Three Demonstrators Killed In Sentani, West Papua

Press Release – West Papua Media Alerts

On 29 May at around 11.30 am, a 55-year man with a German passport was found covered in blood after being shot by an unknown person (OTK) at Pantai Base-G. His wife, Eva Medina, 55 years old, saw the perpetrator who she said, was a man with sideburns …

Report From Knpb National Committee Of West Papua

WEST PAPUA URGENT NEWS

Names of the victims:

Panuel Tablo, male,18 years old, from Bintang Mountains. Catholic Yesa Mirin, male 18 years old from Senani, Protestant The third victim has not yet been identified.

Chronology

On 29 May at around 11.30 am, a 55-year man with a German passport was found covered in blood after being shot by an unknown person (OTK) at Pantai Base-G. His wife, Eva Medina, 55 years old, saw the perpetrator who she said, was a man with sideburns and curly hair. On the following day, 30 May, the KNPB announced that it would hold a demonstration in response to all the shooting incidents that have recently occurred in Papua.

The following is a statement by the KNPB spokesman, Viktor Yeimo.

According to plan, the KNPB held a demonstration to press for investigations into a number of shooting incidents that have occurred in Papua recently. The KNPB held a demo on 4 June. A large crowd of people wanted to go to Abepura but were prevented from doing so by heavily armed Indonesian security forces.

The demonstrators decided to return to Sentani. While on the way, there were skirmishes with the security forces who attacked the demonstrators in Kampung Harapan. This is where the shooting and maltreatment as well as kidnappings began, perpetrated by members of the Indonesian security forces, the TNI and the police. The demonstrators dispersed and fled into the forest, hiding in the tall grass for protection.

As a result of the violence perpetrated by the security forces, three demonstrators were killed and ten were arrested. All those arrested were subjected to torture. We cannot report about any other people.

According to a report by the TNI – Indonesian army – leaked to us by a pro-Merdeka soldier, the troops said that they had killed twenty demonstrators on 4 June.

Please Note:

We intend to cross check this information and update this report with new information, based also on investigations made at the location of the incident and in the hospital in Yowari, Papua. The persons we found in the hospital were Ericson Suhun and Aksina Balingga along with their colleagues..In a cell phone message we were told that they had been tortured and had sustained serious maltreatment. They were then detained by the security forces in Bayangkara Hosital, without legal counsel.

Statement by an independent human rights activist:

There is a humanitarian crisis in Papua, along with a serious human rights crisis. We call for international intervention into the situation in Papua, in accordance with UN mechanisms. Without this, we Papuans
will be annihilated because the Indonesians are constantly killing us, anywhere and everywhere. We hope that this information about the shooting of demonstrators on 4 June by the security forces will be used for an urgent appeals release programme, internationally, and that it will be drawn to the attention of the international community.

Please accept our thanks for your attention and support in the defence
of human rights in West Papua.

Sebby Sambom (Pro-independence Human Rights Activist in West Papua)