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News Desk 1 March 2021 Secretary General of Pacific Islands Forum, Meg Taylor, addresses a high-level meeting at the UN Human Rights Council to speak about Covid-19, climate change, and alleged human rights violations in West Papua. West Papua No. 1 News Portal | Jubi Jakarta, Jubi – Pacific Islands Forum, an intergovernmental organization consisting of 18 members, delivered a statement in a high-level meeting at the Human Rights Council of the United Nations on Feb. 24, highlighting three concerns: Covid-19, climate change, and human rights conditions in West Papua. “The Pacific Islands Forum brings together 18 Member states to protect the people, place, and prospects of our Blue Pacific Continent. My statement today will highlight three Forum Leaders’ priorities – Covid-19 response and recovery; the climate change crisis; and human rights in West Papua (Papua),” said Meg Taylor, the Secretary General of the Pacific Islands Forum. Read also: ‘Important’ for UN to visit West Papua in light of human rights issue: Dutch minister She addressed the high level meeting, saying that the violent conflict and subsequent human rights violations in West Papua has been a concern for the Pacific Island Forum Leaders for over 20 years. “In 2016, it became a standing agenda item for Forum Leaders,” she said. “Pacific Island Forum Leaders’ focus on West Papua has been squarely on human rights – calling on all parties to protect and uphold the human rights of all residents, and to work to address the root causes of the conflict by peaceful means,” she went on. Taylor said the escalation of tension in the recent years “has deepened the collective concerns of the Leaders of the Pacific.” She said the leaders welcomed Indonesian government’s invitation for a mission to West Papua by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights and they encouraged an “evidence-based report” on the situation in West Papua to be provided before their next meeting. “We call on distinguished Council Members to encourage all relevant parties to urgently facilitate a mission to West Papua by the High Commissioner for Human Rights,” Taylor said. Founded in 1971, the Forum comprises 18 members: Australia, Cook Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji, French Polynesia, Kiribati, Nauru, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Niue, Palau, Papua New Guinea, Republic of Marshall Islands, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu. In January, the Dutch government had said they deemed it “important” for the UN High Commissioner of Human Rights to visit West Papua. “The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights has not yet visited Papua, partly because a visit has become temporarily virtually impossible due to the corona crisis. She does have a standing invitation to visit Indonesia. The Dutch Permanent Representation to the UN discussed this with the cabinet of the High Commissioner for Human Rights on Dec. 3. The Netherlands has indicated that it considers a visit by the High Commissioner for Human Rights to Papua important. The Netherlands will again indicate to the Indonesian authorities at the next opportunity that it is important that such a visit takes place as soon as possible,” Blok wrote in the document. On Nov. 4, 2020, Nigel Adams, UK government Minister for Asia at the Foreign, Commonwealth & Development Office (FCDO) who is also a member of parliament from Conservative Party, answered a question from a member of parliament about West Papua. Adams’s answer was: “The UK supports a visit by the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (ONHCR) to Papua. Officials from the British Embassy have discussed the proposed visit with the Indonesian Ministry of Foreign Affairs, and continue to encourage the Indonesian Government to agree dates as soon as possible.” Earlier in September 2019, UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Michelle Bachelet said her office was “disturbed” by escalating violence in Papua and West Papua in the past two weeks, especially the deaths of some protestors and security forces. Human Rights Pacific Islands FOrum UN High Commissioner for Human Rights West Papua IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Home Pasific News Pasific News “I am West Papua. I am Papuan” : Anglican Archbishop of Oceania joint statement News Desk 8 March 2017

Archbishop of Oceania – Supplied Jayapura, Jubi – The Anglican Archbishop of Oceania, who have been meeting in Australia, have warned of the threat to their region from climate change. In a joint statement, the five Archbishop said : “We agreed that as whole nations of ocean people lose their island homes, climate justice advocacy and action must become the most urgent priority for Oceanic Anglicans.” Archbishop Philip Freier, of Australia, Archbishop Clyde Igara, of Papua New Guinea, Archbishop Winston Halapua, and Archbishop Philip Richardson of Aotearoa, New Zealand and Polynesia, and Archbishop George Takeli of Melanesia met in Tweed Heads, in New South Wales. They noted that they were four Provinces covering many nations, more than 1000 languages, with rich and diverse cultures. They said they were united through the interweaving of history and long friendships, but were coming together against a backdrop of disharmony: “We gather at a time when the rhetoric of nationalism, ridicule, fear-mongering, and hatred is so prevalent. In such a climate where “me first” or “we first” dominates, we affirm: “we together.” They said they had heard “harrowing” stories of human rights violations in West Papua: “which were poignantly focussed for us by Archbishop Clyde Igara, who said: “I am West Papua. I am Papuan” – such is the arbitrariness of national boundaries and the historical circumstances that have defined them.” The primates said they would be judged by their failure to support their weakest part: “We celebrate that what the world views as weak is in fact strength, what the world views as folly, is indeed wisdom. We rejoice at the fruits of the Spirit we see in each other, and we give thanks for the faithfulness of our forebears who sowed the seeds of the Gospel in our lands.” They also addressed the challenges of seasonal workers and labour mobility across their Provinces and “how we could respond both pastorally and politically;” they also considered the way “our growing relationships with the Anglican Provinces across Asia could be deepened and looked forward to the meeting of the Primates of the Anglican Communion in October 2017.” (*) Anglican News archbishop West Papua IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Home Pasific News Pasific News Indonesia and Vanuatu: Too different for a real partnership? News Desk 27 September 2016

Nadjib Riphat Kesoema, Ambassador of Indonesia – abc.com.au to Vanuatu Dear Editor, While Vanuatu is an island nation and Indonesia is an archipelagic country, the differences seem to be too great for a real partnership to work between the two countries. The difference in size is striking. From its westernmost part in Aceh to its easternmost part in Merauke, Papua, Indonesia stretches as wide as from Port Vila to Honolulu, Hawaii. For every person in Vanuatu, there are one thousand persons in Indonesia. Whereas Vanuatu’s population is primarily Melanesians, Indonesians are a mix of ethnicities: Javanese, Sumatrans, Malays, Melanesians, Chinese and so on. Differences could be unsettling. In both personal relations as well as international relations for instance, the world can be split into two. Those in the minority that delves in and are paralyzed by the smallest of differences and the rest who respect differences but keep on chipping at them to bring the relations closer together. The second group realizes that the reward of working together, of having a strong partnership far outweigh the short-term gains of resentment. There are a number of important similarities that Indonesia and Vanuatu can use to build our relationship on. Indonesia sits on the Pacific ring of fire making it prone to volcanic eruptions, earthquakes, tsunamis and other natural disasters. Likewise, Vanuatu is prone to tropical cyclones, volcanic eruptions and tsunamis. Both Indonesia and Vanuatu have many small islands that are vulnerable to changes in the climate. Another parallel is that since early in their modern history, leaders of both countries understood that a secure and stable region is a condition for sustained economic growth and prosperity. Leaders understood that a secure and stable region depends on good international relations. Good international relations in turn depends on mutual respect of national sovereignty and territorial integrity. It is thus no coincidence that Indonesia and Vanuatu engages their respective immediate regions actively. Both capitals are respectively homes to the secretariat of the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG), in Port Vila and the secretariat of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) in Jakarta. It is no accident moreover that both countries share many national and regional goals. Both countries aim for sustainable economic growth and development, better governance, a secure and stable region as well as a more prosperous population. The people of Vanuatu celebrated her 36th anniversary on 30 July. On behalf of the eleven million Melanesians living in Indonesia and all the citizens of Indonesia, let me again extend my warmest congratulations to the people and government of Vanuatu. Indonesia too, is celebrating. On last 17th of August, Indonesia commemorated our 71st anniversary. Anniversaries are usually a period for reflection. As both fellow vibrant democracies look into the future, in the next 15 years to 2030, Vanuatu, Indonesia and the region will not be quite the same. The combined region of Southeast Asia and MSG would be a formidable economic and cultural zone. With current annual growth, by the 2030s, Indonesia will be among the top ten biggest economies in the world. As member countries continue to focus on providing solutions to current financial and institutional challenges facing the MSG, by 2030 the region will be more economically integrated and dynamic. In the decades ahead, Vanuatu will perhaps have a larger tourism and services sector as well as agriculture and livestock farming complementing her more traditional export commodities of copra, coconuts, cocoa, fish and wood processing. Indonesia’s trade with and investment in Vanuatu is still relatively small, indicating a good growth potential. Indonesia’s 60-million strong middle and consuming-class is very much looking forward to establishing closer trade, investment and development links with Vanuatu and all the countries of the MSG. A stronger Indonesia-Vanuatu partnership that centers on those national priorities will expand trade and investment and ultimately bring more jobs and income. Thus it is important for us to