PAPUA -- ACTIVIST STILL IN CUSTODY, DETAILS EMERGE

C O N F I D E N T I A L JAKARTA 003041 SIPDIS SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, DRL/AWH, EAP/MLS E.O. 12958: DECL: 10/31/2017 TAGS: PGOV PHUM PINS ID SUBJECT: PAPUA -- ACTIVIST STILL IN CUSTODY, DETAILS EMERGE ABOUT ARREST REF: JAKARTA 3015 Classified By: DepPol/C Daniel E. Turnbull, reasons 1.4 (b,d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Detained Papuan human rights activist Iwanggin Sabar Olif remains in police custody in Jakarta. His lawyers have visited him in custody and report that is in good condition. It is unclear what the police plan to do with him next. END SUMMARY. ¶2. (C) FURTHER DETAILS RE ARREST: Aloysius Renwarin, an official of the human rights group Els-ham Papua described the circumstances leading to Iwanggin's arrest in an October 31 meeting with poloff. Police officers searched Iwanggin's house on the morning of October 17, saying they were looking for evidence of an unspecified crime. Among the officers present was an ethnic Papuan who, according to Renwarin, was "widely known to be part of the anti-terror Special Detachment 88 (SD-88)." Later that day, Iwanggin met with the police in Abepura, a suburb of Jayapura, to ask why he was under investigation. The Papuan police told him he was suspected of sending threatening SMS messages and advised him to retain legal counsel. ¶3. (C) Iwanggin, accompanied by Renawarin attempted on October 18 to meet with officials at Papua police headquarters in Jayapura. Before doing so, they were approached by a group of approximately 20 plain-clothes police officers, including an unspecified number from SD-88, according to Renwarin, who claimed to have witnessed the event. Officers from a Jakarta-based Criminal Investigation Division unit made the arrest. SD-88 officers were present, but were not directly involved in taking Iwanggin into custody. (Note: This corroborates information Mission obtained about the arrest from police sources and reported reftel.) The police confiscated Iwanggin's mobile phone and told him he was formally under investigation for defaming the president. ¶4. (C) QUESTIONED IN JAKARTA: Iwanggin's lawyer, Amon Berokorui, has reportedly met his client several times while in police custody. Berokorui told poloff on October 31 that Iwanggin had been questioned repeatedly and was in good condition. On several occasions, officers identifying themselves as part of SD-88 questioned Iwanggin about electronic evidence showing that certain SMS messages had originated from his mobile phone. They reported having tracked his phone using an unspecified electronic device, according to Berokorui. Mission has been unable to obtain further information about this claim from police contacts. ¶5. (C) NOT YET CHARGED: The authorities continue to hold Iwanggin, although they have not yet formally charged him with a crime. (Note: Under Indonesian law, the police can hold a suspect for 30 days without charge. They can appeal to a judge for another 30 day detention, which is usually approved.) Berokorui told poloff that Iwanggin's legal team had requested he be transferred back to Jayapura while the investigation continued. The police reportedly agreed to this in principle but so far had not announced any firm plans to do so. ¶6. (C) GROWING ANGER, SUSPICION: Several Papuan contacts have expressed their anger over Iwanggin's detention. They note that hundreds or thousands of Papuans have received or forwarded messages of the sort Iwanggin is alleged to have sent. They continue to believe that Iwanggin was singled out because of his human-rights advocacy. Papuan human rights activists are working to publicize the case with national and international human rights organizations. HUME