TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - The Commission for Missing Persons and Victims of Violence (KontraS) recorded there were 40 acts of violence in Papua throughout 2020. The report was published in commemoration of World Human Rights Day on Dec. 10, 2020.

“KontraS notes that in 2020 so far, at least there are violent incidents that befell Papuans,” said KontraS researcher Arif Nur Fikri in a virtual press conference on Thursday, Dec. 10.

He said that most of the cases were shooting incidents, assaults, and arrests by force by the authorities, either by the Military (TNI), the police, or both.

“Based on our documentation, the incidents resulted in 276 victims who got injured, killed, or detained,” Arif added.

KontraS coordinator Fatia Maulidiyanti said the security approach applied by the government in the country’s westernmost province had no legitimacy or basis law, noting the military operation there.

“Actually, the law had been revoked by the government in 1999, but the security approach, methods, and patterns are still being used to date,” Fatia remarked.

Last October, Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Mahfud Md rebutted the saying that the government had taken a security approach to tackling various conflicts in Papua.

Mahfud claimed the government always took a comprehensive approach and planned to renew the presidential instruction (Inpres) to accelerate development in the province.

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DEWI NURITA