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.