Port Vila – On Tuesday, 18 February, approximately 1300 non-Papuans traveled in convoy from Abepura to Jayapura in support of the recent presidential decree ordering the partition of Papua. Before leaving, the group gathered in front of the District Office in Abepura and, seeing an anti-partition crowd of about 100 Papuans, they began to heckle and abuse them. The Papuan crowd reciprocated and the two groups nearly came to blows in the shopping center.
It was obvious that this crowd was organized by the Indonesian military as it involved about 1000 motor cycles with pillion passengers, 2 buses, 5 trucks and 80 taxis.
During the demonstration, a youth was seen busily distributing 10,000 rupiahs to every person who joined the pro-partition group. Among the banners and signs in favour of partition were some which proclaimed the support of the people of the highlands.
The pro-partition demonstrators
When the demonstrators arrived at the Provincial Assembly building their leader, Orgenes Antoh, who is also a member of the Papua Council Presidium Panel, addressed the crowd in favour of partition. Before he could finish his speech, a woman in the crowd interjected. She called out "Everybody who supports partition must carry some of the responsibility for the death of Paramount Chief Theys Hiyo Eluay. Theys died fighting for the independence of Papua and not for its partition." The woman's words received were met with a tumultuous response from the anti-partition crowd which then began to chant : "Stop the partition; Scrap special autonomy; We want a referendum." Almost instantly, two members of the Provincial Assembly descended into the crowd of demonstrators and tried to defend the pro-partition case.
They were rebuffed, however, by the anti-partition demonstrators who were steadily increasing in number.
Eventually, the pro-partition crowd, which had mostly been bussed in from the non-Papuan transmigration center of Arso, were outnumbered by local Papuans. Several of the pro-partition demonstrators admitted to having been paid to demonstrate. One of the motor-cycle demonstrators admitted having been paid 50,000 rupiahs to join in the demonstration.
The leader of the pro-partition crowd, Orgenes Antoh, under heavy police guard, tried to read out a statement putting forth the pro-partition case. Before he could finish, Orgenes was interrupted by Ishak Tabuni, from the anti-partition group, who snatched Orgenems statement out of his hands, tore it up and shouted : "This statement has been drawn up by a group of people who claim to represent the Papuan People. Everybody who is demonstrating in favour of partition today has been paid." The atmosphere became more and more heated until finally both groups clashed. The police presence at the demonstration was quick to react and managed to regain control. The crowd then began to disperse.
One of the demonstrators, Binus Wakur, a native of Arso , claimed that he and his friends had come to pay respects to the family of a friend who had died that day but, meeting their friends Simon and Yulius, they were persuaded to join the demonstration at the Provincial Assembly which, they were told, was debating the economic development of the Arso district. "You should know", he said, "that most of the people who joined this demonstration didn't know anything about it. They were paid to take part. I, too, was very surprised because I was deceived by my friend, Simon. I was shocked and angry that they used us for their own ends. I'm telling you, now – when I go back to my village I will report this matter to the chief."