The West Papua Advocacy Team (WPAT) strongly condemns ongoing Indonesian security force violence targeting peaceful West Papuan demonstrators. That police orchestrated violence, which has led to at least one civilian death and many injuries, comes on the eve of annual Papuan celebration of the Papuan national flag, December 1.

Jayapura – A member of the Indonesian Military (TNI) assigned as a non-commissioned officer serving as Community Affairs (Babinsa) personnel in Wurak village, Puncak Jaya, Papua, was shot by an unidentified person on Thursday.

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – National Police chief Gen. Sutarman emphasized he would take firm action against protesters who resort to "anarchy", including those involved in a West Papua National Committee (KNPB) rally in Jayapura recently, which turned violent and left nine people injured.

"The Bintang Kejora flag raising ceremony on Dec. 1 is forbidden and those involved will be dealt with seriously" – National Police chief Gen. Sutarman who is visiting West Papua this week

Index: ASA 21/039/2013

Amnesty International is concerned about allegations that police ill-treated protesters involved in a pro-independence protest in Papua as well as intimidated journalists who were covering it.

Jayapura, Papua – The National Police Chief General Sutarman has stated that the country's police will take stern measures against those wanting to separate Papua from Indonesia.

"We will take firm action against groups or individuals wanting to separate Papua from Indonesia because Papua is part of Indonesia," Sutarman told the press.

WPM apologises for the delay in posting due to the remote location of the WPM team, and the delays in finding independent witnesses to help in cross-checking of this extreme situation. This situation is developing and will be updated as more information comes to hand.

Key developments:

The Australia West Papua Association in Sydney congratulates Powes Parkop, the Governor of Port Moresby and the National Capital District on receiving the John Rumbiak Human Rights Defenders Award for 2013.

Dozens of West Papuan activists are reported to have been arrested by a combined police and military deployment in the Indonesia province of Papua on Tuesday.

The National Committee for West Papua, or KNPB, reports 31 Papuans were arrested while staging a peaceful protest in Timika, calling for the right to self-determination of West Papuans.

The West Papua National Committee, or KNPB, says 16 of its members have been arrested for handing out leaflets, but the Indonesian police deny the report.

The group says its members were distributing leaflets on Monday, with details about meetings in Port Moresby and encouraging foreign ministers of the Melanesian Spearhead Group to visit Jakarta and Papua.

Arnold Belau, Papuan, Jayapura – As many as 16 members of the West Papua National Committee (KNPB) were arrested earlier this afternoon by the Jayapura municipal police (polresta) when they were handing out leaflets about a planned demonstration to take place throughout the land of Papua tomorrow.

A former Chief Editor of the Jakarta Post says restrictions on foreign media visiting the Indonesian provinces of Papua and West Papua should be lifted.

Police in Papua arrested six men after a police station went up in flames in Mamberamo Raya early Friday morning.

The wooden police station was set on fire at 3 a.m. Friday, according to reports by the state-run Antara News Agency. It is unclear why the station was torched, or who was behind the attack, the report read.

Journalists in Indonesia have called on the Government to clarify rules for journalists wanting to visit the provinces of Papua and West Papua.

While the Governor of Papua this year said the region's doors were open, many foreign journalists report a different story. Karen Abplanalp spoke to journalists and members of parliament in Indonesia.

Katharine Murphy – Officials from the Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade have now confirmed consular staff in Bali threatened to call the police if a group of West Papuan activists did not leave the Australian compound.

Ricky Binihi, Port Vila, Vanuatu – Vanuatu Prime Minister Moana Carcasses is relentless in his efforts to bring the alleged sufferings and atrocities of fellow Melanesians in West Papua into the international limelight so their plight could be heard.

Marni Cordell – Amid the fallout from the presidential phone-tapping scandal, an Indonesian human rights defender has spoken out about the Indonesian state's oppressive surveillance regime against its own citizens in the province of West Papua.

The President of the Alliance of Independent Journalists of Indonesia says his government should clarify the rules for foreign journalists seeking to visit West Papua.

Eko Maryadi, who was imprisoned as a journalist during the days of the Suharto regime, says even at the recent Bali Democracy Forum there was no talk of the remote provinces.

Jakarta – The Awaking Papua Forum (Forum Papua Bangkit) said it suspects corruption was the cause of the long delay in the construction of a Trans Irian highway linking the southern and north ends of the country's most underdeveloped region.

An Indonesian parliamentarian, Eva Sundari, says there should be no restriction for foreign journalists wanting to go to Papua.

Michael Field – A 23-strong delegation of politicians from Indonesia-controlled Papua is heading to New Zealand amidst controversy that they're on a junket with little perceived benefit.

The Jakarta Globe said the delegation had only one appointment in its five-day trip to New Zealand – to visit the son of the delegation leader in Palmerston North.

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – Two members of the West Papua Provincial Legislative Council (DPRD) and the director of a provincial business appeared at the Jayapura Corruption Court on Wednesday as their trials began concerning a Rp 22 billion (US$1.89 million) graft case.

Banjir Ambarita & Robert Isidorus, Jayapura – The entire membership of the Papua provincial legislature, including a corruption convict and other officials accused of embezzling social aid funds, has left or is preparing to leave on costly overseas trips with little perceived benefit to the people of one of Indonesia's least developed regions.

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – Dozens of Cendrawasih University students staged a mass rally to protest the Papua autonomy plus draft currently being considered by the provincial administration. The students argued that the draft didn't take into account the interests of the people.

