On the morning of 23 May 2025, at approximately 10:00 am, five Papuan minors sustained bullet injuries as Indonesian joint security forces opened fire at them in Kimupugi Village, Dogiyai Regency, Papua Tengah Province. The shooting was triggered by an earlier incident involving an unidentified group throwing stones at the police post in the Pasar Lama Market in Mowanemani Town. Following the incident, security forces shot indiscriminately, injuring five minors. The incident prompted widespread panic, leading residents to flee to neighbouring villages and districts.
According to eyewitness reports from Kimupugi, the police began firing live ammunition shortly after a group of unidentified individuals threw stones at the police post across the Tuka River. According to the information received, the security forces came to Kimupugi village shortly after the incident and began opening fire on civilians. The victims are under 16 years old (see table below, source: WPCC). Human rights defenders found two bullet shells at the site of the crime (see photo pn top, source: WPCC)
Following the shooting, additional military reinforcements from the regencies of Nabire, Paniai, and Deiyai were deployed to Dogiyai (see video below: source: WPCC). The reinforcements included eight military vehicles equipped with war equipment passing through Kali Menou and Kali Bumi. Reports indicate that approximately 200 military personnel had already been deployed to Dogiyai in the week preceding the incident.
The shooting of unarmed minors constitutes a grave violation of international human rights and humanitarian law. Under the Convention on the Rights of the Child (CRC), to which Indonesia is a party. Children must be afforded special protection in times of conflict and law enforcement operations. The indiscriminate use of live ammunition in a populated civilian area, especially targeting children, amounts to a breach of the right to life (Article 6, ICCPR) and the prohibition of arbitrary deprivation of life. Moreover, the failure to distinguish between civilians and those allegedly responsible for the stone-throwing incident reflects a systemic pattern of excessive and disproportionate use of force by Indonesian security forces in Papua. The forced displacement of civilians from Kimupugi further exacerbates the humanitarian impact of this operation.
Table of victims who sustained gunshot wounds during the shooting in Kimupugi Village on 23 May 2025
| No. | Name | Age | Injury Description |
| 1 | Marthen Tebai | 12 | Shot in the leg |
| 2 | Pios Waine | 15 | Shot in the chest (serious injury) |
| 3 | Nopentus Tebai | 13 | Shot in the ear |
| 4 | Deserius Tebai | 12 | Shot in the leg |
| 5 | Feri Tibakoto | 16 | Shot in the abdomen |
Scars of gunshot wounds that the minors suffered as a result of security force violence in Kimupugi on 23 May 2025
