Papuan Police Station Attacked

The Jakarta Globe, January 6, 2014.


Jayapura. A group of armed men attacked a police station in the Kurik district of Papua’s Puncak Jaya regency on Saturday, taking hold a number of guns and ammunition from the site.

According to reports, the group — made up of an estimated 20 people — outnumbered the two police officers who were at the post, as five other police on schedule that evening were conducting patrols in the surrounding areas.

“During the attack, the perpetrators took with them eight long guns and ammunitions,” said Sr. Comr, Pujo Sulistyo, Papua Police spokesperson.

According to him, one officer was at the station’s kitchen and the other was securing the post when the perpetrators broke into the station. Officers’ attempts to take back their guns failed as they were outnumbered.

“The two officers escaped through the backdoor to the river and then reported the incident,” he said, adding that a manhunt for the perpetrators has been launched.

“Members of the police as well as the military are still going after the men, even a team from the National Police has been deployed to help,” Pujo said.

Puncak Jaya district police chief Sr. Comr. Marselis told Jakarta Globe on Sunday that the perpetrators responsible for the attack are allegedly members of the Yambi Group under the leadership of Leka Telenggen. Leka is affiliated with the leader of the Free Papua Movement (OPM), Goliat Tabuni, who resides in Tingginambut district.

“The attackers are from the Leka Telenggen’s group from Yambi. They have dozens of members and are still under the leadership of Goliat Tabuni,” Marselis said, adding that the group had escaped to Yambi after the incident.

“[The Yambi group] consists of only a few dozen members, but they mingle well with local residents and have influenced residents to participate in their movement, which makes the situation very difficult,” he said, explaining the group’s strength and influence.

Human rights watchdog Imparsial raised concerns that the attack could be a deliberate attempt by a group of thugs trying to disrupt peace in Papua ahead of the legislative and presidential election set for April and July, respectively.

“If the attack has anything to do with the general elections, then this is definitely very dangerous, because it means a certain political elite has taken advantage of the armed men to fulfill their personal interests,” Imparsial executive director Poengky Indarti told the Globe on Sunday. “That could mean that the armed group are not people fighting for [Papua’s] independence but instead are no different from a group of thugs.”

Poengky added that the group could have been promised financial reward in return for their attacks. “If they are indeed fighting for independence, then they would not want to work for the sake of money or for the sake of any particular political elite,” he said.

According to Imparsial, acts of violence also became the background of the latest district chief election in Puncak Jaya and Puncak districts. “The violence was linked to the process of democracy that was ongoing at the time,” Poengky explained.

As such, he called on the police to ensure they hunted down and captured the group. “Arrest them, but at the same time respect the rights of local residents living in the areas surrounding the groups’ hiding place.”

He emphasized that going after the group behind the violence could be tricky, because local residents live around the area. “This could further amplify the residents’ trauma,” he said.

Intelligence officers should more actively involve themselves in ensuring such acts of violence do not continue to take place. “Intelligence officials should play an even greater role in giving information,” Poengky said.



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