Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – The recent shooting incident in Sinak, Puncak regency, Papua, in which three police officers were killed, had no connection with President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo's plan to visit Papua at the end of the year, a religious leader has said.

Rangga Prakoso & Alin Almanar, Jakarta – Mining giant Freeport Indonesia has submitted its request to extend its permit for concentrate exports, set to expire on Jan. 28.

Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu surprised his Australian hosts – and his own colleagues – on Monday with a blunt warning against any attempts to support the Free Papua Movement (OPM) in the country's easternmost territory.

The Indonesian defence minister has warned other countries to respect his country's sovereignty over the troubled region of Papua, as meetings with Australian ministers ended in mutual agreement about the strength of the bilateral relationship.

Erin Cook, Jakarta – Defense Minister Ryamizard Ryacudu has used a "2 + 2" bilateral meeting in Australia as an opportunity to warn other countries to not become involved in the long-running Papua independence campaign and to respect the sovereignty of Indonesia.

Jakarta – Members of the House of Representatives have expressed support for immediately setting up a special inquiry to probe irregularities in mining company PT Freeport Indonesia following the controversy that prompted the resignation of Setya Novanto as House speaker.

Benny Mawel, Nduga – A scarcity of medical personnel in Indonesia's Papua province contributed to the mysterious deaths of 43 people, mostly children, in the Mbuwa area of Nduga district during October and November, activists claim.

Ayomi Amindoni – The government has been urged to immediately declare that the contract of work of miner Freeport Indonesia will not be extended when the current contract expires in 2021.

Energy think-tank Indonesia Resources Studies (IRESS) on Thursday called on the government to take control of the mine through a consortium of region- and state-owned enterprises.

Victor Mambor – Carrying banners and pamphlets "Expel Freeport, Save Papua", they demanded PT. Freeport Indonesia fulfill their obligations to the customary landowners in gold and copper mining areas, including the tenureship payment amounted to Rp 400 trillion.

Jakarta (UCA News/Pacific Media Watch) – A lack of trust between the Indonesian government and the people of Papua has jeopardised hopes for a lasting peace in the restive province, according to a prominent human rights activist.

Jakarta – The local theater company Teater Koma staged a politically charged performance of "Cahaya dari Papua" ("Light from Papua") at Galeri Indonesia Kaya last Saturday.

Nithin Coca – It is a region rich in natural resources, the biggest source of tax revenue for the fourth most populous country in the world and, under de-facto military rule – it is also a place where activists are jailed, tortured, disappeared and assassinated.

Papua New Guinea's deputy chief migration officer says processes are underway to grant citizenship to about 3,000 West Papuan refugees.

Esther Gaegamin says there are about 3,000 West Papuan refugees in camps in the Western Province, near the Indonesian border, that have been registered with the government.

Greenpeace says the impact of rampant forest and peatland fires in Indonesia's Papua region is having a devastating effect on West Papuan society.

Fires from land clearance on drained peatland have caused rampant fires across the republic including in Papua, catapulting Indonesia to being one of the world's largest emitter's of greenhouse gasses.

Victor Mambor, Jayapura, Jubi – Based on research conducted by the Institute for Women and Children in Papua (LP3AP), excessive alcohol is one of the main drivers of the rise in domestic violence in Papua.

Many cases are reported and handled by LP3AP as an advocacy organization for women and children. The majority of domestic violence cases that occur is due to alcohol.

Katharina R. Lestari, Jakarta – Human rights groups have accused the Indonesian government of dragging its feet in an investigation into the year-old killings of four students in Papua province's Paniai district.

On the first anniversary of the violent deaths of four West Papuans in Paniai, Indonesia's government has been urged to ensure the perpetrators are brought to justice.

Jakarta – When President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo visited Papua in December 2014, he led a ground-breaking ceremony to kick of the development of a market named Pasar Mama Mama Papua (Papuan Mamas' Market), but no progress has been made on its construction nearly one year after the ceremony, except the stone laid by the President.

