Four Papuan students arrested in Java

Four Papuan students arrested in Java

JAKARTA: Four students from Indonesia's easternmost province of Papua have been arrested in Central Java for flying a separatist flag tied to balloons, police said Thursday.

The four were detained separately on Wednesday and could be charged with treason which carries up to 20 years in jail, said First Sergeant Edi, a policeman on duty in the city of Semarang.

He said the Bintang Kejora (Morning Star) flag was tied to balloons which were released during a rally by Papua students in Semarang on Monday, the 41st anniversary of the proclamation of a West Papua state.

Authorities had warned they would not tolerate any flag- raising to mark the anniversary.

Indonesia took control of the mountainous, jungle-clad territory from Dutch colonizers in 1963. -- AFP