Following an investigative report from Australian media alleging that the country’s counterterrorism unit Special Detachment 88 killed a Papuan pro-independence activist, an analyst urged Indonesia to further probe the incident.
Adriana Elisabeth, a researcher from the
Indonesian Institute of Sciences (LIPI), said on Friday that police must
embark on a comprehensive and accountable investigation into recent
cases of violence in Papua to maintain their credibility.
“They
should not be silent on the media report. As the country’s highest
security authority, the police should be able to solve the series of
violence in Papua, and come out with accountable results so that
outsiders don’t need to do their own investigation, which could be
biased also,” she said.
The counterterrorism squad, known as
Densus 88, has been involved in a number of crackdowns against
separatists in Papua and Maluku, with officers saying their
participation was justified because the nation’s Law on Terrorism
categorizes armed insurgence as an act of terrorism.
In August
last year, counterterrorism officers were deployed in conflict-riven
Papua after four people were killed in an ambush by suspected armed
separatists in Nafri village, on the outskirts of Jayapura.
The
Australian Broadcasting Corporation on Tuesday ran a story on Papuans
testifying that Densus 88, which is trained and supplied by the
Australian government, was involved in the June killing of Mako Tabuni,
then-chairman of the pro-independence West Papua National Committee
(KNPB).
The report has sparked debate in Australia, with the
Greens, a party that is part of Prime Minister Julia Gillard’s coalition
government, saying Australia should look at ending anti-terrorism
training for Indonesian troops if they are found to be involved in human
rights abuses in West Papua.
Greens Senator Richard Di Natale
told The Australian newspaper that he has been concerned for some time
about a lack of accountability in Australia’s funding and training of
Indonesian forces.
And in an interview with ABC following the
report’s airing, Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr said an inquiry
was needed into Tabuni’s killing and the allegations surrounding Densus
88.
“We think the best way of clarifying the situation is for an
inquiry, and we’ve never hesitated to raise human rights issues in the
two Papuan provinces, and we’ll continue to do it,” Carr said during the
interview.
“I’ve raised it myself with the Indonesian foreign
minister, my counterpart, Marty Natalegawa, and Prime Minister Gillard
has raised it with the president of Indonesia [Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono]
as recently as June this year.”
Mahfudz Siddiq, head of the
Indonesian House of Representatives’ Commission I, overseeing defense,
security and international affairs, slammed Carr for having “double
standards” in calling for the inquiry.
Mahfudz confirmed that
Densus 88 was present in Papua, arguing that Tabuni’s alleged acts of
violence warranted “the presence of Detachment 88.”
Mahfudz also
chided Carr, saying Australian politicians never complained about
Densus 88 killings of suspected Muslim terrorists.
“In my
opinion, it is too far for Bob Carr to mention human rights training to
Detachment 88. Did Australia give any comment when Islamic activists got
killed or injured by Detachment 88 while the anti-terror squad was
raiding a house?” Mahfudz said.
Tabuni was accused of orchestrating a number of shootings in Jayapura, Papua, including one against a German tourist.
But
ABC reporters disguised as tourists interviewed a number of Papuan
activists and witnesses who were quoted as saying that Tabuni was framed
and killed for his pro-independence stance.
Oktovianus Pekei, a
Papuan priest in the district of Paniai, said suspected
counterterrorism officers also raided people’s homes in the district
capital, Enarotali, during a standoff with members of the armed rebel
movement, the Free Papua Organization (OPM) in November.
The National Police have refused to confirm whether Densus 88 officers were responsible for Tabuni’s death.
Carr defended Australia’s provision of counterterrorism training to Indonesian forces, with a caveat.
“It
is absolutely in Australia’s interests that we have this relationship,
but we don’t train them in counterinsurgency — it’s counterterrorism,”
he said.
“Part of that training is in human rights; just as we
train our own armed forces and our own police to respect human rights,
we’ve introduced that into the counterterrorism training we deliver for
the Indonesians.”