West Papua Killings Signal A Return To Repression

West Papua: Mysterious killings are a return to the Suharto era style of repression

Two West Papuan men have been murdered in separate incidents in what appears to be a return of the 'mysterious killing' style of political repression, which was carried out by the Indonesian security forces during the Suharto era.

The Institute for Papuan Advocacy & Human Rights holds grave concerns that this new information from Nabire suggests that the Indonesian security forces have moved to increase the intimidation of West Papuan community by engaging in a campaign of brutal extra-judicial killing & torture.

Statements from the senior military commanders, like Lt General Zamroni and Col. Siagian, to repress political descent, which they characterize as 'separatism', coincides with a deteriorating the human rights environment in West Papua.

"What is particularly distressing is that in the past few days the Indonesian President, Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, has also said he will not tolerate 'separatism' or any interference that would slow down the development of Papua province. The statements of the President parallel those of the military commanders in West Papua and will likely increase the human rights abuses occurring in West Papua."

Spokesperson for the Institute for Papuan Advocacy & Human Rights, Matthew Jamieson said, "The information coming to us signals that the human rights situation in West Papua is deteriorating fast. In the past two months there has been increased threats to human rights defenders, reports of militia being formed in regional centers, torture of Papuan activists at the hands of security forces, a report of the killing by Police of three public servants in the Star Mountains region, and shootings of Papuans by military personnel in Jayapura and the case of the server torture of a man by military near Tanah Merah."

Church workers investigating the murders of the two Papuan men in Nabire believe that these killings were examples of 'mysterious killings' and were committed by the Indonesian security forces. The mutilated bodies of both men were dumped on a street in Nabire.

The dead men were Matius Bunai (29 years old), a youth leader of the Maranatha Kingmi Church and civil servant with the Police department, and Ones Keiya (31 years old), a farmer. Both men were residents of Siriwini neighbourhood in Nabire, were from the Mee tribal group and were members of the Kingmi church.

Church sources report that Matius Bunai was killed sometime after midnight on the 6th August after returning home from a church worship service. His beaten and lacerated body was dumped on the street and found at 7am on the 7th of August by a primary school student walking to school. Ones Keiya was found bleeding and close to death by the side of a road at 7pm on the 23rd of July by a motorcycle courier. He died hours later in the Nabire hospital. There were no witnesses to both attacks.

The bodies of both men showed similar signs of injuries: smashed forehead, deep cuts on the head, lacerations on the feet and hands, and cuts by a knife.

A Church worker in Nabire accused the police of refusing to investigate the killings of the two men. "The Police treat us as if we were animals. If non-Papuans are killed the police are very busy looking for the culprit, but if Papuans are killed the police do nothing. This behaviour makes Papuans feel as if the police want to wipe us out in our own land. As long as the Indonesian military is in our land we feel these mysterious killings will continue" said the Church worker from Nabire, who asked not to be named.

ENDS

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