concentrate the partnership on developing the tourism and agriculture sectors, boosting programs on climate change, preparing the most vulnerable communities for adaptation and mitigation. It is also important to work together on programs of disaster preparedness and disaster risk management. The US$2 million in humanitarian aid dispatched by the Indonesian government to Vanuatu in the aftermath of Cyclone Pam and the many programs of technical cooperation delivered to Vanuatu over the years are good examples of such partnership. Indonesia is a member of a number of regional trading arrangements including within ASEAN as well intra-regionally such as ASEAN-China and ASEAN-Australia-New Zealand. Indonesia is also a member of the Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation (APEC) and the G20. In our experience, we found that expanding our international markets and partnerships creates more jobs, affordable products and services and boost competitiveness. The eastern part of Indonesia, home to five Melanesian provinces of East Nusa Tenggara, Maluku, North Maluku, Papua and West Papua is Asia’s natural entrance to the Pacific. Conversely, Indonesia is welcoming Vanuatu and MSG countries into the rewarding markets of Indonesia, Southeast Asia and beyond through this eastern region gateway. When we concentrate on issues that bring us closer while working to resolve differences, I am confident that in the future, the leaders of both countries will be remembered as those who brought stability, security, justice and prosperity to the nation and the region. Nadjib Riphat Kesoema Ambassador of Indonesia to Vanuatu Indonesia Vanuatu West Papua IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Home Headlines Headlines, National & International, Pasific News, Women and children Pacific Forum countries urged to follow up on West Papua News Desk 4 July 2019

Rosa Moiwend, West Papuan reearcher and human rights defender.Rosa Moiwend, West Papuan reearcher and human rights defender. Photo: RNZ / Johnny Blades Papua, Jubi – A West Papuan human rights defender has called for more Pacific islands countries to speak up internationally about human rights abuses in her homeland. Rosa Moiwend, who has been visiting New Zealand this week, said it was important that Pacific Islands Forum countries advanced this issue to reflect widespread, grassroots concern for West Papua in the region. At the 2015 Pacific Forum summit, leaders agreed to push for a fact-finding mission to Papua. Indonesia is yet to allow such a mission to visit, but Ms Moiwend said forum members must follow this up. “Because otherwise it’s just lip service from the forum,” she said. “Members of the Pacific Islands Forum are also UN members, so we need more and more Pacific Island countries to speak about the human rights situation in West Papua.” According to Ms Moiwend, while several small Pacific countries have raised Papua at the UN, bigger countries such as Australia and New Zealand should support them. Development Indonesian president Joko Widodo’s infrastructure development drive in Papua is proving traumatic for remote indigenous communities, Ms Moiwend said. Its centre-piece is the Trans-Papua Road project which is being built through some of Papua’s most remote terrain. The project is also at the heart of heightened conflict in Papua’s Highlands since the West Papua Liberation Army massacred at least 16 road construction workers last December. While conceding that opening up access to Papua through the project had its benefits, Ms Moiwend said it also brought outsiders and development that local Papuans were not prepared for. “It will also open a space for more and more military and police posts along the road, because of the security reason that they will say. “And it’s actually threatened people’s lives because for West Papuans people are traumatic with the presence of the military.” Ms Moiwend’s family are customary landowners in Merauke in Papua’s south where rapid oil palm and agri-business development is underway. “Customary land is actually affected by these big projects – food project and oil palm plantation,” Ms Moiwend explained, adding that indigenous communities had little say in the development “I think government needs to discuss with the people. You can’t just come and (start) plotting the land and then invite the investor to come and invest their money because people rely on our land. “The land is the source of our food. So if they want to replace with something else, then how can they provide food for our people?” (*) IIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIII Home Headlines Headlines, National & International, Pasific News Port Moresby evicts West Papuan refugees from city settlement

