Budi Utomo assumes duty as new Papua Police chief

Budi Utomo assumes duty as new Papua Police chief

Nethy Dharma Somba, The Jakarta Post, Jayapura

Inspector General Budi Utomo began his tenure as Papua Police
chief by calling on local residents to cooperate with the
authorities to ensure peace in the resource-rich but restive
province.

Budi, who has been assigned in the province several times in
the past, received the ceremonial Papua Police leadership baton
from his predecessor, Insp. Gen. I Made Mangku Pastika, who is
now heading the joint inquiry team investigating the Oct. 12 Bali
bombings, during a simple ceremony here on Monday.

Also attending the ceremony were Papua Governor Jaap Salossa,
vice governor Constant Karma, the chief of the Trikora Military
Command overseeing the province, Maj. Gen. Mahidin Simbolon, and
other police and military officers.

Budi was sworn in as new chief of the Papua Police on Oct. 28
in Jakarta, replacing Mangku Pastika.

During the ceremony Mangku Pastika thanked the people of
Papua, local religious leaders and non-governmental organizations
(NGOs) for their help in maintaining security in the province
during his tenure. He said he hoped his successor would be able
to build on this cooperation in dealing with problems in the
province.

Mangku Pastika made a name for himself with his successful
investigation of the alleged involvement of nine members of the
Army's Special Force (Kopassus) in the murder of proindependence
Papuan leader Dorthey "Theys" Hiyo Eluway on Nov. 11, 2001. The
suspects will be tried by military tribunal.

He challenged Budi to continue the investigations into the
alleged involvement of servicemen in the killing of two
foreigners and one Indonesian near the Freeport mine in Timika on
Aug. 31.

Budi, in his speech during Monday's ceremony, called on all
members of society to work together to fulfill the promise of
Papua.

"Without the cooperation of local residents, we will not be
successful in doing our job," he said.

Governor Jaap Salossa pointed out that Budi was not new to the
province, having been assigned as police precinct chiefs in
Sorong, Fakfak and Jayapura between 1984 and 1990.

He also confirmed that National Police chief Da'i Bachtiar had
apologized for not consulting with him and the provincial
legislative council before naming Budi as Mangku Pastika's
replacement, as required by the regional autonomy law and the
Papua special autonomy law.

Solossa also expressed hope Budi would continue the policy of
Mangku Pastika of cooperating with local officials, religious
leaders and nongovernmental organizations to resolve problems in
the province.

"I also hope that Budi and I can cooperate with each other to
turn Papua into a peaceful zone," he said.

Budi also confirmed the National Police chief's apology,
saying it would not happen again.

"Pak Da'i apologized to Pak Solossa for the misunderstanding,
and we hope this will not reoccur in the future," he said.