Three Papuan students seek asylum in PNG: Activist
The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Three Papuan citizens have reportedly sought political asylum in neighboring Papua New Guinea for fear of persecution for their involvement in the recent deadly riot in Abepura.
Head of National Solidarity for Papua, Bonar Tigor Naipospos said the three Papuans, two Cendrawasih University students and a common citizen, arrived in Port Moresby last Thursday.
A spokesman for the Foreign Ministry said he was also aware of the “rumors” but that no Indonesian diplomats in Papua New Guinea had any information about it.
Bonar refused to reveal the names of the three but he confirmed they were involved in the protest that turned violent outside Cendrawasih University in Abepura on March 16.
Four Mobile Brigade police officers and one Air Force soldier were killed in the anti-Freeport demonstration. The protesters demanded that the government close the gold and copper mine run by PT Freeport Indonesia, which they claimed had not benefited the local community.
“They were involved in the Abepura incident, but they said they did not kill the officers,” Bonar said, adding that the three asylum seekers were concerned for their safety.
After the riot, police launched random raids in search of people involved in the rioting. In the raids officers reportedly damaged property to avenge the death of their colleagues. A 10-year-old girl was injured in a raid, reportedly by a stray bullet, and a student boardinghouse was ransacked and badly damaged.
Hundreds of students have reportedly fled to the jungle to evade arrests although the local police had assured the authorities they would deal with the issue peacefully.
Bonar said that the asylum seekers were currently waiting for the Papua New Guinea government to process their request. He expected that Port Moresby would turn over the three Papuans to the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees UNHCR.
Foreign Ministry spokesman Desra Percaya told The Jakarta Post there was no official information concerning the Papuans seeking asylum in Papua New Guinea.
Desra said that the ministry had contacted the Indonesian Embassy in Port Moresby and Indonesian Consulate in Vanimo but neither mission had any information about the three.
He said that the Foreign Ministry was still seeking information. However, he said he suspected that the report was a rumor spread to heighten political tension in Papua.
News about three Papuans seeking political refuge in Papua New Guinea came amid a diplomatic row triggered by the Australian government’s decision to grant temporary protection visas to 42 Papuans seeking political asylum in Australia. The Indonesian government “deeply deplored” Australia’s decision, accusing Australia of double standards because it had rejected applications from asylum seekers from other countries in the past.