AWPA letter to Sen Bob Carr

Australia West Papua Association (Sydney)

PO Box 28, Spit Junction, Sydney, Australia 2088

Senator the Hon Bob Carr

Minister for Foreign Affairs

Parliament House, Canberra

ACT 2600

18 December 2012

Dear Senator Carr,

I am writing to you concerning the continuing crackdown on members of the West Papua National Committee (KNPB) by the Indonesian security forces.

Two members of the KNPB have been killed by the security forces in Wamena at the weekend. Hubertus Mabel and Natalis Alua were shot outside a house

in the village of Kurulu on Sunday and later died. Police have also arrested five other members of the KNPB.

The police claim they were arresting Hubertus Mabel because he was a suspect in the recent bombing of the Jayawijaya district legislative assembly office

and police station in Wamena. Police claim Hubertus was resisting arrest and they shot him when he tried to escape. He died from loss of blood in hospital.

There have been reports that the Australian trained Detachment 88 was involved in the security operation in which the KNPB members were killed and the five detained.

We are concerned that the situation could deteriorate further as the security forces seem to be sweeping the area looking for members of the KNPB. The

local population set fire to a small empty police station in Wamena in protest at the killings.

AWPA is concerned for the safety of those arrested as many reports have pointed out that the security forces use torture to intimidate or extract information from prisoners in West Papua.

In light of the dangerously deteriorating situation we urge you to use your good offices with the Indonesian Government to

call for the halt to any military operations in West Papua as a way of avoiding further escalation of the situation and avoiding further bloodshed.We also urge the Government

to hold an inquiry to see if any Australian trained members of Detachment 88 have been involved in security operations in West Papua.

We urge you to contact the Indonesian President asking that he guarantee the safety of those KNPB members detained and urging him to immediately release all those arrested unconditionally

Yours sincerely

Joe Collins

AWPA (Sydney)

ENDS

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