1.Kontras Assails Police Version of Manokwari Deaths

2) NGOs accuse Brimob of human rights violation in Manokwari

3) Regional authorities role in doubt

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http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/home/kontras-assails-police-version-of-manokwari-deaths/397180

1) Kontras Assails Police Version of Manokwari Deaths

Jakarta Globe Nivell Rayda& Banjir Ambarita | September 20, 20

Jakarta. Human rights groups in West Papua are calling on the national rights commission to investigate last Wednesday’s shooting deaths of two civilians by police. 

The incident in the provincial capital, Manokwari, was sparked by a traffic accident in which a motorist hit a pedestrian and then fled the scene to the supposed safety of the headquarters of the police’s Mobile Brigade (Brimob). 

A mob at the scene of the accident had allegedly threatened the motorist. 

Police said the mob followed the unidentified driver back to the police station and hurled rocks at officers after police refused to hand over the motorist, prompting officers to fire into the crowd, killing two men and injuring a woman. 

However, rights groups including the Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (Kontras) have offered a different take on the events. 

“After the accident, residents set up roadblocks to catch the motorist,” Johannes Harri Maturbongs, chairman of Kontras’s Papua office, said on Monday. 

“One officer was displeased [with the roadblocks] and told the others. Police then opened fire to disperse the residents and began shooting indiscriminately into the crowd.” 

Johannes called for a rights investigation into the police’s conduct during the incident. 

Kontras and the Papua Legal Aid Foundation have also asked the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) to launch a probe into the incident. 

National Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Marwoto Soeto said although seven Brimob officers were being questioned over the shooting, “our preliminary findings indicated that the men were acting based on procedure.” 

Marwoto also said there were no plans yet to question the victims or other witnesses. 

Meanwhile, Manokwari Police Chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Bambang Ricky said the protesters had sparked the violence by attacking two Brimob officers. 

“When our officers tried to calm down [the crowd], they were attacked,” he said. “Brigadier Amir was struck by residents in the head, while Brigadier Ismail was shot in the leg with an arrow.” 

Bambang said Brimob officers had conducted raids to locate the members of the mob who assaulted the officers, and it was during those raids that residents refused to disperse and police opened fire. 

One protester, Naftalia Kuan, was reportedly shot in the leg, but witnesses said he was also bleeding from the ear. 

He was taken to Manokwari General Hospital, where he died shortly after. 

Residents later carried his body to Manokwari Police headquarters to demand an explanation for the shooting. 

A woman, identified as Antomina Kuan, was also shot and remains in critical condition. The body of another protester, Septi Kuan, was only discovered the following morning.

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From Tapol

2) NGOs accuse Brimob of human rights violation in Manokwari

NGOs: The shooting in Manokwari was a gross human rights violation

The recent shooting by members of Brimob when several lives were lost and others were seriously wounded appears to have been a gross human rights violation according to six local NGOs.

A statement made to the mass media was supported by among others Kontras Papua, LBH (Legal Aid Institute) Papua, the ALDP (Alliance for Democracy in Papua), the SKPKC (the Justice and Peace Secretariat  of the Jayapura Diocese)and the Synod of the GKI (the Alliance of Protestant Churches in Papua)

Speaking at the press conference, the co-ordinator of Kontras Papua, Johanis Hari Maturbongs said that two other NGOs, the Forum of NGOs and Elsham-Papua, also expressed their support for the statement.

Hari Maturbongs and his colleagues said that the incident resulted in two deaths and one person being seriously wounded, which would place it within the category of a gross human rights violation.

'This incident involved elements that were systematic and comprehensive, a criminal act  both de facto and de jure,' he said.

The NGOs therefore called for the chief of police in Manorkwari as well as the commander of Brimob Unit C in Manokwari to be called to account for the incident. 'This must be announced openly, before the general public,' they said.

The NGOs also said that the National Human Rights Commission should conduct an investigation into the incident, because this is the body with the authority to conduct such an investigation.

