Jakarta – Government claimed that they had pocketed identities of foreign intelligence agents who carried out their mission in Papua. Spokesman of Minister of Defense, Maj. Gen. Hartind Asrin said government kept monitoring activities the foreign intelligence agents.

Indonesia says allegations about a mass killing in Papua province by an Indonesian counter terrorist unit are "blatant lies".

Indonesia says allegations in an ABC story last week about a mass killing in Papua province by an Indonesian counter terrorist unit are "blatant lies".

Oktovianus Pogau, SuaraPapua.com, Papua, Manokwari – The latest development concerning the diplomatic struggle in West Papua is the submission of a proposal by Papua to be accepted as a member of the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG). The group will hold a conference in Noumea, New Caledonia in June 2013. This step is in accordance with the international mechanisms of the UN.

Credible and disturbing reports are continuing to emerge from Tingginambut, Puncak Jaya, in the West Papuan highlands, detailing evidence of another violent rampage by the Indonesian army special forces (Kopassus) against civilians throughout May, allegedly by Kopassus officers stationed in the district which has been suffering war conditions since February.

Jamie Small – West Papua may become a crucial issue for the Pacific if the Melanesian Spearhead Group next month decides to offer observer status to the Indonesian-ruled region at its leaders' summit next month.

The MSG leaders will be gathering in Noumea, New Caledonia, for the organisation's 25th jubilee and many serious matters will be on the table.

Peter Lloyd – An elite counter-terrorist police unit in Indonesia has been accused of carrying out a mass killing in a village in the disputed Papua province.

Banjir Ambarita, Jayapura – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has promised to free all Papuan political prisoners, a legislator claimed here on Wednesday.

The prisoners will reportedly be offered clemency as part of the priority points under the government's "special autonomy plus" program.

A day after rescuers pulled the last body from the rubble of a recent mine collapse that killed 28 workers, Freeport has turned its attention to a review of safety measures at its underground operations, Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold chief Richard Adkerson said.

Yuliasri Perdani, Jakarta – Adj. First Insp. Labora Sitorus, a Papua Police officer accused of owning fat bank accounts, has said he wired money for "charity-related programs" to several of his superiors.

Margareth S. Aritonang and Yuliasri Perdani, Jakarta – Antigraft and police watchdogs suspect that the sudden arrest by the National Police of Papua policeman Adj. First Insp. Labora Sitorus was part of plot to protect higher ranking officers who could be dragged into the mire of a major graft case.

[Comments On the US Department of State's Annual Country Report On Human Rights for 2012 Concerning Indonesia/West Papua: http://www.state.gov/j/drl/rls/hrrpt/humanrightsreport/index.htm?year=2012&dlid=204203.]

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – Attempts at PT Freeport Indonesia (PTFI) to rescue workers trapped in a tunnel in the Big Gossan training facility in Mimika regency, Papua, have been hampered by the confined and restricted space within the tunnel.

A police emergency response unit found four bodies and rescued 10 workers trapped in a collapsed tunnel in Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold's Grasberg complex in Tembagapura, Papua, on Wednesday.

Ezra Sihite – Military chief of staff Agus Suhartono has sought to downplay Papuan separatist Benny Wenda's activities overseas, saying he is not worried because the firebrand activist is getting little support from Papuans at home.

AWPA has written to the Indonesian President calling for the release of those arrested in West Papua on 13 May.

Dear President Yudhoyono,

I am writing to you concerning the arrest of four West Papuans on the 13 May at a peaceful rally in Jayapura.

Markus Junianto Sihaloho – Marzuki Alie, the speaker of the House of Representatives, has urged the Foreign Ministry to take a stronger stand against domestic separatist groups operating overseas, arguing that the country's reputation and sovereignty are at stake.

Jayapura – The Jayapura City Police detained West Papua National Committee (KNPB) leader Viktor Weimo during a rally in Jayapura on Monday.

Michael Bachelard – West Papuan independence movement leader Victor Yeimo was detained and allegedly beaten by police on Monday as another prominent Indonesian national politician warned Western countries against supporting separatists in the troubled province.

Indonesian police in Jayapura have this morning violently dispersed a pro-independence rally being held by the West Papua National Committee (KNPB), arresting its leader Victor Yeimo, media worker Marthen Manggaprouw and two KNPB activists, according to early reports.

Senator The Honorary Bob Carr
Minister for Foreign Affairs
Senate
Parliament House
Canberra

RE: the deadly shooting in Papua, Indonesia

Dear Senator,

Jakarta – Australian academics and researchers have raised concerns, in a letter sent to Australian Foreign Minister Bob Carr, about a recent fatal shooting in Sorong, Papua.

Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura – A Papuan, allegedly under the influence of alcohol, was killed after a soldier in Wamena, Papua, opened fire to defend himself after being chased by a group of allegedly drunk local residents, according to a military spokesman.

Anton Kogoya, 27, was killed on Saturday evening at 10:43 p.m. local time (8:43 p.m. Jakarta time).

Michael Bachelard – West Papua marked its 50-year anniversary under Indonesian rule last week and three events amply reminded us why it is a festering sore within the country and a serious inhibitor of good relations between Indonesia and the rest of the world.

Jayapura – Amnesty International has urged Indonesia to probe the deaths of three Papua independence activists who were gunned down as they protested 50 years of Jakarta's control over the restive region.

