News on the human rights and conflict situation in the Indo-Pacific region.
The Papuan human rights defender and international spokesperson of the West Papua National Committee (KNPB), Mr Victor Yeimo, was released from the correctional facility in Abepura, Jayapura City, on 23 September 2023 after serving a sentence of one year
Members of the Nduga District Police and the Damai Cartenz Police Task Force raided a residential house and the local head office of the Papuan Tabernacle Church (Kingmi Papua) in the town of Kenyam, Nduga Regency, Papua Pegunungan Province, on 17.09.2023.
On 15 September 2023, police officers found the bodies of Darnius Heluka, Musa Heluka, Man Senik, Yoman Senik, and Kapai Payage near the Brazza River estuary in the Dekai District, Yahukimo Regency, Papua Pegunungan Province
Security force personnel reportedly killed five suspects during two separate raids in the Kramongmongga District, Fakfak Regency, on 31 August and 9 September 2023
Thousands of residents of Rempang Island, Galang District, Batam City, have been widely protesting against government plans to evict thousands of people to make way for the ‘Eco-City’ Project.
The National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) has faced criticism for failing responsiveness in investigating allegations of human rights violations in the Dogiyai Regency, Papua Tengah Province.
Three USTJ students were released from the Abepura Correctional Facility in Jayapura, Papua, on 7 September 2023 after serving a treason sentence of ten months imprisonment.
The new report ‘Government loudspeaker shows how Indonesian national media amplifies the state’s narrative on the Free West Papua movement
On 5 September 2023, the Jakarta State Administrative Court (PTUN) rejected a lawsuit filed by the palm oil companies PT Megakarya Jaya Raya and PT Kartika Cipta Pratama against the Indonesian Minister of Environment and Forestry, Mrs Siti Nurbaya Bakar.
The escalating conflict in the Yahukimo District, Papua Pegunungan Province, led to the internal displacement of 674 people on 21 August 2023.
On 05 September 2023, a panel of judges at the Military Oditur III-13 Denpasar acquitted Sergeant Vicente De Oliviara and Private Bahari Muhrim of their charges.
Police officers detained KNPB activsist Agus Kossay, Benny Murip, Ruben Wakla, and Ferry Yelipele in Sentani, West Papua, on 2 September 2023.
Greenpeace Indonesia has called upon the Provincial Governments in West Papua to commit to a low-carbon development plan in order to preserve natural forests sustainably in the region.
A case of corruption and misconduct involving prosecutors and administrative officers at the Manokwari District Attorney’s Office in the Papua Barat Province showcases persistent shortcomings in the Indonesian justice system. The incident came to light through a video that went viral on social media platforms.
A second military trial against two of the four perpetrators of the extra-judicial execution of Mr Eden Bebari and Mr Ronny Wandik in the Mimika Regency in April 2020 is currently taking place at the Military Oditur III-13 Denpasar. The trial against the other two perpetrators ended in July 2023 with a guilty verdict and sentences of six and seven years. The defendants in the second trial, Sergeant Vicente De Oliviara and Private Bahari Muhrim, both members of the Yonif Raider 900/SBW Unit, face charges related to murder and the use of violence resulting in death.
The Cooperation Team for the Prevention of Torture (KuPP) recently visited eight places of detention in West Papua, focusing on structural improvements and efforts to prevent torture.
A year after the tragic murder and mutilation of four Papuan civilians from the Nduga District in Timika. The victims’ relatives commemorated the event in prayer and released a press statement.
Human rights observers have expressed concerns regarding a series of security force raids in the Gome District, Puncak Regency, on 15 August 2023.
On 1 August 2023, the Intan Jaya district government officially opened flights in order to return people from Intan Jaya who fled to Nabire, Paniai and Timika away from the armed conflict between the Indonesian military and the TPNPB, which has been ongoing since December 2019.
The work of Mr Aleks Waine, a Papuan journalist who is also the coordinator of the Dogiyai Journalists Association (AWD), to cover the working visit of the Coordinating Minister for Human Development and Culture (Menko PMK) in Dogiyai district, Central Papua Province, on 20 July 2023 was blocked by members of the Dogiyai Regional Police.