News Desk 3 July 2019 The Rainbow settlement in Port Moresby… home to West Papuan refugees for 11 years. – Image: Post-Courier Papua, Jubi – About 250 West Papuans have been served notices of eviction to leave their settlement in Port Moresby, reports The National. National Capital District Commission officials, escorted by police officers, handed the settlers demolition orders last Thursday and told them to leave their home in the suburb of Rainbow where they had lived for 11 years. Communal leader Elly Wangai said that some of them were now PNG citizens after former Prime Minister Peter O’Neill allowed them to gain citizenship without paying the K10,000 application fee. “But unlike other PNG citizens, we don’t have any land to go to. When we were given citizenship, the government did not give us land to settle. And this is the fifth time we have been evicted since 2007. “We were first evicted from 8-Mile settlement and we settled outside the United Nations High Commission for Refugees (UNHCR) Office at Ela Beach. “Then we moved to the Boroko Police station. Then to Apex Park at Boroko and now to here.” Wangai said they were willing to move from the settlement. ‘Drainage area’ “This is a drainage area and we know that and we will move. But we want NCDC to provide land for us. “If NCDC can evict other PNG settlements from 2-Mile and resettle them at 6-Mile, they should do the same for us.” Wangai said they had once been given land at Red Hills in the suburb of Gerehu. “But when we went there, developments were already taking place. “So we had to return here. Since we were given eviction notices, our children were traumatised and did not attend school. “Our mothers who are involved in small economical activities like selling doughnuts and ice blocks have stopped. “They are finding it hard to earn money to look after their family. If we are given land to move, we will be confident to live our daily lives.” According to ABC, Port Moresby Governor Powes Parkop was unaware of the move to serve the demolition orders or what had prompted it. A vocal supporter of the West Papua cause, Parkop said he would work to stop – or at least stall – the process to carry out the demolition orders, and fulfill his promise to find the settlers a permanent home. “I hope I can sort it out soon and get proper allocation of the land so they’ve got security and can build a future.” (*) Source: asiapacificreport.nz Source: RNZI VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV Home Headlines Headlines, West Papua Police who shot protesters must be punished: LBH Papua Police Brutality - News Desk 17 June 2022

Participants in the free pulpit action commemorating the 10th anniversary of the murder of Mako Tabuni which took place in Jayapura City on Tuesday (14/6/2022) put up posters calling for the fight against forgetting about the Mako Tabuni murder case that occurred on June 14, 2012. - Doc. LBH Papua Jayapura, Jubi – The Papua Legal Aid Institute (LBH Papua) has asked the Jayapura City Police to punish their members who fired rubber bullets to disperse the rally commemorating the death of West Papua National Committee (KNPB) leader Mako Tabuni on Tuesday, June 14, 2022. Director of LBH Papua Emanuel Gobay said at least four rally participants were allegedly injured by rubber bullets, namely Aris Nepsan, Jon Kadepa, Benediktus Tebai, and Natan Pigai. They were injured on the forehead, head, hands, and buttocks respectively. Gobay said the use of rubber bullets to disperse demonstrations indicated a violation of Emergency Law No. 12/1951, which regulates the use of firearms. Gobay urged the police to legally process any personnel who fired rubber bullets at protesters. “Law enforcement [against police brutality] has to be done instead of arresting the masses who exercise their democratic rights,” said Gobay in Jayapura City on Wednesday, June 15, 2022. He emphasized that the commemoration of Mako Tabuni’s death took place peacefully. The participants did not block the road. The police, however, repressively dispersed the mass. National Police Chief Regulation No. 16/2006 on Guidelines for Crowd Control has indeed regulated procedures for controlling protests. However, on the ground, the police in Papua often disperse demonstrations by making arrests, beatings, or even opening fire. Gobay said that the police’s repressive way to disperse the mass would only add to the list of violence experienced by Papuans. In the past year, there have been at least 10 demonstrations that were disbanded by the police. “Why does violence keep occurring? What has been done by the National Police Chief, the Papua Police Chief, and the Jayapura City Police Chief to address this matter and educate police officers in Papua?” said Gobay. (*) Civilian Victim KNPB LBH Papua police brutality Protesters Shooting Writer: News DeskEditor: News Desk VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV Home Headlines Headlines, West Papua Why doesn’t Indonesia want a dialogue with Papuans, Benny Giay asks Papua Peaceful Dialogue - News Desk 20 May 2022

Dr Benny Giay when he was a resource person in a public discussion "Imagination of Papuans as a Nation (Melanesians)" was held by the Regional Research Center of the Indonesian Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN), on Thursday (19/05/2022). Dock. BRIN discussion zoom screenshot Jayapura, Jubi – Papuan respected figure, theologian and activist Benny Giay throws the question of why the Indonesian government has not wanted to engage in a dialogue with Papuans. Instead, the government always chooses a security approach by sending troops and police to the Land of Papua. Benny Giay conveyed this in a public discussion “Imagination of Papuans as a Nation (Melanesians)” held online by the Regional Research Center of the Indonesian Research and Innovation Agency (BRIN) on Thursday, May 19, 2022. Giay emphasized that dialogue was important for the safety of the Papuan people. The Indonesian government must solve the problems in Papua like solving the problems that occurred in Aceh. Not by sending security forces. “In the past, then vice president Jusuf Kalla went all-out in a dialogue with Free Aceh Movement [GAM] which was mediated by a neutral state,” he said. Giay