leave the
province. Church leaders are among those who have voiced the concerns of the local population about ongoing human rights violations, and as a result have publicly been accused of being linked to the independence movement.

Following her visit to Indonesia in June, the UN's Special Representative on Human Rights Defenders, Hina Jilani, stated that human rights defenders
working in Papua province "continue to face torture, arbitrary detention and harassment from the country's police, military and security forces." .

While Amnesty International takes no position on the political status of any province of Indonesia, the organization believes that the right to freedom of expression includes the right to peacefully express political views and that this right must be upheld.

RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible
… expressing concern for the safety of Benny Giay, Noahk Nawipa and
Socrates Yoman;
… urging the authorities to take immediate, concrete measures to
guarantee the safety of Benny Giay, Noahk Nawipa and Socrates Yoman, and
members of the Kingmi church;
… calling on the authorities to investigate allegations that Socrates
Yoman was threatened at gunpoint by security forces personnel and that
Kingmi Church was attacked with the collusion of police and military;
… calling for those responsible for the attacks and intimidation towards
the three church leaders and members of the Kingmi Church be held
accountable;
… calling for the authorities to ensure that all members of the police
and military are made aware of the legitimate role of human rights defenders and their responsibility to protect human rights defenders under the UN Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.

APPEALS TO: (Please note that fax numbers may be switched off outside office hours, 7 hours ahead of GMT. Please keep trying)

President
Mr Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
Istana Merdeka, Jakarta 10110, Indonesia
Fax: + 62 21 345 2685 or + 62 21 526 8726 or + 62 21 380 5511
Email: presiden@ri.go.id

COPIES TO:
Chairman, National Commission for Human Rights National Police Chief
Komisi Nasional Hak Asasi Manusia General Sutanto
Mr Abdul Hakim Garuda Nusantara, Jalan Truno Joyo No. 03
Jl. Latuharhary No. 4B Jakarta Selatan, Indonesia
Menteng, Jakarta Pusat 10310, Indonesia Fax: +62 21 720
7277

Indonesian Ambassador His Excellency Mr Teuku THAYEB
Embassy of Indonesia., 8 Darwin Avenue, Yarralumla ACT 2600 Fax: (02)
6273 6017, 6273 3545,

PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY. Check with the International Secretariat,
or your section office, if sending appeals after 14 September 2007.

---------------------------------------------

2) Amnesty International: Urgent Action

AI Index: ASA 21/008/2007 3 August 2007

UA 197/07 Fear for safety

INDONESIA Albert Rumbakwan (m), human rights activist

Prominent human rights defender Albert Rumbakwan has received death threats, and has been followed and kept under surveillance. Amnesty International believes his life could be in danger.

He is the director of the National Human Rights Commission (Komisi Nasional
Hak Asasi Manusia, Komnas HAM) section in Papua province. Since early June,
when he met with the UN Special Representative on Human Rights Defenders,
Hina Jilani, he has been receiving mobile phone text messages containing
death threats aimed at him and his family. One of these said: ³You who
already report on the Papuan nation with human rights to destroy the people, you want a proof of the bitterness of the people. The troops will instantly make your ancestors and your children become skin and bones in the Papuan zone of peace."

On 14 June, unknown men kept watch on his office from 8am until 4pm. The men went in and asked staff where he was, but he was out, so they waited in
their cars. One of the cars was a black Avanza Kijang LX, and another was a
white Kijang Kapsul. They spent all day parked 20m from the office, which
intimidated the Komnas HAM staff. A similar car had reportedly been seen
earlier that month following Hina Jilani during her visit to Jayapura, Papua province.

According to a local source, on the evening of 24 July "unidentified
persons" went to Albert Rumbakwan's house and tried to see inside holding
electronic equipment up to a window. Police officers were in the house with
him at the time. The police apparently felt "afraid" and told Albert
Rumbakwan to prepare himself with "traditional weapons" like a stone or a
knife. Police have been monitoring his situation closely since he started to receive death threats however the threats towards Albert have not diminished.

Albert Rumbakwan says he has been followed when travelling by car, and that
members of his family have been followed and have been asked where he is.
Text messages have been sent, claiming to come from him, to people in Papua
telling them to attack police and military offices in the province, so as to achieve a free Papua. Albert denies sending these messages. These messages could put him at risk of violent retribution from the security forces.