The lawyer Gustaf Kawer said that should the investigation conclude that serious errors had been perpetrated,  members of Brimob should take responsibility for what happened. 'Whoever was in command of the shooting should accept responsibility  and if necessary should resign from the force.'

According to Anum Siregar of the ALDP, the action was in violation of the responsibilities of the police force which is the agency that is responsible for defending the community. 'Why did they use violence in the midst of a lot of people?' she asked.

Brother Ridolf Kambayong accused the police of overacting. 'We very much hope that the police will be transparent and make it clear to the public whether this was a criminal act or  human rights violation.'

According to information received by email, from the  investigation team from Manokwari, the four casualities in the incident included Naftali Kwan, 50 years old, an employee of the GPKAI Church who suffered injuries in his leg and head.

One of the two persons who died in the incident was Septinus Kwan, 30 years old, a peasant from the locality who was shot in the back and the head, and before he was killed, he was first tortured.

Also injured in the incident was Kowi, the wife of Septinus Kwan who factured her leg and injured her hips when she fled in an attempt to avoid the actions of the Brimob members.The woman was found next morning and rushed to Manokwari Hospital.

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http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2010/09/20/regional-authorities-role-doubt.html

3) Regional authorities role in doubt

Evi Mariani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Mon, 09/20/2010 9:28 AM | National

This article is the last of a series of articles on regional autonomy.


Jakarta was flooded with proposals for new provinces and regencies after the central government opened the regional autonomy door. But after a decade of decentralization, development in many regions remains far behind that of many larger cities in Java. Many Indonesians hoped that with the decentralization formula, colloquially known as pemekaran, underdeveloped regions would finally find opportunities to develop the conveniences taken for granted by residents of Jakarta and other big cities.

More than 10 years later, 80 percent of the newly formed regions are still not meeting their expectations, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono said in July. Many people remain in remote, underdeveloped areas, without access to public services or means to generate their own income.

The highly touted pemekaran endeavor, which was supposed to spread an influx of new funds from Jakarta across the regions, has merely turned out to be a placebo, partly due to the absence of a comprehensive grasp of the concept of regional autonomy, Gadjah Mada University Research Center for Politics and Government associate Wawan Masudi said.  

“Jakarta disregards diversity and imposes a symmetric model of development upon the entire country,” he said.

“The central government has failed to ensure equal distribution. The disappointments experienced by some of the new regions have been blamed on the political desires of local elites,” Wawan said, adding that regions that have proposed their own administrative centers, in particular, have had real problems stimulating economic growth.

While local elites play a significant role in the success or failure of a new region, the central government’s development model has had its own impact, Wawan said.

“People in the regions encourage urban development, but they don’t have proper roads or alternative transportation. They lack adequate health and education facilities, and are not capable of supporting economic initiatives,” he said.

“The standard development formula in Indonesia is urban-biased,” he said.  “A town with very few vehicles will not gather much income by imposing a vehicle tax, and parking fees are only lucrative in a city like Jakarta,” he said.

A 1999 Law on Regional Tax and Fees says that an administration could generate income from, among others, a vehicle tax, a fuel tax, an entertainment tax, taxes on hotels and restaurants and an advertising tax.

“We need an asymmetric model that accommodates Indonesia’s diversity. I once saw a mall in the middle of a jungle in Supiori, Papua. It was empty, of course, but that shows what they know about development,” Wawan said.

Budiman Sudjatmiko, a Commission II legislator overseeing regional autonomy, said that once the government and the House of Representatives lifted the moratorium on new regional development, the House and the Home Ministry would be flooded with more proposals. “There are about 170 proposals in the pipeline, and demands are still high,” he said.

“To avoid manipulation by local elites, I will consult with village heads before approving any law for a new region. I have an extended network in my capacity as an advisor for the Archipelago Villagers Association. I can check on the people’s needs,” Budiman said.

“We cannot blame the entire pemekaran failure on the regional leaders. We cannot generalize, but in some cases the central government neglects welfare in the regions,” Budiman said. “Promote local genius. Jakarta does not represent all of Indonesia, and ‘local’ is not always lower.”