regretted that during President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo’s 13 visits to Papua, the government was not serious about dialogue with Papuans. Even with Jokowi’s visits after visits, the Papuan people continue to suffer more and more on their land. “Should Papuans embrace Islam or become like Indonesians first then the Indonesian government wants to have a dialogue with Papuans?” Giay asked ironically. If so, he said, it only showed racism from the Indonesian government towards Papuans. “They [Indonesian government] could negotiate with GAM but not with Papuans? Why?” Giay wondered. Giay said sending security forces would not solve the problems in Papua. It will only make the Papuan people suffer even more and lead to their extinction. In a report titled “The Hunt for Gold: Wabu Block Mining Plans Risk Aggravating Human Rights Violations in Papua”, Amnesty International Indonesia has documented an alarming increase in security forces in Papua since 2019, from only two military posts to 17 military posts. Amnesty also noted that there were at least 12 cases of unlawful killings involving security forces, increasing restrictions on freedom of movement, as well as beatings and arrests that were often experienced by local Papuan people. Previously, Chairman of the Papuan Customary Council Mananwir Yan Pieter Yarangga said that the central government must have the courage to conduct peaceful dialogue with Papuans. Peaceful dialogue is important to resolve all the problems experienced by Indigenous Papuans. Yarangga said that the root of Papua’s problems could only be solved by peaceful dialogue involving all stakeholders and witnessed by all Indigenous Papuans living in Papua, Indonesia, or abroad. (*) VVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVVV Home Headlines Headlines, West Papua Does Indonesia have a healthy free press? Not according to West Papua Papuan Journalists Face Routine Threats Abuse And Censorship - News Desk 10 May 2022

A journalist working in West Papua in front of the Morning Star Flag — an international sign of the Free Papua Movement. Used via Wikipedia Commons license (CC BY-SA 3.0) For nearly 60 years, West Papua, a region in the easternmost stretches of the Indonesian arhipelago, has been engaged in one of the longest-running independence struggles of any region in the world against occupying Indonesia. Despite the longevity of the independence campaign, it has often escaped the notice of international outlets and Western audiences. This is in part because of the Jakarta government’s concerted — and largely successful – efforts to censor and control narratives from West Papua.

West Papua Image via Global Voices The island of New Guinea is divided into the independent state of Papua New Guinea on the eastern half and Indonesian-controlled Papua on the western side. Indonesia-controlled Papua has been further divided by the Indonesian government into Papua and West Papua. These are the provinces that have been fighting for independence for the last 60 years. Jakarta is considering further dividing the region into smaller provinces — against the wishes of scholars and indigenous communities in the region, who believe the move will decrease transparency and increase corruption in the region. Papua has been occupied by Indonesia since 1962 after the Indonesian military invaded and annexed the province, despite assurances by the former colonial Dutch government of sovereignty for the Papuan nation. Since then, Papuans have faced decades of brutal oppression punctuated by massacres, torture, censorship, and conflict between the Indonesian army and West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) that has left civilians as collateral. Some estimates suggest that over 500,000 Papuans have been killed by Indonesian military forces — though these are somewhat outdated estimates and the real toll is likely much higher. In addition to its alleged human rights abuses, Indonesia has an abysmal record regarding press freedom in Papua. Activists and media workers in the region are routinely silenced through censorship, internet throttling, physical attacks, torture, and even death. According to some international reports, since current President Joko (Jokowi) Widodo became president in 2014, this persecution has gotten worse. Harassment, violence, and threats Local journalists in particular face intense harassment and scrutiny from the Indonesian government. Journalists have been jailed, beaten, doxxed, and targetted for speaking out about the vast human rights violations in West Papua. According to a 2021 Alliance of Independent Journalists Indonesia (Aliansi Jurnalis Independen – AJI) report, there have been 114 cases of violence against Papuan journalists in the past 20 years. Human Rights Watch (HRW) detailed these instances it’s its 2015 report entitled “Something to hide?” The report revealed Papuan journalists routinely receive anonymous threats via text and voicemail, which they believe to be from Indonesian security forces. One local reporter told HRW: ” I cannot count how many SMS, email, or social media [threats] that I have received. The accusations are always that I am a foreign agent. The threat is often to kill me, or to attack my office. Or burn my office. That’s why I often change my cell phone numbers. I have lost count of how many times. Maybe 300 times? I always think [the harassers] want to disturb me mentally. I always delete their threats. I don’t want to be