Death toll increases to four in tribal clash
Death toll increases to four in tribal clash
Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura
One died and 22 others were injured, including two who sustained
gunshot wounds, as the tribal war in the town of Timika, Papua
entered its fourth day on Tuesday.
Ulum Alom from the Nduga tribe died after he was shot in the
chest at 1 p.m, or two hours after the battle resumed on Tuesday.
The death of Ulum brought the total number of fatalities to
four, two from the Nduga tribe and two others from the Damal
tribe. As the number of fatalities is equal on both sides, the
clash is expected to come to an end soon.
The clash on Tuesday shifted to Jl. Old Kwamki on the
outskirts of Timika, not far from Jl. Old Freeport, where the
clash previously ensued from Saturday to Monday.
The new location was close to a residential area, forcing
local residents to shut their doors and stay at home, while
others took refuge at a nearby church.
Teachers ordered students at Old Kwamki elementary school to
go home early.
Meanwhile, police personnel struggled hard to calm the warring
parties. As they refused to stop fighting, police personnel fired
warning shots repeatedly into the air.
Unfortunately, stray bullets hit tribesmen, Demianus Dekme, 18
and Julius Tjenawatme, 28, both from the Nduga tribe, who were
hit in the left thigh and left leg respectively, making the Nduga
people angry with police personnel.
The tribesmen were ready to attack police personnel, but
Mimika Police precinct chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Paulus Waterpauw
quickly calmed the angry tribesmen. Waterpauw convinced them that
the police were using rubber bullets in order to avoid
fatalities.
He then ordered the two to be brought to nearby Mitra
Masyarakat Hospital to receive medical treatment, with the
expenses to be paid by the Mimika Police precinct.
The clash ended at around 3 p.m, and two hours later the
street was deserted as all the tribesmen had gone home.
Waterpauw was optimistic that there would be no more clashes
as there were equal fatalities on both sides in the four-day
clash. He said that he would deploy police personnel to patrol
the streets to prevent further clashes.
Separately in Jakarta, National Police chief Gen. Da'i
Bachtiar told reporters that the police would investigate the
case and bring the perpetrators to justice. However, he said that
the investigation would take place after peace returned to the
area.
"There should be stages. First, we stopped the war and then we
will proceed with legal action," he said.
The clash is believed to stem from a dispute a month ago, when
Mathius Murib from the Damal tribe was fatally shot by an arrow
by Jimmy from the Nduga tribe.
Jimmy killed Mathius, because he believed that Mathius had
murdered Jimmy's niece, Novi Kum. The incident led to a clash
between the tribes.