Banjir Ambarita – At least three people were killed in an ambush on Friday near the Freeport-McMoRan Grasberg mine in the Mimika district of Papua, police said.
"Three Freeport workers died instantly from gunshot wounds," Papua police spokesman Sr. Comr. Wachyono said. "The [Mitsubishi] L300 that the victims were in was also set on fire."
Police are still identifying the deceased, Wachyono said, but one man was shot near the neck, a second man's skull shattered, and the third man was still being evacuated from a river. The incident, Wachyono said, occurred at 3:45 p.m. local time.
A military officer and a Freeport security guard were also shot while they tried to evacuate the victims. Both sustained wounds to the left arm, and the security guard was also hit on his left thigh. "The perpetrator is still under pursuit," Wachyono said. "We could not identify [the shooter] yet."
Witnesses said that among those killed in the ambush was Nasep Risza Rahman, who worked for one of Freeport's subcontractors Puri Fajar Mandiri. Nasep was found dead inside the burning car.
Maj. Gen. Erfi Triassunu, head of the Cendrawasih Military Command, which oversees Papua operations, confirmed that the incident occurred. "Right now we are investigating it," Erfi said, declining to elaborate.
The ambush marks the second attack on Freeport employees this year. In April, two workers died when their vehicle was shot and set on fire. The perpetrator was never caught.
Friday's ambush came just days after a demonstration of striking Freeport workers took a violent turn. The workers, who have been on strike for exactly one month today, were demanding a substantial pay raise. When a clash erupted between protesters and the police, a civilian and a police officer were killed.
Violence has increased in Papua in recent years. There has been a low-level insurgency from separatist groups since 1969 when Indonesia annexed the resource-rich province. Mimika is also home to supporters of armed rebel leader Kelly Kwalik, who was killed by police in 2009.