Gloria Bauai – The Free West Papua campaign PNG chapter office was launched yesterday by international campaigner Benny Wenda.

This entity based in Port Moresby will coordinate and centralise the awareness and advocacy efforts in Papua New Guinea on the West Papuan issue.

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – Hundreds of students from various universities in Jayapura, Papua, continued protesting against the Papua administration bill, also known as the special autonomy plus bill, which is still in draft form and will soon be submitted to an assistance team at the Home Ministry in Jakarta.

Olivia Rondonuwu – High in the snow-capped mountains, the sight of tribesmen roaming in loincloths contrasts sharply with that of miners using hi-tech machinery to extract gold and copper ore at a huge US-owned facility in remote Papua province.

Thousands of Papuan university and high school students led demonstrations in Jayapura on November 4, firmly rejecting attempts by Jakarta to impose the revived "new, improved" version of the failed Special Autonomy package, named "Otsus Plus".

Banjir Ambarita – An alleged member of the Free Papua Movement (OPM), an outlawed militant separatist organization, was shot dead by soldiers in Papua's Puncak Jaya province on Monday morning.

"One member of the armed group was shot and a firearm was confiscated," Maj. Gen. Christian Zebua, the top Indonesian military (TNI) officer in Papua, told the Jakarta Globe.

West Papuan independence leader Mr. Benny Wenda is presently in Papua New Guinea (PNG). Throughout the month of November (2013) Mr. Wenda, other PNG-based advocates for West Papuan independence and concerned Papua New Guineans will initiate a series of activities.

Oktovianus Pogau, Papuan, Jakarta – On Monday afternoon scores of youth and students from the Papua Student Alliance (AMP) held a peaceful demonstration at the House of Representatives (DPR) building to declare their opposition to the creation of 33 new operational areas (DOB, new administrative areas) in Papua.

Cunding Levi, Jayapura – Thousands of Papuan students marched to protest against the Draft Bill on Special Autonomy Plus. The protesters marched for 30 kilometers from Abepura to Jayapura, carrying banners and shouting "Special Autonomy Plus bring no change to Papuans."

While they are keenly awaiting the decision on their membership of the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG), West Papua activists are travelling the Pacific lobbying countries to support their bid.

Jakarta – The National Family Planning and Population Board (BKKBN) has said the maternal mortality rate in Papua Province remains high.

Deborah Snow – Two recent accounts by former Australian defence force personnel who worked in the Indonesian province of Irian Jaya (now West Papua) in 1977 suggests there was ADF knowledge at that time of alleged atrocities committed by Indonesian troops.

Nethy Dharma Somba and Panca Nugraha, Jayapura/Mataram – The governor of Papua, Lukas Enembe, has strongly rejected the plan to split the province, as the planned creation of a south Papua province and a central Papua province did not follow the proper procedures.

Banjir Ambarita, Jayapura – A report from the Supreme Audit Agency from July 6 shows that a presidential adviser and several Papuan legislators received hundreds of millions of rupiah last under the guise of social aid from the from the budget of one of the least developed provinces in the country.

Thea Cowie & Sacha Payne – A report claims Australia provided Indonesia with helicopters which were used to carry out 'genocidal' attacks in West Papua in the late 1970s.

Kate Lamb – Allegations of genocide, rape and napalm bombs dropped on the restive province of West Papua in the late 1970s are likely to be 'stonewalled' by the Indonesian government, analysts say.

Dessy Sagita & Rizki Amelia – Indonesia is responsible for a genocidal military operation carried out in Papua between 1977-1978, which killed more than 4,000 indigenous Papuans, including women and children, the Hong Kong-based Asian Human Rights Commission and Human Rights and Peace for Papua said in a statement released Thursday.

Cathy Harper – An extensive new report has been released, containing graphic detail of the alleged murder, rape and torture of more than 4,000 Papuans by Indonesian military in the late 1970s.

Oliver Milman – Helicopters supplied by Australia were used by Indonesia in a "genocidal" crackdown on civilians in West Papua in the 1970s, a new report has claimed.

Jenny Denton – Research into one of the most violent episodes in the history of West Papua claims that helicopters provided to Indonesia by the Australian government were used in military operations in the 1970s that amounted to genocide.

Marni Cordell – Experts in refugee law have warned that Australia cannot pass off to Papua New Guinea its responsibility to process the claims of seven West Papuan asylum seekers.

Daniel Drageset – A petition to revoke the ban on media reporting from West Papua has been initiated by press freedom groups.

Karen Barlow and staff – The Australian Department of Defence has rejected claims that Australian-supplied helicopters were used by Indonesia's military to kill Papuan civilians in the late 1970s.

AHRC-PRL-017-2013

Banjir Ambarita, Jayapura – Security officials at Freeport Indonesia's massive Grasberg Mine have detained nine foreign nationals who said they were mountain climbers, according to a source within the company.

Early reports received from West Papua Media stringers have described another serious and violent crackdown across West Papua on October 19 by Indonesian security forces, against peaceful gatherings commemorating the third anniversary of the brutal crackdown on the Third Papuan Congress in October 2011.

Jenny Denton, Melbourne – Swedish pension fund authorities have followed the lead of counterparts in Norway and New Zealand in divesting all holdings in the American company Freeport McMoRan, which operates the world's biggest copper and gold mine in the contested province of Papua, in Indonesia.