12 November 2001
The Oxford Papuan Rights Campaign condemns the killing on 11 Nov of Theys Eluay, the Chairman of the Papuan Presidium
Council.
Theys Eluay was the Chief of the Sentani tribe and had served as the Chair of the Act of Free Choice Council established
by Indonesia in 1969. It was under that Act, carried out by 1025 Papuan representatives selected by Indonesia, that West
Papua was incorporated into Indonesia. For more than 15 years, he had been representing West Papua in the Indonesian
Parliament (MPR) during Suharto's government. After the fall of Suharto, he dedicated himself to correct the history of
West Papua. He was the most prominent leading figure, a charismatic "big tribal leader" (Ondofolo) of the Sentani tribe,
the Chairman of the Papua Customary Council as well as the Chairman of the Papua Presidium Council. He was a moderate
leader, among the most pro-western leaders in West Papua, an advocate of non-violence and of dialogue with Indonesia who
had met with former presidents Habibie and Wahid. His death is a serious blow to the prospects of a peaceful solution to
West Papuans' requests for the recognition of their historic rights and the restoration of their human dignity.
He was assassinated yesterday, the 11th of November. He had been tortured immediately before his death. He was found in
his car, which had been pushed towards a ravine. But it appeared to have hit a tree and stopped some 50 meters before
reaching the ravine. The Oxford Papuan Rights Campaign, along with other human rights organisations, suspects the
torture and murder of the foremost Papuan civil society leader was carried out by the security forces.
The Papuan Presidium Council chairman was kidnapped on his way home from attending a ceremony commemorating the
Indonesian Heroes' Day on 10 November, at the headquarters of the Tribuana military command in Hamadi. According to
Tapol the Indonesian human rights organisation, "his family and friends say he received a phone call that morning
inviting him to attend the ceremony to mark Heroes' Day. Shortly after commencing his homeward journey to Sentani, his
vehicle was forced to stop by a group of men; the driver, Ari Masoka, was dragged out and beaten and the car was driven
off with the Papuan leader inside. In a state of great distress, the driver was able to phone Eluay's wife to inform her
of the kidnap. It is not clear whether the driver has survived the attack."
The killing is similar to the killing of human rights and pro-independence activists elsewhere in West Papua and in Aceh
that have been blamed on the security forces. It is feared this has been a military intelligence operation aimed at
provoking the Papuan people into acts of protest and violence. Despite what appears as a cosmetic offer of special
autonomy to West Papua, the territory is presently submerged in military campaigns targeting civilians, traditional
councils, peaceful campaigners as well as the Papuan Freedom Movement. Large parts of West Papua are blockaded and
inaccessible to aid organisations, Indonesian human rights observers, the Indonesian press or the churches. West Papua
as a whole is barred to foreign journalists and has been so since its annexation in 1969. There have been recent
incidents in Ilaga, Manokwari, Wasior and Sorong where members of tribal councils, village elders, schoolteachers,
priests and even women and children as young as three have been shot, tortured to death or have disappeared.
It is the responsibility of the government of President Megawati to act immediately to restore calm in Papua and to call
the security forces to account for this apparent act of state terrorism. However, considering the total impunity the
security forces have always enjoyed in West Papua, even after the new human rights legislation in 1999, the Oxford
Papuan Rights Campaign urges other human rights organisations, governments around the world and the United Nations to
ensure that special experts of the UN High Commission of Human Rights (UNHCHR) visit West Papua to establish an
independent human rights commission that will investigate Theys Eluay's death and the persistent serious human rights
violations by the security forces in the territory.
Oxford Papuan Rights Campaign http://www.westpapua.org
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Peace Movement Aotearoa
the national networking peace organisation
PO Box 9314, Wellington, Aotearoa/New Zealand
Tel +64 4 382 8129 Fax +64 4 382 8173
http://www.converge.org.nz/pma/
Internet Peace Gateway - http://www.peace.org.nz
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