Jakarta – Energy and Mineral Resources Minister Sudirman Said has been advised to revoke a letter to Freeport McMoRan Inc. board chairman James R. Moffet, which was considered to have given a guarantee that the Indonesian government would extend a contract with PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI) to manage its gold mining site in Papua.

Ryan Dagur, Jakarta – Indonesian rights activists said the brutal response of police toward protesting Papuan students has incited hatred and could further strengthen the resolve among Papuans to demand independence.

Victor Mambor, Jayapura, Jubi – Three witnesses from Tolikara presented by the Public Prosecutor in the trial over the Tolikara incident held at Jayapura District Court were praised by two defendants and their attorney after they testifed that they did not see Jundi Wandikbo and Arianto Kogoya at the scene, contrary to prosecutors' charges.

Ayomi Amindoni, Jakarta – Investment to the country's easternmost province is increasing at a rapid pace, as Papua's provincial government expects both domestic and foreign direct investment (FDI) to grow stronger in 2016.

Wilda Asmarini, Jakarta – Freeport McMoRan must propose a price for a 10.64 percent stake it is required to divest from its Indonesian subsidiary on or by January 12, a mining ministry official said, amid a parliament probe centering around the stake.

Jakarta – President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has criticized ministries for a lack of cooperation in implementing development in the easternmost region, accusing them of only focusing on their respective sectors.

The President stressed that development in the region should consider the aspirations of the Papuans.

Below is the text of a letter faxed to Hon Murray McCully today. West Papua Action is urging him to speak about the gross human rights abuses that took place two days ago in West Papua. Mr McCully is also urged to take the initiative to pursue the proposal of a fact-finding mission to the territory as put forward at the recent Summit of the Pacific Islands Forum.

Victor Mambor, Jayapura, Jubi/Asia New Zealand Foundation – Assisted by an Asia New Zealand Foundation media travel grant, Mauri Television's Native Affairs producer and cameraman Adrian Stevanon and freelance photojournalist Karen Abplanalp travelled to West Papua, Indonesia in August. They were the first New Zealand television crew to visit the province in 50 years.

Victor Mambor, Semarang, Jubi – Dozens of Papuan students activists were arrested during a street rally in Jakarta to commemorate the political manifesto day that is regarded by many Papuans as their national day.

Victor Mambor, Jayapura, Jubi – Nabire Police arrested about 20 people who were preparing for a prayer gathering to commemorate the West Papua Anniversary.

A Nabire activist Gunawan Inggeruhi said they were arrested at 10:30 AM local time while gathering at Bunga Bangsa Park, Oyehee, Nabire.

Victor Mambor, Jayapura, Jubi – Former political prisoner Filep Jacob Samuel Karma said he was concerned about the current situation facing indigenous Papuans.

He said currently discrimination is not only being practiced by non-Papuans to Papuans or vice versa, but also among Papuans. He described the situation as a time bomb that is ready to explode at anytime.

Victor Mambor, Jayapura, Jubi – A lawyer for four activists of West Papua National Committee (KNPB) in Manokwari region, said the jail sentence of 1 year 6 months for them was too harsh because they simply expressed different views.

Jakarta – The Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH Jakarta) has criticized police in the capital over the detention of several hundred Papuan students calling for independence at a rally in the city center on Tuesday.

Donny Andhika Mononimbar, Jakarta – Two foreign journalists have reportedly become victims of police violence and intimidation in Jakarta on Tuesday while covering a rally by Papuan students.

Reports from Indonesia's Papua region indicate up to four people have been shot by police and military as the security forces cracked down on people marking West Papuan Flag Day.

Jakarta – Two Papuan students were named suspects in attacks against a police officer during a violent demonstration in Jakarta on Tuesday.

Jakarta – Police fired tear gas at a hundreds-strong crowd hurling rocks on Tuesday (Dec 1) during a protest in Jakarta against Indonesian rule over the eastern region of Papua, with a lawyer saying that over 100 demonstrators had been detained.

