President Wenda: At least nine killed as Indonesia commits new massacre in Puncak

April 16, 2026

Indonesia’s campaign of colonial destruction in the West Papuan highlands is intensifying. Only weeks after the brutal massacre in Dogiyai, the Indonesian military has attacked a refugee camp in Kembru, Puncak Regency. Simultaneous operations were also carried out in the Sinak and Pogoma Districts, with terrified villagers bombarded by an array of modern weaponry. Puncak is under siege, with military operations currently ongoing.

Nine people are known to have been killed in Kembru, including a toddler and a pregnant woman, though the number of casualties is expected to rise. The true number of victims is currently impossible to know, as Indonesia has blockaded the other affected districts, preventing people and information from getting in or out. Massive internal displacement has again resulted, with the number of displaced people in the region having already doubled as a result of the attack.

Speaking in the Lani language, this man states that bodies of the nine killed in Kembru have already been burnt, but that they cannot access the other regions due to a military blockade

The military operation in Kembru commenced at around 5am, as four attack helicopters began bombing the camp, accompanied by ground forces who shot indiscriminately into makeshift shelters. Civilians sleeping in their beds were killed as the carnage unfolded. The nine known victims of the Kembru attack are as follows:

  • Para Walia, 5
  • Wundili Kogoya, 36
  • Ekimira Kogoya, 47
  • Inikiwewo Walia, 52
  • Kikungge Walia, 55
  • Deremet Telenggen, 55
  • Pelen Kogoya, 65
  • Tiagen Walia, 76
  • Amer Walia, 77

This is not the first time that Indonesia has targeted the Kembru camps. In February, the military bombed the area, forcing residents of nine villages to flee into the forest. However, Indonesia’s latest attack appears to have been far more brutal and indiscriminate, utilising bombs, guns, drones and grenades to kill civilians and destroy homes.

Indonesia’s bombing of Kembru is in direct contravention of a 2025 agreement made between the military command and the TPNPB, which designated the entire Kembru district as a safe area for refugees. Bombing designated safe zones, like bombing refugee camps, is a crime against humanity, and those responsible should be tried in the Hague. Make no mistake: the targeting of children, pregnant women, and elders is a direct result of a government policy that views all West Papuans as terrorists. In the eyes of the TNI, all West Papuans are “KKB”. They look on us as subhuman, squatters in our own land, even though we have been its guardians for thousands of years.

Victims of the Kembru massacre

The victims of this attack were already refugees, forced from their homes by previous rounds of military violence. Those displaced into the bush will have no access to healthcare. Their children will not be able to attend school. Their crops and their livelihoods will perish, as the military prevents them from accessing their gardens. Many people will no doubt die from hunger or disease, as over 1100 West Papuans have since 2019. Indonesia is a criminal in West Papua and should be a pariah on the international stage for their actions against my people.

The inhumane culture of impunity that produced this massacre is a direct result of Indonesia’s deliberate isolation of West Papua. The ULMWP repeats its demand that Indonesia allow the international community into West Papua to aid refugees at this time of acute crisis. In particular, Indonesia must:

  • Immediately allow the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights to report from West Papua, in accordance with the demand of more than 110 UN member states;
  • Allow international journalists and NGOs, including the International Red Cross, to freely operate from West Papua, without fear of expulsion or harassment;
  • Come to the table with the ULMWP to discuss an internationally-mediated referendum on self-determination – this is the only peaceful solution to this nightmare.

I also call on actors within the international community, particularly the Pacific, to do more to pressure Indonesia to open West Papua to the eyes of the world. The demand for a UN visit is needed, but what further action will you take, now Indonesia has made it clear they have no intention of facilitating such a visit? Will you refuse to deal with Indonesia, to trade with them or sign bilateral agreements, until the UN is allowed access? Will the MSG expel Indonesia for murdering Melanesians? I call for real action: action that Indonesia cannot ignore. While the world delays, West Papuans die.

Benny Wenda
President
ULMWP