Papuan independence leader found dead<\/p>\n
R.K. Nugroho, The Jakarta Post, Jayapura<\/p>\n
Chairman of the pro-independence Papuan Presidium Council
\n(PDP), Theys Hiyo Eluay, 63, was found dead in his car on Sunday
\nat Muara Tami, a district west of Jayapura, Irian Jaya,
\ntriggering anger among the local populations in Abepantai and
\nSentani, his home town.<\/p>\n
Theys had been reported kidnapped by a group of people on his
\nway to Sentani, after attending a dinner at the Army's Kopassus
\nelite troop headquarters in Jayapura in observance of National
\nHeroes' Day.<\/p>\n
Dressed in a blue shirt and jeans, his body bearing no sign of
\nbruising or gunshot wounds, Theys was found dead on the second-
\nrow seat of his blue Kijang van.<\/p>\n
A small cut was visible near his left eyebrow, and a dot of
\ndried blood was found in his left nostril. Scars were also found
\non his hands, while the windows of the van he was driving had
\nbeen smashed.<\/p>\n
It was unclear what had happened to the vehicle, which was
\nfound resting against a tree 50 meters from a ravine, on a quiet
\nstretch of highway flanked by thick woods, some two kilometers
\nfrom the Central Koya transmigration complex, around 30
\nkilometers southeast of Jayapura.<\/p>\n
Theys' body was found at 6 p.m. and moved at about noon. The
\nremoval of the body was supervised by Jayapura Police chief Adj.
\nComr. Daud J. Sihombing, who made no statement to reporters.<\/p>\n
PDP secretary-general Thaha Al Hamid, Rev. Herman Awom and the
\nvictim's eldest son Boy Eluay witnessed the removal of the body,
\nwhich was then rushed to the Dok II General Hospital for a post-
\nmortem examination.<\/p>\n
\"I am not going to speculate about who the murderers are.
\nLet's wait for the results of the police investigation,\" Al Hamid
\ntold The Jakarta Post.<\/p>\n
\"I just feel sorry that the killing happened while legal
\nproceedings against him (Theys) were underway.\"<\/p>\n
He said that, based on the organization's statute, its deputy
\nchairman, Tom Beanal, would take over Theys' post.<\/p>\n
The trials of Theys, who was a former legislative council of
\nGolkar faction during Soeharto's renure, and four other pro-
\nindependence figures, Don A. L. Flassy, Al Hamid, Rev. Herman
\nAwom and John Mambor started on May 14 in Jayapura. They were
\ncharged with violating Article 106 of the Criminal Code on
\nsedition, which carries a maximum sentence of 20 years
\nimprisonment.<\/p>\n
They were arrested last year following the anniversary of
\ntheir self-proclaimed declaration of Papuan independence on Dec.
\n1.<\/p>\n
On Saturday Theys joined a ceremony marking National Heroes'
\nDay, which falls on Nov. 10, held by the provincial
\nadministration in Jayapura.<\/p>\n
In the evening he attended a dinner at Kopassus headquarters,
\nalso in Jayapura. The Jakarta Post confirmed at 8:30 p.m. (local
\ntime) that Theys was at the dinner.<\/p>\n
Theys' wife Yanieke Ohee said that at 9:55 Theys called her,
\nsaying that he would soon be going home. But about one hour later
\nTheys' driver Ari Masoka called her and said that a group of non-
\nPapuan people had attacked them and kidnapped Theys.<\/p>\n
Police said that Theys' wife reported her husband's
\ndisappearance to the police at 12:30 p.m. on Sunday, or more than
\nsix hours after her husband had been found dead.<\/p>\n
The whereabouts of Theys' driver are still unknown.<\/p>\n
Police and military sources could not be contacted about
\nTheys' death. Irian Jaya police chief Insp. Gen. Made Mangku
\nPastika and Irian Jaya Military chief Maj. Gen. Mahidin Simbolon
\nhad left for Jakarta before the incident took place. They were
\nnot available for comment.<\/p>\n
On Sunday morning Mahidin told a private TV station that he
\nknew nothing about Theys attending a diner at Kopassus
\nheadquarters. He did not meet Theys on Saturday.<\/p>\n
Theys' death came as a heavy blow to local Papuans. In
\nAbepantai in Jayapura dozens of locals, mostly teenagers, became
\nangry upon seeing a convoy of vehicles traveling behind the car
\nthat was carrying Theys' dead body.<\/p>\n
The crowd, holding stones in their hands, allowed only the car
\ncarrying Theys' body and a truck loaded with police officers to
\npass. They started pelting the other cars with stones, forcing at
\nleast 30 to stop for almost half an hour.<\/p>\n
Police mobile brigade (Brimob) troops traveling in a truck
\narrived to clear the blockade and fired warning shots in the air.<\/p>\n
Another mob destroyed stores in a neighboring area of Abepura.<\/p>\n
In Jayapura shops were closed at 8 p.m local time, or 90
\nminutes earlier than usual, amid fears that rioting would erupt.<\/p>\n
In Theys' hometown of Sentani, an angry mob set ablaze shops,
\na hotel and a Bank Rakyat Indonesia (BRI) office located close to
\nTheys' residence.<\/p>\n
Theys' death has revived tensions in the country's easternmost
\nprovince, despite the government's efforts to accommodate the
\naspirations of the Irian Jaya people (who prefer to call
\nthemselves Papuans) through the special autonomy law.<\/p>\n
The PDP strongly rejected the Special Autonomy Law on Irian
\nJaya, which it said was not the best way to settle the prolonged
\ndispute in the province.<\/p>\n
Chronology of Theys' fight for a free Papua.<\/p>\n
- A member of People's Choice (Pepera) in 1969
\n - Arrested for provoking people to demand Papuan Independence in
\nJuly, 1998
\n - Led ceremony to hoist the Morning Star (Free Papuans') Flag on
\nDec. 1, 1999. He was arrested for disobeying Indonesian law.
\n - Asked President Abdurrahman Wahid to change the name of Irian
\nJaya to Papua in Dec. 1999
\n - Held Papuan Congress from May to June 2000
\n - Flown to Jakarta for heart treatment in Jan. 2001
\n - Tried for subversion starting May 14, 2001
\n - Signed a declaration to reject autonomy law on Oct. 21, 2001
\n - Kidnapped and found dead on Nov. 11, 2001<\/p>",
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