Vanuatu chiefs and church groups have led a march through the Vanuatu capital Port Vila to mark West Papua Day.

They are among supporters of West Papuan self-determination who have been holding ceremonies today (Tuesday) within and outside Indonesia's Papua region.

Fifteen-year-old Adina curls up in bed under a sheet, her body ravaged by AIDS, one of many caught up in an epidemic sweeping Indonesia's eastern Papua region.

The teen, who only gave her first name, contracted HIV from an infected boyfriend and is one of 10 AIDS patients receiving free care at a hostel run by Agustinus Adil, a Catholic brother.

Yogyakarta – Coinciding with the anniversary of the Free Papua Movement (OPM), some 29 mass organisations (ormas) in the Central Java city of Yogyakarta declared the formation of the Jogya Anti-Separatist Front (Front Jogja Anti Separatis, FJAS) on the grounds of the Yogyakarta Regional House of Representatives (DPRD DIY).

Jakarta – On Tuesday December 1 police blocked protesters from the Papua Student Alliance (AMP) who had come from throughout Java and Bali to demonstrate at the Hotel Indonesia (HI) traffic circle in Central Jakarta.

Luqman Rimadi, Jakarta – Police have broken up a rally by the Papuan Student Alliance (AMP) who were protesting at the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle in Central Jakarta on December 1. As a result, a clash broke out between the protesters and police.

Jakarta – The Jakarta Legal Aid Foundation (LBH Jakarta) has condemned the forced disbursing and arrest of protesters from the Papuan Student Alliance (AMP) by Metro Jaya police in Jakarta on December 1.

The AMP protest action was held in the context of expressing the identity of the Papuan people that is celebrated every year on December 1.

Auckland (Pacific Media Watch) – A group of postgraduate students and staff today raised the West Papuan flag on campus at Auckland University of Technology in solidarity for Papuan self-determination.

The Morning Star flag-raising at the Pacific Media Centre was held to mark the day the banner was first flown 54 years ago – 1 December 1961.

A flag raising event in support of the West Papuan symbol, the Morning Star, has been held on the steps of New Zealand's parliament.

It's one of a number of annual West Papua Flag Day ceremonies in New Zealand, in Indonesia's Papua region and elsewhere abroad.

A collective of Maori and Pacific women in South Auckland will today raise the Morning Star flag in a show of solidarity for freedom in West Papua.

The flag is a potent symbol for the Free Papua Movement and was first raised on the 1st of December in 1961 but was later banned by Jakarta after it assumed control of the former Dutch province.

Johnny Blades – The West Papuan independence campaigner Filep Karma has questioned the veracity of the process around his early release from prison last month.

Mr Karma, who was released after spending eleven years in prison for raising the banned Papuan Morning Star Flag, has promised to continue his peaceful campaign for West Papua independence.

Jakarta – The Indonesian Miliary has confirmed that an armed Papuan civilian group known as Cosmas Makabori was responsible for the shooting death of a military officer in Namuni Kampong, Papua, on Monday.

The Australia West Papua Association congratulates the West Papuan people on the 54th anniversary of their National Day or National flag day. It is now fifty-four years since the Morning Star flag was flown officially for the first time on the 1st of December in 1961. We are all aware how much the West Papuan people have suffered under Indonesian rule.

James Burke – Dutch journalist and filmmaker Rohan Radheya spent five months undercover to document West Papua's ongoing struggle for independence from Indonesia's brutal rule.

Randy Fabi & Agustinus Beo Da Costa, Jakarta – Prominent Papua activist Filep Karma, released this month after more than a decade behind bars, promised on Monday to reinvigorate the independence movement against Indonesia and was prepared to go back to prison if necessary.

Victor Mambor, Jayapura, Jubi – "In Papua, not only the freedom of expression is restricted, but the freedom of worship as well," Director of Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH Jakarta), Alghiffari Aqsa told Jubi on Sunday (29/11/2015).