THE INDONESIA HUMAN RIGHTS CAMPAIGN
111 Northwood Road, Thornton Heath, Surrey CR7 8HW, UK
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Email [EMAIL PROTECTED] Website http://www.tapol.org
Letter to UK Prime Minister
26 March 2006
Tony Blair MP
Prime Minister
10 Downing Street
London SW1A 2AA
Dear Prime Minister,
Your visit to Indonesia: Concerns about West Papua
We are pleased to hear that you will be visiting Indonesia this week and
meeting President Yudhoyono. We hope that you will have the opportunity to
raise human rights concerns with the President, especially in relation to the
conflict in West Papua.
We understand that one of the purposes of your visit is to encourage
Indonesian support for the international fight against terrorism. As you know,
terrorism takes many different forms and is committed by both state and
non-state actors. Just last week an editorial in The Jakarta Post newspaper,
referring to violent clashes on 16 March between Papuan student demonstrators
and the Indonesian police, suggested that the Papuans:
'.felt cheated by the government and no longer trusted it. They decided
to confront state-sanctioned violence and terrorism, risking their lives in the
process. If the Papuan students lose all trust and hope in the central
government, then the situation could become much more dangerous'.
The situation in West Papua is indeed in danger of escalating.
Regrettably, four policemen and an air force officer were killed and a number
of civilians were seriously injured during the violence on 16 March in Abepura,
near to West Papua's capital, Jayapura. A Papuan student, Jeni Isage, died as a
result of torture inflicted on him in police custody. Up to 1,200 students are
now reported to be hiding without food and access to medical care, fearful of
revenge attacks by members of the Indonesian Police Mobile Brigade (Brimob).
Human rights in West Papua
The gravity of the general human rights situation in West Papua is
indicated by the US State Department Country Report on Indonesia for 2005.
'Security forces continued to commit unlawful killings of rebels, suspected
rebels, and civilians in areas of separatist activity,' while the government
'largely failed to hold soldiers and police accountable for such killings and
other serious human rights abuses,' it says. At the same time, 'Security forces
continued to employ torture and other forms of abuse', and 'police frequently
and arbitrarily detained persons without warrants, charges or court
proceedings'. They also used 'excessive force in controlling demonstrations'.
It is not unreasonable to conclude from this report that, despite
democratic advances in Indonesia and the achievement of peace in Aceh, the
security forces are still the main perpetrators of terror. That is an
intolerable state of affairs for a country which aspires to genuine democracy.
We ask you to bear this in mind in your discussions about terrorism with the
President.
Response to Abepura violence
Unfortunately, the climate of impunity that exists in Papua encourages a
response by the security forces that involves arbitrary reprisals against local
people. As well as being responsible for the death of a Papuan student in
custody, the police have shot at student dormitories around the university and
beaten Papuans they have detained.
The state intelligence agency, BIN, is accusing local human rights
organisations of being behind the violence making it difficult for them to
carry out their work.
The Foreign Office minister, Ian Pearson, has undertaken to ask the UK
embassy in Jakarta to monitor the situation in West Papua closely and to urge
the Indonesian authorities to exercise restraint. We have asked him to explore
the possibility of an EU Ambassadorial mission to West Papua and an immediate
visit by UK embassy officials to inquire into the underlying causes of the
violence. We urge you to kindly follow up on these matters.
We would also ask you to press the Indonesian government:
not to allow arbitrary arrests and detentions of Papuan students and
others;
to fully respect the rights of detainees, including their right of access
to a lawyer;
to ensure that arbitrary reprisals are not taken against the students
currently in hiding and to take steps to ensure their safe return to their
residences;
to ensure that local human rights organisations are able to carry out
their normal activities free from threats and intimidation;
to lift any restrictions and other obstacles in the way of unhindered
access to West Papua by journalists, human rights monitors and non-governmental
organisations;
to set up a Independent Commission, comprising human rights experts, to
investigate the cause of the violence.
Freeport
The demonstration on 16 March was one of several in recent weeks against
the US-owned Freeport McMoran copper-and-gold mine in West Papua. Papuan anger
about Freeport, its destruction of the local ecology, its close association
with the abusive military, and its generation of huge profits for the
government in contrast to local poverty, has been mounting for some time. The
British company Rio Tinto is a joint venture partner with the company so is
also implicated in these problems.
We ask you to encourage the Indonesian government to enter into urgent
dialogue with representatives of the demonstrators and those affected by the
Freeport operations so that the situation can be resolved as soon as possible
by peaceful means.
BP Tangguh project
We are concerned that similar problems affecting the rights and
livelihoods of local people could arise in relation to BP's new liquefied
natural gas project in Bintuni Bay, especially if the military becomes involved
in providing security. We would ask you to convey to the President that the UK
government will monitor this situation very closely.
West Irian Jaya, special autonomy and the MRP
Another key reason for the Papuans lack of trust in the government, is
Jakarta's failure to implement its own law on special autonomy and its
insistence on creating a new province of West Irian Jaya in contravention of
that law. The new province has been established despite widespread popular
opposition articulated by the newly-formed Papuan People's Assembly (Majelis
Rakyat Papua - MRP). The MRP was itself set up as the centerpiece of the
special autonomy arrangement to represent the interests of indigenous Papuans,
but is now being ignored by the government with potentially disastrous
consequences. Many Papuans already regard the autonomy package as useless and
an empty promise.
A report published last week by the International Crisis Group, Papua:
The Dangers of Shutting Down Dialogue, warns that the marginalisation of the
MRP could fatally damage the institution, special autonomy, and the prospects
for genuine dialogue between the government and Papuan representatives.
Dialogue is key to the resolution of the problems of West Papua.
We urge you to press Indonesia to enter into all-inclusive dialogue with
the MRP and other Papuan representatives to determine the future political
arrangements for the territory. Please also explore the possibility of offering
the services of the EU as a third-party mediator.
Militarisation
The prospects for dialogue and a political solution to the West Papua
conflict are also being undermined by a substantial build-up of troops and the
creation of new territorial commands. There is no military justification for
these measures, which are likely to lead to increasing tensions and a further
deterioration in the human rights situation.
We urge you to encourage the President to halt the military build-up and
to withdraw all non-organic troops currently based in West Papua.
In this connection, we remain deeply concerned about the deployment of
British-supplied water cannon vehicles to West Papua. They are being used in a
highly volatile political situation in which human rights are routinely
violated, and in which the security forces regularly enforce public order with
heavy-handed tactics and excessive force. We ask you to press for the immediate
withdrawal of the water cannons from West Papua.
Freedom of expression and assembly
It is common practice for Papuan activists to be imprisoned for
peacefully exercising their rights to freedom of expression and assembly, in
particular by raising the West Papuan 'Morning Star' flag. Last year two
Papuans, Filep Karma and Yusak Pakage were sentenced to 15 and 10 years
imprisonment respectively for organizing peaceful celebrations of West Papua's
national day on 1 December 2004 and for raising the flag. We urge you to press
for the release of the two Papuans and others imprisoned for their political
beliefs and activities.
We are grateful to you for considering these matters and we trust that
you will be able to contribute to the promotion of human rights in West Papua
during your visit.
Yours sincerely,
Paul Barber
Cc: Jack Straw MP, Foreign Secretary
Ian Pearson MP, Foreign Office Minister
Grace Cassy, Private Secretary, Prime Minister's Office
Margaret Tongue, Head of Indonesia and Timor-Leste team, Foreign Office
[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
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Berdikusi dg Santun & Elegan, dg Semangat Persahabatan. Menuju Indonesia yg
Lebih Baik, in Commonality & Shared Destiny.
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