HOUSE URGES MILITARY, POLICE TO ARREST BRIDGE WORKERS' KILLERS

by Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Dec 4 (Antara) - The House of Representatives (DPR) urged the military and police to hunt down the murderers who killed 31 company workers at a bridge construction site, Trans-Papua highway project, Papua Province, on Monday.          "I condemn the murder of workers in Papua by members of Armed Criminal Croup (KKB). I urge the security officers to resolve the barbaric act and arrest the perpetrators soon," House Speaker Bambang Soesatyo said here on Tuesday.          Commission I of the House will ask the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI) commander to explain the incident. "Surely, the Commission I will ask the TNI commander and the Indonesian Police chief to explain the steps they are taking to follow up with the murder and to arrest the perpetrators," Soesatyo stressed.          President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) ordered the TNI commander and the National Police chief to check the latest conditions in Nduga, Papua Province, after the shooting incident.          Jokowi instructed TNI Chief Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto and the National Police Head General Tito Karnavian, after it was reported that the KKB on Sunday kidnapped 31 PT Istaka Karya workers and killed them.

SEPARATISTS AMBUSH MILTARY PATROL IN PAPUA

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, July 1 (ANTARA)  - Free Papua Movement (OPM)'s alleged gunmen ambushed  military convoy vehicles which were conducting a patrol in Keerom district, in the border area with Papua New Guinea, causing an exchange of fire and leaving one civilian dead Sunday.          The incident took place coinciding with the 66th anniversary of the National Police and anniversary of the OPM, a separatist organization established in 1965 for Papua/West Papua to secede from Indonesia.          On previous days, police had virtually made necessary anticipation in the face of the OPM anniversary calling on the people of Papua to restrain from raising the OPM's morning star flag. Yet, at least six OPM flgas were raised amid the National Police anniversary. Police pulled down  the flags, in two places in Jayapura and four locations in Keerom.         "Security officers have handled the hoisted flags with persuasive approaches and nothing happened," National Police Spokesman Insp. Gen. Saud Usman Nasution was quoted as saying by the JPNN.Com in Jakarta on Sunday.          However, when the chief of  Battalion 431 (Yon 431) of the Army's Strategic Command (Kostrad), Lt.Col. Indarto  led a convoy to conduct a routine patrol in the Keerom district in Papua, his vehicle was ambushed by armed civilians.          "Indonesian security forces clashed with a group of unidentified armed civilians in the border area between Indonesia and Papua New Guinea, claiming the life of one civilian," Chief of the Cenderawasih Military Command Maj. Gen Erwin Safitri said.          He confirmed the incident when contacted which he said took place in Wembi area, Keerom district, Papua Province.          "The vehicle of the army personnel from Battalion 431 (Yon 431) of the Army's Strategic Command (Kostrad) was ambushed by the separatist National Liberation Army/Free Papua Movement Organization (OPM) when it was passing in the Sawi Tami area,"  Maj. Gen. Erwin Safitri  said.          When they were ambushed the military personnel and the civilian gunmen were involved in exchanges of fires in the areas that caused the death of one civilian, namely the Sawi Tami village chief.          Yon 431 Commander Lt.Col. Indarto  who was contacted in a separate place said he and his subordinates were conducting a routine patrol to the military posts in the area when they arrived in the Sawi Tami area they were ambushed by the OPM group led by Lambert Pekikir.          "My man was hurt  with a piece of broken windshield," Indarto said adding that besides ambushing our vehicles, the OPM separatists also opened fires at other vehicles behind his car.          As a result, he said, one civilian was killed namely Yohannes, who is the head of Sawi Tami village," the Yon 431 commander whose area oversees the border between Indonesia and  RI-PNG said.          In the meantime, Chief Security Minister Djoko Suyanto strongly criticized the ambush and shooting of the military patrol convoy by separatist elements in the border area.          "Police and military apparatuses should hunt them down and arrest them so that the public could be informed about the party or group which is responsible for the criminal act," the coordinating minister for political, law and security affairs said in his short message to ANTARA.          Armed clashes between security officers and civilian gunmen in Papua have frequently taken place.       Early last month, it was reported  shooting incidents in three different locations in Jayapura by unknown gunmen also took place at around 10pm Central Indonesia Time. Djoko Suyanto condemned the recent shootings of civilians, foreigner, military or police members in Papua.          "The acts were against efforts aimed at creating peace in Papua and accelerating development programs in the region," he said at a press conference following the incident     In view of that he called on the police and TNI (military) to  immediately seize the perpetrators and bring them to justice. He also asked people to help give correct information about them to the apparatus.          The victims include Iqbal Rifai, aged 22, a resident of Hamadi Pasar,  Hardi Jayanto, aged 22, a resident of Klolfkam and First Private Frangki Kune, aged 25, resident of the Waena Combat Engineering Corps station.          "The violence must be stopped and the police with TNI help must immediately find the perpetrators," the minister said.          In an effort to create peace and improve the welfare of the people of Papua, the government is continuing with its efforts to open a line of communication with separatist OPM in the eastern-most Papua province.          "Until now the approach used is welfare and not military, because a military approach is only useful for dealing with crimes," Djoko said at a meeting with community and religious leaders and members of the, Papua Legislative Council (DPRP)  and the Papua People Assembly (MRP).          He said it was not easy to unite the views of different parties, but the most important thing was how to unite Papua peacefully so that the province could catch up with other regions.          "Since December 2011, the government has been trying to send a delegation for talks with OPM. But, it's not easy to persuade them to come down from the mountains and live side by side with other people," Djoko Suyanto said.          The government, he said, had held dialogues with other groups, such as the Papua Peace Network (PPN). "In 2011, I attended an event organised by PPN at the University of Cenderawasih hall," added the chief security minister.***1*** (T.A014/A/b003/B003) 01-07-2012 18:48:

