PRE-ELECTION TENSIONS IN PAPUA

C O N F I D E N T I A L SECTION 01 OF 02 JAKARTA 000634 SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, EAP/ANP, EAP/RSP NSC FOR E.PHU E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/07/2019 TAGS: PGOV PINS KDEM ID SUBJECT: PRE-ELECTION TENSIONS IN PAPUA REF: JAKARTA 59 AND PREVIOUS Classified By: Pol/C Joseph L. Novak, reasons 1.4(b+d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: Tensions have ratcheted up in Indonesia's eastern province of Papua just days before the national legislative elections on April 9. In central Papua, civilians and police sustained injuries on April 5 during a protest by a group that called for a boycott of the elections. The situation remains restive in Jayapura, the provincial capital, following a police raid on a local Papuan council. Officials have told us they are trying to tamp down on the tensions and are exercising restraint. Emboff, currently in Jayapura to observe the upcoming elections, reports that the situation is tense but calm. END SUMMARY. CLASH IN CENTRAL PAPUA ¶2. (C) Ahead of national legislative elections on April 9, tensions have increased in the Papuan region of eastern Indonesia. Police and protesters clashed during an April 5 rally in the central Papua town of Nabire. A coalition of pro-independence groups called the National Committee for West Papua (KNPB) had organized the rally to call for a boycott of the upcoming elections. KNPB officials issued a statement that urged Papuans to reject the vote and called instead for a referendum on Papua's status within Indonesia. The rally also hailed the recent establishment of an organization called the "International Lawyers for West Papua," a pro-Papua group based in the United States. ¶3. (C) There are differing accounts re why the rally turned violent. KNPB activists claimed that the police fired into the crowd unprovoked. Police sources told us that the demonstrators had initiated the melee by throwing rocks and firing arrows at the security forces. Seven civilians and five police sustained injuries. Police have detained several people in connection with the incident and have stepped-up patrols in the area. Several other large demonstrations occurred in the central Papuan highland region but these remained peaceful. TENSIONS IN PROVINCIAL CAPITAL ¶4. (C) Tensions are also high in Jayapura, the provincial capital, following an April 3 police search of the offices of the Papuan Customary Council (DAP). Police searched the office following reports that elements connected with the DAP planned to disrupt the election. (Note: Since late 2008 the police have been investigating the DAP in connection with the group's alleged role in organizing illegal demonstrations. The demonstrations in question involved raising the "Morning Star" flag, which the GOI has banned as a separatist symbol. See reftel.) ¶5. (C) During the search, police officials confiscated several computers, boxes of documents, over 100 small Morning Star flags and other items. They also confiscated two homemade firearms,. although DAP officials denied these belonged to the organization. They claimed that the police had planted the guns in the office. ¶6. (C) The search also triggered a brief altercation between police and students who had come to the DAP office to protest the police action. Officers detained some 15 students after they had begun throwing rocks at the police. The authorities released all but one of the students shortly after the incident. There are no reports that any of the students were mistreated. PRESSING FOR RESTRAINT ¶7. (C) Local officials have told us that they are trying to avoid any further escalation of tensions in advance of the elections and are exercising restraint. Emboff, currently in Jayapura to observe the upcoming elections, reports that the situation in the provincial capital is tense but calm. So far, police in Jayapura seem to have acted with restraint. The situation in Nabire is less clear, given conflicting reports of what provoked the clash between police and protesters. However, the incidents underscore the level of tension in Papua and highlight the possibility of further unrest. ¶8. (C) President Yudhoyono planned to discuss the situation in Papua and other election-related issues in a Cabinet meeting on April 7. Vice President Kalla was particularly concerned about the Papua situation, according to JAKARTA 00000634 002 OF 002 Djohermansyah Djohan, an advisor to the VP. Djohan said the Cabinet meeting would likely issue renewed instructions to the security forces to prevent any further election-related clashes in Papua. HUME