Papua

Abstract

Papua Budi Hernawan (bio) To mark the 2020 International Human Rights Day in Papua, 147 Catholic priests of Papua released a moral appeal to all parties involved in Papua's conflict, including church leaders, the government, the security apparatus, investors, and the Majelis Rakyat Papua (Papuan People's Council), as well as the Tentara Pembebasan Nasional Papua Barat (tpnpb, West Papua National Liberation Army). They urged these parties to uphold dialogue in order to stop violence across Papua. At the end of the appeal, the priests stressed: "We, the priests of Papua, agree and strongly offer an approach of dialogue. This approach becomes a new and dignified policy to develop a stable, just, peaceful, and prosperous Papua. At the same time, [we] categorically reject and condemn violent acts in this land" (Pastor Katolik Papua 2020; translation mine). It is important to note the use of the word "condemn," which is quite unusual for a document from the Catholic hierarchy. The statement sums up the general concern of the Papuan public. On the one hand, it expresses a sense of frustration, anger, and desperation at the protracted violence that has caused the loss of so many lives in Papua, especially in the Central Highlands. On the other, it reflects the priests' determination and hope to address the protracted conflict in a peaceful way. Their optimism remains strong. "It is the way to remind the government that they need to hold a dialogue with Papua as the way to address the conflict," said Fr John Bunay, the New Coordinator of Jaringan Damai Papua (Papua [End Page 548] Peace Network) (pers comm, 3 March 2021). If we look back to the frequency of security incidents in the Central Highlands of Papua in 2019, at least thirty such incidents occurred in the districts of Nduga, Puncak, Intan Jaya, and Mimika. Therefore, the priests' concerns are justified. Since the killing of road workers at the end of 2018 (Hernawan 2019, 536), the activities of the tpnb have increased exponentially. No longer limited to the district of Nduga, they have expanded to the neighboring districts. Eleven tpnpb groups actively operate in these districts and have territorial control in various areas within them. This situation also means a significant increase in the operations of the Tentara Nasional Indonesia (the Indonesian national military), which has been deployed to hunt down the tpnpb. Joint forces of the military and the police have frequently engaged the tpnpb in these districts, leaving casualties on both sides. Those bearing weapons also target civilians. As a result, the local residents have been caught in the ongoing armed conflict, which has forced many to leave their homes and take refuge outside of their home districts. Some of them have managed to go to other towns as far as Nabire, Enarotali, or Timika, while others have scattered throughout the bush or are unaccounted for. Schools, markets, local government offices, and airstrips have been closed for months. The situation in Intan Jaya in particular became worse in the second part of the year when three church workers were either killed or wounded. The first case was the killing of Rev Yeremia Zanambani, who was found dead in his pig stall on 19 September 2020. The second case occurred on 7 October 2020, when Agustinus Duwitau, a Catholic Church worker, was shot and wounded (Lantipo 2020). A witness told the media that Duwitau was carrying an air rifle for hunting, so the security forces might have thought he was a member of the tpnpb. The incident occurred when the Papuan Provincial Council's task force was about to leave the Sugapa airstrip, so they were not able to handle it. The third case happened on 26 October 2020, when Rufinus Tigau, a Catholic catechist, was shot dead by the army in his own yard and was buried without permission from his family (Mambor 2020). He was accused of being a member of the tpnpb, which Fr Martin Kuayo, the apostolic administrator of the Diocese of Timika, categorically denied. In his media statement (Dagur 2020), Fr Kuayo clarified that Tigau had been the assistant of the parish priest of Bilogai and had played an important role in church...