POLICE, MILITARY HUNTING DOWN PAPUA SEPARATISTS

By Andi Abdussalam

Jakarta, Aug 3 (ANTARA)  -  Police and the military are to hold a joint operation to comb areas suspected  to be the hideouts of the unidentfied gunmen who killed four civilian and one soldier in Nafri, Abepura, Papua, early this week.          Police believe that the attackers were members of the separatist OPM (Free Papua Organization) based on the fact they had found a  "morning star" flag, cartridges, arrows, spears and a knife at the scene of the Abepura violence.          In order to assist local police and military, the National Police Headquarters is sending a team of Densus-88 anti-terror personnel to Tanjakan Gunung Merak, Nafri, Abepura, Papua to team up with local mobile police and military personnel in the operations.          "The Densus-88 anti-terror police of the Police Headquarters are fielded to assist Papua police and the military in combing the suspected hideouts of the OPM members," National Police Spokesman Insp. Gen. Anton Bachrul Alam said here on Wednesday.          Basides, the National Police Headquarters also sent a forensic laboratory team to Papua.          "The Forensic Laboratory Center of the National Police has sent a team to Tanjakan. There are five officers and now they scrutinizing the incident scene," Anton said.          From Witnesses, it was also known that the OPM members were hiding behind trees and then ambushed police personnel from the left and right sides of their car. And then they disappeared.          As a result of their attacks, four people were killed, one a military officer and three civilians.          In the meantime, Defense Minister Purnomo Yusgiantoro said that the government was not ruling out that the possibility Monday's violence in  Abepura  was an insurgent activity although  police still had to find the perpetrators and ascertain their motive.          During an investigation at the scene, police found cartridges, arrows, spears, a knife and a morning star flag.          To assure the attackers were OPM insurgents, police are still investigating it. The National Police is also sending a team of investigation from the Police Criminal Investigation Department (Bareskrim). So far, seven witnesses had been questioned with regard to the ambush incident.          "We have examined seven witnesses who are residents around the location," National Police Spokesman Insp Gen Anton Bachrul Alam said.          He said that the number of witnesses who were questioned was likely to increase. "We are also sending a team of investigation from the Police Criminal Investigation Department (Bareskrim). We are not yet informed of the perpetrators," he said.          Defense Minister Purnomo said the government would take  firm action based on the law against any effort to undermine the integrity of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI).  "We do not want  NKRI to break up. This is a basic principle," he said.          Purnomo said he believed the violence in Abepura was linked to politics as police had found a separatist "morning star" flag at the scene.          Chief security minister Djoko Suyanto meanwhile confirmed that shooting incidents had happened in Papua. The actions the government was taking to deal with separatist elements should not be easily branded as violating human rights, he said.          "Operations by security agencies must not always be perceived as actions that violate human rights," he said.          Earlier, Deputy House Speaker Priyo Budi Santoso asked police to act soon to overcome a shooting incident that killed four in Jayapura, Papua province, so that it would not escalate.          "I ask state apparatuses to intervene soon to overcome the bloody incident. It should not happen that apparatuses ignore it," Priyo said at the parliament building on Monday.          He said that all sides should restrain themselves. He was referring to the incident where  four people were shot dead and stabbed by unidentified gunmen at 8.15 a.m. early on Sunday Eastern Indonesia Time (WIT).          Of the four, three were civilians and one was a member of the Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI). Five other people were injured, who are at present being treated at Abepura hospital.          The four who were killed were First Private Don Keraf, driver Sardi of Koya Timor resident, and a couple, husband and wife Wisman and Titin.          In a previous incident,  the OPM members were also involved in an exchange of fires with police Paniai region at 8. a.m local time on Friday.  "The incident took place at 8 a.m Eastern Indonesia Time (WIT) on Friday,"   Insp. Gen Anton Bachrul Alam.          Recounting  the chronology of the incident, Anton said the incident began at 7.20 local time  when about 16 OPM members, five of whom carried riffles, came to  a Papua TV tower construction site.          "Brandishing a long-barrel fire arm, one of them approached construction workers Andi Laupe and Benediktus Brian and asked them to stop working," Anton said.           The workers soon afterwards reported to two police officers on duty at the Paniai district head's house, namely First Brigadier Solihin and Second Brigadier Kristianto. "Upon receiving the report, Solihin contacted the Paniai Police Resort chief who ordered a number of Paniai Mobile Brigade (Brimob) members to visit the scene," Anton said.          Arriving at the scene, the Brimob detail was greeted  with a hail of bullets which forced the police to return the fire, he said.          The OPM separatists then fled eastward. While they were hunting the OPM members, police found proof such as SS1 and Mouser ammunition as well as bayonets.***3*** (t.A014/A/HAJM/23:52/a014) 04-08-2011 00:20