26 people killed as Wamena's worst riots

JAKARTA (JP): At least 26 people were killed and scores of others seriously wounded in a rampage by proindependence supporters in the Irian Jaya town of Wamena, police said on Saturday.

Sources at the Wamena hospital put the number of fatalities at 30, with 45 others injured, as of Saturday afternoon, Antara reported.

National Police spokesman Brig. Gen. Saleh Saaf told The Jakarta Post the mountain town of Wamena, some 290 kilometers southwest of the provincial capital of Jayapura, remained tense on Saturday afternoon following attacks by a horde of proindependence civilian guards known as Satgas Papua on migrant settlers, which left 20 killed.

"The Satgas Papua members have set fire to homes, raped women and then murdered them. They also burned some people alive," Saleh said.

Police shot dead four proindependence supporters in a gunfight which followed an attempt by around 2,000 armed proindependence supporters from the Wo and Kluru villages to besiege Jayawijaya Police Precinct in downtown Wamena, he said.

Eight police officers were injured in the clash and were rushed to Marthen Indey Indonesian Military (TNI) Hospital in Jayapura.

The riot first erupted on Friday as security troops tried to pull down seven separatist "Morning Star" flags. Two proindependence supporters were killed in the stampede.

The proindependence supporters eventually dispersed on Saturday afternoon after hours of gunfights, but security forces there remained on alert in anticipation of a possible return, Saleh said.

"We have raised the security status to a red alert in the area as we continue the quell rioters and protect the migrants," Saleh said in a telephone interview from Kupang, East Nusa Tenggara. He was attending the swearing-in ceremony of the provincial police chief.

National Police chief Gen. Surojo Bimantoro has given a shoot- on-sight order to stop the rioters, Saleh said.

A battalion of Mobile Brigade police reinforcement troops has been sent to Wamena to restore order in cooperation with the existing military.

"Police and military officers are evacuating hundreds of migrants to the Wamena police precinct, the military district command and the Telkom office," he said, adding that the troops have also stepped up security measures to protect paramedics.

A Hercules aircraft was dispatched to help the evacuation.

Arrest

Local police have so far arrested 59 suspects for allegedly masterminding the riot.

"Most of them were caught in the fray. We are still chasing other rioters and it is possible that the number of suspects will increase," Saleh said.

Head of Christian Injili Synode Church Rev. Herman Saud told Antara that proindependence Papua Presidium Board (PDP) chief Theys Hiyo Eluay must be held accountable for the incident since it was the PDP which issued an order to hoist the Morning Star flag.

Jayawijaya Police chief Supt. D. Suripatty was quoted by Antara on Saturday as saying that the suspects were undergoing intensive questioning.

Suripatty added a group of proindependence supporters held hostage 20 employees of Honay Resort Hotel during the riot. Negotiations to release the hotel employees were still underway.

The news agency also quoted witnesses as saying that the victims, mostly migrant settlers, were shot dead, beheaded, burned alive or shot with arrows. They said the attackers also killed children.

"Satgas Papua even burned a house with people in it. They also looted houses abandoned by their dwellers," a local witness said.

Wamena Hospital chief Siwi Murniati said all fatalities were being kept in the hospital, awaiting a mass funeral slated to be held on Sunday.

"Some victims are difficult to identify because they were badly burned," Siwi said.

Terrified paramedics, however, started to flee Wamena due to a lack of security assurance from the police and threats from locals.

In Jayapura, hundreds of students from Cendrawasih University set up a roadblock on the road linking Jayapura to Sentani in protest against Friday's incident. The protesters burned used tires and laid electricity poles and logs across the streets, causing traffic congestion.

Police dispersed the crowd after six hours of rallying. (edt)