After 15 Years of Reforms, Repression In Papua

After 15 Years of Reformasi, Repression In Papua Is Putting More People Behind Bars

SPP-HAM - Solidarity for Upholding Human Rights - organised an action
today in Jayapura Town in order to call upon the State to accept
responsibility for the death of three civilians in Aimas, Sorong
district and for the arbitrary arrest of three civilians in Sorong,
Biak, Mimika and Jayapura.on 30 April and 1 May this year.

The action began at 8.30am outside the Cenderawasih University (UNCEN)
in Waena and the UNCEN Campus in Abepura as well as outside the
Cultural Expo in Waena district of Heram, Jayapura Town.

The action was forcibly disbanded by units of the Police (Brimob Dalmas
Polresta and Polda Papua) and four people who were taking tpart n the
action were arrested..They also tortured a student from UNCEN. The
arrests and torture occurred in front of the UNCEN bus station.

The four people who were arrested and tortured were:

1) Victor Yeimo, 30 years old (Responsible for the action)
2) Marthen Manggaprouw, 30 years old (Responsible for the action)
3.) Yongky Ulimpa 23 years old, a participant in the action.
4) Elly Kobak 17 years old, a participant in the action.
5) Markus Giban, a student at UNCEN, 19 years old who was beaten with a
rifle butt which broke his right hand and who is now being treated in
the Abepura General Hospital.

The participants were forcibly dispersed for not having permission from
the police. On the previous day, 8 May, the committee of SPP-HAM had
sent a request to the police stating that the action would be peaceful
(00/SP/PAN-SPHAM-UTSN/V/2013) but the request was turned down on the
grounds that the Solidarity Movement has no statutes of association
(AD/ART) and has been registered at the Kesbangpol Agency of the
Province of Papua.

We regard this reason as being groundless because the SPP-HAM is not a
permanent organisation but simply a humanitarian solidarity group which
was set up by human rights activists in response to the 1 May Tragedy
when three civilians were killed, so there was no need to register with
the Police (Kesbangpol). Furthermore, the police action was a
restriction of people's rights of assembly and expression which are
guaranteed in the 1945 Constitution Article 28, para E sub 3 and sub 8,
and which are also regulated in Law 9/1998 on the freedom of expression
to state one's opinion in public, in particular Articles 1 and 2.

The forcible dispersal of the action on that day and the arrest of 4
human rights activists is but a small portrayal of the clamp down on
democracy by the repressive and oppressive government. This is not the
first time that such a thing has happened; it has become a regular
feature of police behaviour. This proves that there is no space for
democracy in Papua.

The reality of democracy represents a setback in the fifteen years of
reformasi in Indonesia. Reformasi in Indonesia cannot progress if the
space for democracy in Papua is closed. Out of respect for basic human
rights and the advancement of democracy in Papua and in Indonesia, we
members of NAPAS (National Papuan Solidarity) call upon and urge the
government:

1: To end the forcible dispersal and arbitrary arrest of human rights
activists and students.

2: To release the four civilians who were arrested today.

3. To open up the space for democracy for the Papuan people to grant
permission for a special rapporteur from the United Nations to carry
out investigations in Papua as well as giving access to national and
foreign journalists.

NAPAS also strongly condemns the abysmal commitment of the government
and State to the principles of Basic Human Rights , especially to the
Papuan people. Papua is today the face of democracy in Indonesia , as
well as the face of the Indonesian Government towards the Papuan peope.

Jakarta, 1 May 2013

National Papua Solidarity (NAPA)

Zely Ariane. Co-ordinator

ENDS

© Scoop Media