Indonesia’s campaign of terror in the West Papuan highlands continues, as two West Papuans – including an 18-year-old girl – have been murdered by TNI drone attacks in the past three weeks.
The first attack took place in Sugapa, Intan Jaya Regency, on 17th May, as a drone-operated bomb exploded in the courtyard of the St. Paul Nabuni Catholic Church in Mbamogo Village. Four people sustained serious injuries, including Luter Nabalau, who later died in a Timika hospital, his genitals having been severed from his body by the explosion.
The second attack occurred in Melagi District, Lanny Jaya Regency, on June 7th. An unmanned drone operated by Indonesian soldiers dropped a bomb in Wunapunggu Village which landed directly next to 18-year-old Penti Weya, causing fatal injuries. She is only the latest young woman to be murdered by the colonial TNI this year.
Having bombarded us with bombs and guns for over seven years, Indonesia is increasingly using drones and other unmanned explosives to drive terror into the hearts of West Papuan civilians. After murdering Mr Nabalau, the military placed a booby trap bomb on door of the Zion Church in neighbouring Hitadipa District. Fortunately, the bomb was discovered before it could go off, but had a pastor or congregant touched the string, they would now be dead.
This evil act is part of a consistent new trend of Indonesia planting bombs on the corpses of Papuans they have killed, so that when their families go to bury their dead, they themselves become victims. They kill us for sport because they see us as less than human.
Everything Indonesia is doing in the Papuan highlands is illegal under international law. Bombing a religious building, using unmanned explosives in crowded areas, booby trapping a church to murder innocents: all these acts are crimes against humanity. Indonesia is a criminal and a terrorist in West Papua.
On behalf of the ULMWP and people of West Papua, I call on Indonesia to immediately withdraw their occupying military from the Papuan highlands. I demand that indonesia are immediately expelled from the Pacific Islands Forum (PIF) and the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) for killing dozens of Melanesian West Papuans over the past two months. There should no place in Pacific forums for those who murder Pacific people in abundance.
Pacific leaders must ask themselves, from a Christian point of view: am I my brother’s keeper? Or will I abandon my West Papuan family to their fate?
