UK groups monitoring BP's US$5 billion Tangguh liquefied natural gas project in West Papua have expressed dismay that the company entered into an important agreement for the security of the controversial project with an Indonesian official charged with crimes against humanity in East Timor.
Timbul Silaen was West Papua's chief of police at the time he signed the agreement in April 2004. He occupied the same position in East Timor when it was devastated by the Indonesian military and its militia proxies following the country's historic vote for independence in 1999.
Silaen was implicated in the East Timor violence and indicted by the UN-backed Serious Crimes Unit and Special Panels for Serious Crimes.
In common with hundreds of other Indonesia-based suspects, he failed to submit to the jurisdiction of the court, which prematurely ceased work last month.
The nature of Silaen's alleged crimes – against East Timorese independence supporters – is especially relevant to the context of West Papua, where support for indepenedence is equally strong.
The agreement he signed is a Letter of Joint Decree between BP and the Police in West Papua concerning 'guidelines for joint security measures within the work area of the Tangguh LNG project' [1]. The stated aim is 'to create and promote common views, conduct and actions to ensure that all security activities are performed with a high level of discipline and professionalism and in accordance with applicable law and human rights' [2]. The agreement was only recently made public following pressure from civil society groups.
TAPOL the Indonesia Human Rights Campaign, Down to Earth, the International Campaign for Ecological Justice in Indonesia and the Free West Papua Campaign have written to BP accusing it of endorsing impunity in dealing with Silaen, of paying lip service to the human rights of the Papuans, and of persistently refusing to acknowledge the wider human rights context, in West Papua and Indonesia, within which it is operating [3].
"It defies belief that BP saw fit to negotiate the human rights of the Papuans with a person accused of such grave crimes," said Paul Barber, a spokesman for the three groups.
"Although Silaen has now moved on, the company's willingness to deal with him casts considerable doubt on its commitment to corporate social responsibility in relation to the Tangguh project," he added.
The groups have called upon BP to explain its actions and to answer a number of questions about its relationship with the former police chief.
BP Tangguh claims to be committed to transparency, human rights and a community-based security strategy, which uses locally-recruited security guards, but many observers remain sceptical about its ability to resist intervention by the Indonesian security forces. The army in particular has a reputation for provoking unrest to justify its presence in conflict areas and in the vicinity of vital projects, such as Tangguh, which can provide it with a lucrative source of income in the form of security payments.
Background
The Tangguh Liquified Natural Gas (LNG) Project is located in the Berau-Bintuni Bay region of Teluk Bintuni Regency in West Papua. The project is operated by BP Indonesia, which holds a 37.16% stake in the project. The Tangguh gas fields contain 14.4 tcf of certified proved natural gas reserves. The Tangguh Project has recently won sales orders to China, Korea and the US, and markets are also being sought in Japan.
Production is currently scheduled to begin in 2008.
Ever since West Papua's annexation by Indonesia in the 1960s through the fraudulent 'Act of Free Choice', the Papuan people have been subjected to systematic political and military repression. Tens of thousands of have been killed in state-sponsored acts of terror aimed at those opposed to rule from Jakarta. The territory's abundant natural resources have been ruthlessly exploited. The Papuan people are calling for West Papua to be made a 'Land of Peace' and for peaceful dialogue with Indonesia.
Timbul Silaen is charged in East Timor with 'superior criminal responsibility' for acts or omissions undertaken as part of 'a widespread or systematic attack directed against the civilian population [of East Timor],...especially targeting those who were believed to be linked to or sympathetic to the independence cause in East Timor'. The specific offences alleged against him are the crimes against humanity of persecution, other inhumane acts, and deportation or forcible transfer of population [4].
Although he was acquited of crimes against humanity charges by Indonesia's ad hoc human rights court, the proceedings in that court are widely regarded as a sham. Consequently legal experts believe that Silaen is not protected by the principle of 'double jeopardy', which prohibits the prosecution of a person who has already been convicted or acquited of similar charges arising from the same conduct.