Jamie Small – A prominent West Papuan journalist and activist has visited New Zealand to gather support for West Papua's inclusion in the Melanesian Spearhead Group (MSG) while an Indonesian government crackdown was killing and arresting Papuan demonstrators.

Index: ASA 21/013/2013

Jakarta – West Papua Students in the Australian Capital Territory (ACT) and Forum SeTARA criticized the killing of Papuans marking the 50th anniversary of the transfer of West New Guinea (now Papua)'s administration from the United Nations Temporary Executive Authority (UNTEA) to Indonesia on May 1, 1963.

Ezra Sihite & Carlos Paath – Noises of fury over the launching of a Free West Papua Campaign office in Britain continued to emerge from the Indonesian government on Tuesday, although one lawmaker was more philosophical.

Bagus BT Saragih and Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – Foreign Minister Marty Natalegawa summoned British Ambassador to Indonesia Mark Canning on Monday and filed a diplomatic protest against the British government over the recent opening of a Free West Papua (OPM) office in Oxford.

Indonesia on Monday summoned the British ambassador in Jakarta to protest after a group supporting the independence of the restive Papua region set up its headquarters in England, the envoy said.

Margareth S. Aritonang, Jakarta – The House of Representatives urged the government to officially ask the United Kingdom to not interfere with affairs in Papua, Indonesia's easternmost province.

Damien Kingsbury – Violence has again broken out in Indonesia's troubled province of West Papua, with the Australian-supported counter-terrorism police squad Densus 88 leading the attack.

Police in Papua have defended the fatal shooting of two pro-Papuan independence activists on Wednesday, saying that the pair tried to assault police officers as hundreds protested on the 50th anniversary of Indonesia's annexation of Papua.

"The shooting was according to procedure," Papua Police spokesman Sr. Comr. I Gede Sumerta Jaya said on Saturday.

Ina Parlina, Jakarta – British Ambassador to Indonesia Mark Canning said on Saturday that the UK government did not support the activities of the separatist Free Papua Movement (OPM), which claimed to have opened an office in Oxford, England.

Margareth S. Aritonang and Nethy Dharma Somba, Jayapura/Jakarta – UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay has visited Indonesia and has raised concerns over the "ongoing suppression of freedom of expression and excessive use of force in Papua."

The East Timor and Indonesia Action Network (ETAN) and West Papua Advocacy Team (WPAT) strongly urge the US government to condemn the unwarranted assault by Indonesian government security forces on peaceful May 1 demonstrations in West Papua.

SP/Anastasia Winanti Riesardhy – Activists slammed the Indonesian government for weak statesmanship after a Papuan separatist group opened an office in Oxford, England.

Michael Bachelard – Johanes Lokobal sits on the grass that cushions the wooden floor of his little, one-room house. He warms his hands at a fire set in the centre. From time to time a pig, out of sight in an annex, squeals and slams itself thunderously against the adjoining wall.

Hundreds of workers at Freeport-McMoRan's Indonesian mine returned to work on Friday after a three-day strike over pay, the US firm said, ending the latest bout of industrial action to hit the operation.

The UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Navi Pillay, has expressed serious concerns over the crackdown on mass demonstrations across Papua since Tuesday, which reportedly includes arrests and the excessive use of force by police officers.

Jakarta – The latest violence carried out by the security forces in Papua and West Papua provinces on April 30 and May 1, 2013, have been met with a strong response from the United Nations.

Among other things, the UN has asked Indonesia to allow international journalists to enter the country's easternmost province.

AWPA is urging the Foreign Minister to raise the matter of the deaths of the demonstrators and the crackdown on the peaceful rallies by the security forces with the Indonesian Government. We are also urging him to call for the release of all those arrested simply for taking part in rally which is their democratic right.

Jayapura – While people all over the world commemorated May 1 as a day for workers, residents in Papua celebrated on Wednesday the integration of Papua province into Indonesia.

Alex Rayfield – For many people around the world the first day in May is a time a celebration, a day to remember how ordinary people won the right to the eight hour working day. But in West Papua May Day is a day of national mourning.

Biak – The Indonesian Military (TNI) is inviting native Papuan high school graduates to enlist as cadets in the military.

Enrollment officer Navy Col. Yuddy Subiantoro said that 29 positions in the new intake had been earmarked this year for Papuan high school graduates for selection and training as cadets for the Army, Navy and Air Force.

Indonesian police and army units have conducted heavily armed security sweeps across Jayapura ahead of mass demonstrations to commemorate the 50th Anniversary of Indonesia's annexation of West Papua.

Hundreds of workers at Freeport-McMoRan's Indonesian mine have gone on strike demanding better pay, the US firm said Wednesday, in the latest industrial action to hit the operation.

Banjir Ambarita & SP/Robert Isidorus, Jayapura & Sorong – The Indonesian government's celebration of the 50th anniversary of the integration of Papua on Wednesday was shadowed by pro-independence flags being raised across the province and a case of separatist activists being shot dead by police.

Ezra Sihite & Robertus Wardi – President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has called for increased autonomy for Papua province to address the host of development and security problems there, an official said on Monday.

The Indonesian government has been accused of detaining more than 400 political prisoners from West Papua, despite official claims that every inmate in the country's jails has broken criminal law.