Cases

On 30 June 2024, military members allegedly arrested Mr Atinus Kum, a member of the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB), in the Intan Jaya Regency, Papua Tengah Province.

On 14 June 2024, Mr Pilemon Gobai, 42, was unlawfully killed, and Mr Melkias Yatipai,47, a tribal leader, sustained a bullet injury on the left heel as security force members raided the area around the Odiyai Village, Paniai Regency.

The Indonesian government’s plan to transform Merauke town, South Papua (Papua Selatan) Province, into a major centre for sugarcane plantations and bioethanol production has sparked significant controversy and legal disputes. This large-scale agricultural endeavour, part of the National Strategic Project (PSN), aims to achieve sugar self-sufficiency by 2027.

The Ministry of Agrarian Affairs and Spatial Planning/National Land Agency (BPN) and the government of Sorong Regency, Southwest Papua (Papua Barat Daya) Province, are being urged to review the permits and impose strict sanctions on PT Inti Kebun Sejahtera (IKSJ) following recent trespassing on customary land.

The long-standing tension in Timika has escalated, resulting in significant destruction of local community plantations. The situation, which began in 2017, has reached alarming levels in 2024 with repeated incidents of violence, destruction, and threats. The person behind these actions is an individual known by the initials YG.

On 10 June 2024, the Papua Bali Student Community Student Association, in collaboration with IMMAPPA Bali and AMP KK Bali, organised a peaceful demonstration in Denpasar to support the indigenous Awyu and Moi tribes in their struggle to protect their customary lands and forests.

Indigenous communities in Kapiraya district, Deiyai Regency, Papua Tengah (Central Papua) Province, are actively protesting the operations of PT Zoomlion, a Chinese company, which entered the area in 2023 to extract gold with heavy machinery (excavators) without obtaining permits from either the customary right owners or the relevant government authorities.

Reports received indicate that four students were injured by the police and one was arrested during a horizontal tribal conflict in Nabire, Papua Tengah Province on 27 April 2024.

Reports received state that at least six students were arrested by police during a high school graduation celebration in Nabire, Papua Tengah Province, on 6 May 2024.

Papuan students in Bali planned a peaceful demonstration on 1 May 2024 for the 61st anniversary of Papua’s annexation into Indonesia. They intended to march from the East Renon Parking Lot to the Consulate of the United States in Denpasar.

In early April 2024, the community reported that PT MRJ has violated customary law by evicting land and forests without prior deliberation and consent from the indigenous landowners

Joint security force members dispersed a peaceful demonstration organised by the ‘Papuan Peoples Front Caring for Human Rights’ (FRPHAMP) in the town of Nabire, Papua Tengah Province on 5 April 2024.

Tragedy struck during a funeral gathering in the Yokatapa Village, Sugapa District, Intan Jaya Regency, Papua Tengah Province, on 24 March 2024, resulting in the death of Ronaldus Duwitau,13. Six-year-old Nepina Duwitau sustained multiple bullet wounds on the hand and the head. She is currently in a coma.