Markus Makur, Timika – The police have arrested 18 individuals for allegedly hoisting the separatist Bintang Kejora (Morning Star) flag Tuesday in Mimika Baru district, Mimika regency, an act which carries a maximum penalty of death under the articles of sedition.

The flag was hoisted around 3:30 a.m. local time (1:30 a.m. Jakarta time) in front of the Timika office of the Papua Customary Council, said Mimika police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Godhelp C. Mansnembra.

During the ceremony, around 60 villagers surrounded the pole in a symbolic gesture of Papuan resistance to and disappointment at the central government, the police said.

"Police officers reached Kwamki Baru village some 30 minutes after the flag was raised," Godhelp told reporters. "We have arrested and questioned 18 people in the case."

The police learned of the flag hoisting through a tip provided by Timika residents, he said. "We have investigated the reports and extended our patrols in the Kwamki Baru area to about 3 a.m."

A flag, a pole, some bows and arrows and an air rifle were confiscated from the hoisting site, Godhelp said. The flag was made in Indonesia, unlike those in previous incidents, which were manufactured in the Netherlands, he added.

On Sept. 17, a separatist flag was hoisted in Kwamki Lama subdistrict, with the police unable to locate anyone involved.

The suspects in Tuesday's flag-hoisting will be charged under the articles of sedition as well as the emergency law.

"When we learn the identity of the leader behind all this, we will make his name public," Godhelp said, adding the motive behind the act was a desire for independence.

"It was sedition against the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia and an expression of disappointment," he said.

Over the past year, police have received reports of similar incidents occurring throughout Mimika regency, Godhelp added.

"There is no reason for separatists to be disappointed. The government has enacted policies to help with development in Papua, including large funds and block grants through state and regional budgets."

When asked whether the flag-hoisting incident was meant to distract police from their investigation into a series of blasts in the PT Freeport Indonesia concession area, Godhelp said the police had anticipated such a move.

Separatists and civil liberties activists, including former president Abdurrahman Wahid, have urged the government not to criminalize the hoisting of such flags, saying they are merely a form of cultural expression.

The government banned the display of separatist symbols and flags in 2007 through government regulation no. 77/2007 on the use of regional symbols.