The harassment and intimidation of Albert Rumbakwan is typical of the
treatment of human rights defenders in Papua since Hina Jilani's visit, and
since Colonel Burhanuddin was nominated as military commander in the city of Jayapura (see UA 199/07, ASA 21/009, 3 August 2007).

Colonel Burhanuddin Siagian reportedly said on 12 May: ³If I meet anyone who has enjoyed the facilities that belong to the state, but who still betrays the nation, I honestly will destroy him.² On 7 July, he reportedly said in the same newspaper, "For the sake of the NKRI [The Unitary Republic of Indonesia] we are not afraid of human rights. It is the TNI¹s [army] duty to destroy any group wanting to separate from Indonesia, irrespective of what methods they are using to struggle."

He made similar threats towards the Timorese community in 1999, which appear to have led directly to the killing of a number of Timorese civilians. According to the indictments issued by the Special Panel for Serious Crimes of Dili District Court in 2003, Colonel Siagian made public speeches threatening to kill supporters of Timor-Leste¹s independence, and ordered the killing of seven men in April 1999. Although Colonel Siagian has been indicted twice for crimes against humanity in Timor-Leste, and was named as a suspect in Indonesia¹s own commission of investigation into the human rights violations which occurred in Timor at the time, he has never faced trial.

BACKGROUND INFORMATION

There is an active independence movement in Papua province and the
Indonesian security forces have responded at times with excessive use of
force including extrajudicial executions, torture and arbitrary detentions.
Human rights organisations are among those publicly accused of being linked
to the independence movement. Members of local human rights organisations
have been harassed and intimidated because of their work, and some have been forced to leave the province. Following her visit to Indonesia in June, Hina Jilani stated that human rights defenders working in Papua province "continue to face torture, arbitrary detention and harassment from the country¹s police, military and security forces."

While Amnesty International takes no position on the political status of any province of Indonesia, Amnesty International believes that the right to
freedom of expression includes the right to express political views and that this right must be upheld.

RECOMMENDED ACTION: Please send appeals to arrive as quickly as possible,:

… calling on the authorities to investigate allegations that Albert
Rumbakwan received text message death threats in June and July, that text
messages exhorting violence were sent, falsely claiming to come from him,
and that he and members of his family have been followed;
… calling for those responsible for the threats and intimidation to be
brought to justice;
… urging the authorities to take immediate, concrete measures to
guarantee the safety of Albert Rumbakwan;
… urging the authorities to immediately withdraw Col. Siagian from Papua
and suspend him from active duty; all military or police officers who have
been indicted for crimes against humanity by the Special Panels for Serious
Crimes in Timor-Leste should be suspended from active duty pending the
outcome of criminal proceedings to determine whether or not they are guilty
of the charges against them.
… calling on the authorities to ensure that all members of the police and
military are made aware of their responsibility to protect human rights
defenders, set out in the UN Declaration on the Right and Responsibility of
Individuals, Groups and Organs of Society to Promote and Protect Universally
Recognized Human Rights and Fundamental Freedoms.

APPEALS TO (Fax machines may be switched off outside office hours, GMT+7.
Please keep trying):
President
Mr Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono
Istana Merdeka, Jakarta 10110,
Indonesia
Fax: + 62 21 345 2685 or + 62 21 526 8726 Email:
presiden@ri.go.id

COPIES TO:
Chairman, National Commission for Human Rights National Police Chief
Komisi Nasional Hak Asasi Manusia General Sutanto
Mr Abdul Hakim Garuda Nusantara, Jalan Truno Joyo No. 03
Jl. Latuharhary No. 4B Jakarta Selatan, Indonesia
Menteng, Jakarta Pusat 10310, Indonesia Fax: +62 21 720
7277

Indonesian Ambassador His Excellency Mr Teuku THAYEB
Embassy of Indonesia., 8 Darwin Avenue, Yarralumla ACT 2600
Fax: (02) 6273 6017, 6273 3545, Email : indonemb@kbri-canberra.org.au

PLEASE SEND APPEALS IMMEDIATELY. Check with the International Secretariat,
or your section office, if sending appeals after 1 October 2007.