Three injured in gunfight in Irian Jaya

JAYAPURA, Irian Jaya (JP): Three Indonesian troops were injured in a gunfight on Monday with unknown gunmen close to Betav village.

Monday's incident followed the slaying of four Army Special Forces (Kopassus) soldiers by separatist rebels in Jayapura regency on Saturday.

Trikora Military Command chief Maj. Gen. Mahidin Simbolon told reporters on Monday that the gunfight took place when members of the special military team set up to hunt the killers of the Kopassus troops were intercepted by unknown gunmen who opened fire on them.

Three members of the special team, consisting of Kopassus and Army Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) troops, were slightly wounded, he said.

The gunfight took place hours after fifteen people, including members of the Papua separatist movement and local figures, had returned on Sunday the rifles seized by the group who killed the four Kopassus soldiers.

Mahidin said that the handover of the rifles took place shortly after 10 p.m. local time on Sunday.

"Maj. Sokir, chief of the military operation, received the people, and none of the 15 were apprehended," Mahidin said.

Meanwhile, Kopassus headquarters in Jakarta said in a press briefing on Monday that the rebels returned five SS-1 rifles, one handgun, five mortar launchers and two mortar rounds.

Capt. Farid Makruf, Kopassus spokesman, said that his corps would adopt non-repressive measures to approach the rebels so as to avoid tension and fear among the Irian Jaya people.

The four Kopassus soldiers killed were Second Sgt. Zulkarnain, Second Sgt. Wani, Chief Sgt. Nandang and Pvt. Sudirman.

The Free Papua Movement (OPM) has been engaged in a low level insurgency in what they call the effort to obtain independence from the Republic of Indonesia.

They brand the Indonesian government, especially the military, as human rights violators.

As part of the effort to deal with human rights violations, the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) established a team of inquiry in Jakarta on Monday to investigate rights violations in Indonesia's easternmost province.

The six members of the investigating team, which is to be called KPP HAM Papua/Irian Jaya, are led by Albert Hasibuan, who is assisted by deputy Sita Aripurnami from the National Commission for Women's Human Rights (Komnas Perempuan).

The commission has said that the inquiry would continue for two months from Feb. 5, 2001 through April 5. A 30-day extension would be allowed only once.

Albert said that the inquiry's findings would be submitted to the Attorney General's Office for further legal processing. (35/bby/sur)