Religious Liberty Prayer Bulletin

Wed 21 Jul 2010

Since late May TNI (Indonesian military) and BRIMOB (militarised
police) forces have been conducting ‘sweeping operations’ in the
central highlands Puncak Jaya region of Papua (formerly Irian Jaya).
This was ostensibly to flush out the ‘separatists’ they blame (without
evidence) for two recent attacks. Indonesia keeps Papua closed to
international media and human rights organisations. However, news is
leaked out at great personal risk and on 18 June the West Papua
Advocacy Team (WPAT) issued a report with details of the crisis in
Puncak Jaya.

WPAT reports that during early June the BRIMOB seized a church in
Kayogwebur district Tingginambut for use as a headquarters. In the
district of Kampong Tinggineri Tingginambut, BRIMOB officers raped a
pregnant Papuan woman. In Gwenggu Pilia twelve houses and two churches
were burned by security forces. In several villages all the livestock
have been killed. On 11 June the BRIMOB conducted a residential ‘sweep’
search of all houses on the road between Ilu and Mulia, detaining
anyone without identification and taking them away on army trucks.
(Most highland Papuans do not even speak Indonesian let alone carry
Indonesian ID cards.) Papuans have reported being abused and tortured
while in custody. Locals are now too afraid to leave their homes to
harvest vegetable gardens or attend to business. Further to this, the
TNI has been forcing local Papuans to undertake tasks for the military,
such as building landing pads for military helicopters after first
clearing the land of crops. Pacific Scoop (New Zealand) has an
unconfirmed report of at least seven dead in the Jambi, Sinak Ilu and
Tingginambut districts of Mulia.

>From the 1950s MAF USA opened up the previously impenetrable
mountainous inland of what was then Dutch New Guinea for courageous
pioneer missionaries. Annexed by Indonesia in 1969 and occupied by
Indonesian armed forces (predominantly Javanese Muslims), Papua is
being purposefully and rapidly colonised by Javanese Muslims for
political and geo-strategic purposes. The indigenous Papuans, who are
ethnic Melanesians and predominantly Christian, are being marginalised
and their land is being Islamised. Most Javanese Muslims despise the
Papuans as racially and religiously inferior. TNI and BRIMOB officers
routinely and freely express their racial and religious hatred for the
Papuans in unrestrained violence. The TNI has vast economic interests
in Papua, including protection services. Thus the TNI has incentives to
provoke incidents that make Papuan ‘terrorism’ and ‘separatism’ look
like real threats when in reality they are not. Papuan resistance is
essentially resistance against racial and religious discrimination,
persecution, exploitation, marginalisation, Islamisation and threat of
genocide. In 2001 the Indonesian parliament granted the Papua Province
a tokenistic ‘Special Autonomy’ which was never implemented. On 18 June
many thousands of brave Papuans rallied in Jayapura, declaring ‘Special
Autonomy’ a failure. They symbolically ‘gave it back’ to Indonesia and
demanded a referendum on independence and renewed dialogue to be
mediated by a neutral country. Tensions are extremely high.

Just like some other Christian peoples who have faced or are facing
genocide, the Papuans have been betrayed and abandoned by Western human-rights-affirming nations intent on acquiring lucrative mining
concessions, arms deals and other economic and political interests.

PLEASE PRAY SPECIFICALLY THAT GOD WILL:

* give the Papuan Church and Christian leaders great wisdom, grace and
authority as they lead their people through these dark days — days
where great restraint is required to continually resist provocation
aimed at triggering conflict that would ‘justify’ a massacre.

‘Deliver me, O LORD, from evil men; preserve me from violent men, who
plan evil things in their heart and stir up wars continually.’
(Psalm 140:1,2 ESV)

* provide the displaced Papuans of Pancuk Jaya with security, shelter,
comfort and all their material and spiritual needs; may the Holy
Spirit draw them into prayer and the presence/sanctuary (Isaiah
8:14a) of the Lord that their prayers might be answered, their faith
strengthened, and our Lord glorified.

—————

If anyone else has a sense of deja vu, see: Religious Liberty Prayer
Bulletin | No. 417 | Wed 21 Feb 2007 http://www.ea.org.au/ea-
family/Religious- Liberty/PAPUA–INDONESIA–CRISIS-IN-PUNCAK-JAYA.aspx
The story is virtually identical.

~~~~

SUMMARY TO USE IN BULLETINS UNABLE TO RUN THE WHOLE ARTICLE

———————————————————–

TENSIONS HIGH IN PAPUA (IRIAN JAYA), INDONESIA

Papuans are ethnic Melanesians and predominantly Christian. Their land,
which was annexed by Indonesia in 1969, is being strategically,
purposefully and rapidly colonised by Javanese Muslims, resulting in
Islamisation and marginalisation. TNI (Indonesian military) and BRIMOB
(militarised police) forces are presently conducting ‘sweeping
operations’ in the central highlands region of Puncak Jaya. Thousands
have been mistreated and displaced as the Indonesian security forces
hunt for ‘separatists’. On 18 June many thousands of Papuans rallied in
Jayapura to reject Indonesian ‘Special Autonomy’ status (which has
failed) and to call for fresh dialogue. Tensions are high. The Papuans
have been betrayed and abandoned by Western human-rights-affirming
nations intent on acquiring lucrative mining concessions and other
economic and political interests. Please pray for the Church in Papua.

——————–

We suggest that churches and fellowships using the above Summary might
also provide a copy of the listed prayer points to be used in their
worship by people who are leading in prayer.

This RLPB was written for the Australian Evangelical Alliance Religious
Liberty Commission (AEA RLC) by Elizabeth Kendal, an international
religious liberty analyst and advocate, and a member of the AEA RLC
team. Previous bulletins may be viewed at .

* For other articles, information and helpful links see Elizabeth
Kendal’s blog ‘Religious Liberty Monitoring’ at
.