Arrest of Papua s machine gun pastor is a ticking time bomb
Christian leaders must try to maintain a balance between loyalty to Indonesia and pastoral care for all Papuans
A motorcade transports the body of Brig. Gen. I Gusti Putu Danny Karya Nugraha, who headed Papua s intelligence agency, for his funeral on April 26 after he was killed in Indonesia s restive Papua region during a gun battle between police and separatist rebels. (Photo: Sevianto Pakiding /AFP)
The arrest of a pastor in Papua by security forces for allegedly supplying weapons to a separatist group could intensify scrutiny on churches in the restive Indonesian region, according to some, but others believe it was a betrayal of his church and Christians.
By Stefan J. Bos, Chief International Correspondent BosNewsLife
JAKARTA, INDONESIA (BosNewsLife)– The West Papua Council of Churches urges the United Nations to help end a “humanitarian tragedy” in Indonesia’s Papua region where it says Indonesia’s military kills Christian leaders.
Thousands have been displaced due to the violence, which increased since last year, according to rights activists. Among those targeted was Pastor Yeremia Zanambani of the Protestant Evangelical Church, who was killed in the Intan Jaya regency area on September 19, investigators said.
A report from the Indonesian National Commission on Human Rights said that Pastor Zanambani was tortured before being shot by Indonesia’s army.
[AFP]
Separatist rebels shot dead a 16-year-old schoolboy in Indonesia’s Papua province, police said Friday about the latest in a spate of recent killings of civilians whom the insurgents accused of spying for the government.
As they did after other fatal attacks this month, the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) rebels claimed responsibility for the boy’s killing. Lekagak Telenggen, the group’s general operations chief, said the teenager, Ali Mom, was a spy for the authorities.
“Yesterday night around 6 or 7 p.m. my members shot dead a provocateur and intelligence agent named Ali Mom in Ilaga,” Lekagak told BenarNews by phone from Ilaga, a district in Puncak regency where the teenager was gunned down.
12 Min Read
JAKARTA, April 6 (Reuters) - One mid-February morning in the central highlands of the Indonesian province of Papua, the army said Prada Ginanjar Arianda, a 22-year-old member of the 400 Banteng Raiders commando battalion, was shot in the stomach by separatist fighters and died.
About 24 hours later, after a sweep by security forces through nearby hamlets that sent hundreds of residents fleeing to the safety of two churches, distraught family members were at a health clinic collecting the bodies of three brothers, Janius, Soni and Yustinus Bagau.
Ever since Papua was incorporated into Indonesia after a United Nations-supervised vote by only about 1,025 people in 1969, Indonesia has tried to quell a rebellion among its distinct Melanesian indigenous population of about 2.5 million who are seeking independence. Papua, rich in resources, has among the worst poverty rates in Indonesia despite $7.4 billion of funding by the central government over the past 20 years.
Publishing date: Apr 05, 2021 • 1 hour ago • 9 minute read •
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JAKARTA One mid-February morning in the central highlands of the Indonesian province of Papua, the army said Prada Ginanjar Arianda, a 22-year-old member of the 400 Banteng Raiders commando battalion, was shot in the stomach by separatist fighters and died.
About 24 hours later, after a sweep by security forces through nearby hamlets that sent hundreds of residents fleeing to the safety of two churches, distraught family members were at a health clinic collecting the bodies of three brothers, Janius, Soni and Yustinus Bagau.
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