PAPUA -- SUSPICIOUS FIRE ADDS TO ALREADY TENSE

C O N F I D E N T I A L JAKARTA 000681 SIPDIS DEPT FOR EAP, EAP/MTS, EAP/MLS, EAP/RSP, EAP/ANP NSC FOR E.PHU E.O. 12958: DECL: 04/15/2019 TAGS: PGOV PINS ID SUBJECT: PAPUA -- SUSPICIOUS FIRE ADDS TO ALREADY TENSE SITUATION REF: JAKARTA 666 AND PREVIOUS Classified By: Acting Pol/C Daniel E. Turnbull, reasons 1.4 (b+d). ¶1. (C) SUMMARY: A suspicious fire at the Papua Provincial Election Commission on April 14 has added to tensions in a a province already hit by pre-election violence. Electric company officials said the fire was an accident but Papuans--including Governor Suebu--are skeptical. NGOs and other activists have charged security force involvement in the blaze. President Yudhoyono has ordered police and intelligence agencies to investigate the series of incidents in the troubled province. Governor Suebu traveled to Jakarta April 15 for consultations with the president and other senior officials. END SUMMARY SUSPICIOUS FIRE ¶2. (C) A suspicious fire damaged the Jayapura offices of the Papua Provincial Election Commission (KPU-D) at around 10:00 p.m. local time on April 14. KPU-D Chairman Benny Sweny told poloff that the firefighters had quickly contained the blaze, limiting damage to a conference room and part of the roof. No ballots or other election-related materials had been destroyed. The fire had occurred during an electrical blackout of Jayapura (the provincial capital) and the surrounding area. ¶3. (C) Officials at the national electric company (PLN) said the blackout and the fire were accidents. The acting PLN chief told Agus Sumule, Chief of Staff to Papua Governor Barnabas Suebu, that the blackout had occurred when bats had landed on powerlines, causing a short circuit that had disabled the electrical grid. PLN officials said faulty wiring in an air-conditioning unit had sparked the blaze at the KPU office. PAPUANS DON'T BUY IT ¶4. (C) Papuans, including Governor Suebu, are highly skeptical of PLN's claim that the blackout and the fire were accidental. The restive province has already witnessed several violent incidents seemingly aimed at disrupting the April 9 legislative elections (see reftel). Pro-separatist groups are widely believed to be responsible. Two previous incidents involved arson: the torching of a university building near Jayapura and a fire at a fuel storage facility in Biak, an island off Papua's northern coast. The latest incident, involving both a suspicious fire and the KPU office, is too much of a coincidence for Papuans--including the governor--to accept, according to Sumule. He told poloff that Suebu was furious about the incident and planned to press for a full investigation. ¶5. (C) Other Papuans, including NGOs and some activists have already cast blame on the security services, according to Budi Hernawan, chief of the Catholic Diocese human rights office. Hernawan told poloff that some Papuans believed the allegations of security force involvement because the KPU-D office was located on a provincial government compound that included the governor's office. They questioned how a pro-separatist arsonist could have gotten past the compound's police guards without some security force complicity. HIGH LEVEL ATTENTION ¶6. (C) Senior officials in Jakarta, including President Yudhoyono (SBY),are concerned about the situation in Papua. SBY ordered the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) to investigate the chain of incidents. He also instructed the police and the military to ensure security and stability. Governor Suebu traveled to Jakarta on April 15 for meetings with Yudhoyono and other central government officials. Suebu plans to press the President to make public the results of any investigations in order to defuse tensions, according to Sumule. HUME