Military secures release of 11 of the 24 hostages
Military secures release of 11 of the 24 hostages
JAKARTA (JP): The military said yesterday it has secured the
release of 11 of the 24 hostages abducted last Monday by the Free
Papua Movement (OPM), an armed separatist movement in Irian Jaya.
"They were unharmed," Armed Forces Chief Spokesman Brig. Gen.
Suwarno Adiwijoyo told Antara yesterday.
All of the 11 released were Irianese. The remaining 13 held
captive include four Britons, two Dutch citizens, one German, and
six Indonesians, mostly from Jakarta.
Suwarno stressed that the 11 were not freed by the rebels. He
said they were "liberated" by a special military team sent after
the rebels, implying that force may have been used.
He declined to state whether there were armed clashes in the
process.
He said the hostages were released in Jiji village, about 40
kilometers from Mapenduma, the village in Jayawijaya regency
where the 24 were first abducted on Monday.
The 11 were released on Friday at 11 a.m., but the news did
not reach Jakarta until early yesterday morning, he said.
The military announced the names of seven of those released.
They are Alex Nuvigi, Mapenduma village chief; Philipus Weseirak,
the village secretary; Isac Weseirak, a village official; Lewi N.
Marthavina, Nafali Wanebo and Martin Wiyangga, all staff members
of the local community health center, and Zakeus Elopere, a local
church official.
The 13 still held captive include the four Cambridge
University graduates, Daniel Start, William Oates, Annette van
der Kolk and Anna McIvor; two officials of the World Wildlife
Fund for Nature, Frank Momberg of Germany and Mark van der Wal of
Holland, and UNESCO official Martha Klein of Holland. Among the
Indonesian hostages are members of the Biological Science Club in
Jakarta, Navy Panekenan, Yosias Matheis Lasamahu, Adinda
Saraswati and Jualita Maureen Tanasale.
They were all members of an expedition team to study ways of
conserving the Lorentz nature reserve.
Suwarno said that based on information obtained from the
hostages released, the rebels have split into several groups to
try to confuse the military team which is chasing them.
He said the military unit knows the direction in which the
rebels are heading. "Now, it's just a matter of time before the
hostages are all released," he told Antara.
Military officials estimate that the OPM rebel group led by
Kelly Kwalik amounts to about 200 personnel, mostly armed.
No details were given of the size of the special military unit
involved in the operation.
Suwarno said that Maj. Gen. Tarub, the chief of the Army
Strategic Reserve Command, and Brig. Gen. Prabowo Subianto, the
chief of the Army's Special Forces Command, were both in Wamena,
the regency capital near the site of the abduction, to monitor
and assist in the operation.
The military has ruled out seeking assistance from foreign
forces in handling the case. Minister of Defense and Security
Gen. (ret.) Edi Sudradjat said the Indonesian Armed Forces are
capable of solving the problem by itself.
It was not immediately clear whether any offer of assistance
has been made. The British, German and Dutch embassies in Jakarta
have sent their military attaches to Irian Jaya since news of the
abduction broke on Thursday.
The military has come under pressure from the relatives of the
hostages in Jakarta and the World Wildlife Fund for Nature (WWF)
in Jakarta to put the safety of the hostages first and foremost.
One of the relatives has even suggested that the military open
negotiations with the rebels.
It is not immediately clear whether the rebels have made any
contact with the authorities or any ransom demands.
The OPM spokesmen in Sydney and Port Moresby on Friday said
that the kidnapping was intended to bring international attention
to the movement's separatist cause. (emb)