Markus Junianto Sihaloho – Security officials in Papua have claimed that a clash on Friday between a police unit and members of the Free Papua Movement, or OPM, in Tingginambut, Puncak Jaya district, confirmed the continued presence of armed separatists in the province.
Papua Police Chief Insp. Gen. Bagus Ekodanto said on Sunday that his officers were investigating the incident.
However, Bagus said he was certain that armed separatists were still a threat in Papua, though police do not require military assistance "at this stage."
"It is about a little group of people that do not want to be called separatists, but they attack police and show us that armed separatists still exist in Papua," Bagus said.
As reported by state-run Antara news agency, one of the suspected OPM members, identified as Yendenak Wonda, was shot during the skirmish and later treated at Mulia General Hospital in Puncak Jaya.
"When Wonda was shot, the others ran away," Bagus said. "It was the police who were trying to burn local villagers" houses and the OPM members came to stop them from doing it Ferry Marisan, Elsham
He said the incident started two weeks ago when OPM members allegedly attacked the Tingginambut Police station, wounding Irana Helen, 21, a police officer's wife.
The attackers also took four police guns, Bagus said. "One of [the attackers] was recognized as Yendenak Wonda," he said. He said the OPM members involved in Friday's skirmish had been identified as belonging to a group led by Goliath Tabuni.
Goliath, the alleged leader of the OPM in the area, is believed to have been involved in the killing in October 2004 of several Indonesian soldiers and civilians who were traveling on the road between Wamena and Mulia.
The OPM is considered to be a low-level separatist group involved in fighting for an independent state in Papua.
The harsh approach taken by security forces in dealing with separatism has given rise to allegations of widespread human rights violations in the province.
Ferry Marisan, from the Institute for the Study and Advocacy of Human Rights, or Elsham, in West Papua Province, on Sunday urged police to complete their investigation before claiming that separatists were threatening local communities.
He said that police had never provided evidence that Goliath's group was responsible for the attack on the police. "I say that none of Goliath's men were in the village. The police only found normal villagers," Ferry said.
"It was the police who were trying to burn local villagers' houses and OPM members came to stop them from doing it." Ferry said that the police should not describe OPM members as dangerous armed separatists because they rarely used firearms, instead carrying bows and arrows.