influenced by them. Other journalists, such as Duma Tato Sando, the managing editor at Chaya Papua, a daily newspaper in Manokwari, Papua told the group he is often pressured by security forces to not publish stories that mention human rights abuses. He said: ” For me, covering human rights abuses in Papua is not easy. In Manokwari, usually an intelligence officer will call and ask that the news story be “pending.” They like to say, “please do not publish it.” Sometimes they even ask me for background information, such as places, names, and times [of incidents of human rights abuses] because they do not know that their own men did the beating or the shooting. I have too many cases [of such harassment] to recall one-by-one. In another case just over one year ago, in April 2021, West Papuan journalist Victor Mambor’s car was vandalized in a clear act of targeted intimidation. At the time, the AJI said “these acts of terror and intimidation are clearly forms of violence against journalists, and threaten press freedom in Papua and more broadly in Indonesia.” Mambor is the founder of the Tabloid Jubi media outlet. He and his staff have faced numerous instances of harassment over the years, including physical, psychological, and digital attacks. The situation is even more dire for women who choose to pursue journalism in Papua, like in the case of Elfira last February, who received a rape threat in Jayapura District Court while reporting on court proceedings. Foreign media, NGOs, and humanitarian agencies have been largely denied access to West Papua, which has created challenges in holding the Indonesian government and security forces accountable. The Jakarta government has tightly controlled the flow of information from the region. And even when foreign watchdogs or media are able to enter the region, they can seldom do so without a government escort, and are liable to face deportation if they upset authorities. Some international journalists have managed to make unofficial visits to the region that were not pre-approved by the Indonesian government. Rohan Radheya, a Dutch freelance journalist interviewed by HRW said during his unofficial visits to Papua, he saw a pattern of daily “threats and intimidation” against Papuan journalists, adding, “They were good journalists, they have a good network, and some of the [Papuan journalists] I met, they have bullet holes, they have been stabbed by [Indonesian security] forces, and they continue to wake up in the morning and just go about and do their jobs.” To help combat this oppression, AJI’s Papua chapter launched Papua legal aid in December 2021, noting, “The number of cases of violence against journalists in Papua has made the results of the Press Independence Index assessment by the Press Council for the last 4 years place Papua as the region with the worst press freedom conditions in Indonesia.” The group aims to provide legal assistance to journalists in Papua who are victims of violence and intimidation. West Papuan censorship The information block in West Papua has drawn international condemnation and tarnished Indonesia’s reputation on the international stage.

The censorship is especially blatant during times of conflict or strife. Actors in the West Papuan Independence movement have occasionally succeeded in drawing national attention to their campaign, which often consists of acts of civil disobedience and protest. In 2019 tensions came to a head after a racist incident against Papuan students in Surabaya by Indonesian military forces. In response, protests broke out in Papua, which police forces violently stamped out, killing 10 Papuan citizens in the process. This act of violence sparked widespread protests across the archipelago nation. During this period, the Indonesian government throttled network connections in West Papua to stop information from flowing outward, which Jokowi said was for the “common good.” While Papuan media outlets struggled to share their stories during this time, reports emerged of human rights violations, oppression, military violence against civilians, and more. Indonesia’s free press landscape Even outside the press abuses in Papua, Indonesia’s media faces a challenging landscape. While Jokowi ran a presidential campaign promising to bolster Indoenisa’s free press, he has resoundingly failed on these promises since being elected in 2014. In 2020, Jakarta passed the Law on “Informasi dan Transaksi Elektronik” (Electronic and Information Transactions Law), which made it legal for the government to throttle internet services and arrest journalists for disrupting the peace and publishing “prohibited content.” The controversial law has drawn criticism from activists and human rights groups as many call it a major backstep for the largest democracy in the region. Human rights watchdog Protection International said, “the ITE Law is actively used to silence criticism and obstruct the work of human rights defenders,” noting that there was a sharp increase of attacks against human rights defenders in 2019 and 2020. The situation has only deteriorated as public attention was focused on the COVID-19 pandemic. According to RSF reporting, journalists are banned from publishing not only “false information related to the coronavirus but also any information hostile to the president or government even if it is unrelated to the pandemic.” According to Reporter’s Without Borders 2022 World Press Freedom Index, Indonesia ranked 117 out of 180 countries. BERITA JUBI PASIFIUK