NGO says civilians killed in Papua clash

NGO says civilians killed in Papua clash

Tony Hotland, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A non-governmental organization (NGO) has refuted reports on the
death of two members of the Free Papua Organization (OPM)
separatist group during a clash with local police recently.

A field observation it carried out following Tuesday's
violence found the people killed were local villagers who
demanded fair compensation for ancestral land they had sold to
timber company PT Djajanti.

"Limited information and the remoteness of the site have
resulted in conflicting reports. Therefore, the National
Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) should investigate
possible rights abuses in the incident," National Solidarity for
Papua said in a statement on Saturday.

Police shot dead two Papuans in Bintuni regency when a group
of people attacked PT Djajanti employees who were on their way to
hand over Rp 150 million (US18,750) in financial compensation to
local residents.

The police immediately claimed the two men, identified as
Bernard Furima and Matius Nasira, were OPM members.

The NGO said the incident was sparked by discontent at the
amount in compensation offered by the timber company, which has a
forest concession in the area, for the ancestral land.

The owners had asked Rp 300 million for their 250-hectare
site.

Bonar Tigor Naipospos of Solidarity said branding the
dissatisfied villagers as rebels was an attempt to distract
people's attention from the ongoing dispute between the company
and local residents.

"Whenever there are disputes between villagers and PT Djajanti
the company has always involved security officers. Those who
protest have always been labeled members of the OPM or other
separatist movements," he said.

He also demanded PT Djajanti clarify the involvement of police
officers in settling the dispute.

The NGO said it had found a number of unresolved disputes
between Papuans and the timber company that involved acts of
violence against locals by police or military personnel.

Bonar also reminded all parties involved in conflicts in the
province to refrain from resorting to violence or intimidation.

Attacks on security personnel have been increasing in the
natural resource-rich province, where a low-level armed
resistance for independence has been taking place since the
1960s.