Jayapura, Jubi – Hana Lay, the Coordinator of the Solidarity Movement for Students and People of Papua in Manokwari, is urging the Papua Police and the Yahukimo Police to promptly investigate the attack on two displaced armed conflict victims, identified as IS and AK.
“The brutal killings were carried out by unidentified individuals. We urge the Papua Police Chief and the Yahukimo Police Chief to swiftly apprehend the perpetrators and bring them to justice, regardless of their identity,” Hana said in a WhatsApp call on Tuesday, October 24, 2023.
The attacks on AK and IS occurred on October 11, 2023, in two separate incidents. AK was attacked while gardening in the morning of October 11. She was found dead on the same day with multiple stab wounds on various parts of her body, and her hands were tied with ropes.
IS was also attacked when she was heading to her garden. The assault took place at Kilo 5, Dekai, while she was walking with her 6-year-old child. The child witnessed the assailant attacking her mother and fled to seek help.
Police and family found IS severely injured with several stab wounds. IS was receiving medical treatment and later passed away at the Dekai District General Hospital.
Hana emphasized that the Human Rights Law No. 39 of 1999 declares that all humans, as creations of God, must be respected, upheld, and protected by the State, the law, the government, and every individual. She stated that the murder of women is an extremely heinous act.
“Based on Law No. 12 of 2022 on Sexual Violence Crimes, protecting women entails all efforts aimed at safeguarding them and providing a sense of security in the fulfillment of their rights. Yahukimo Regency is a conflict area between the West Papua National Liberation Army and the Indonesian Military. Us women have the right to feel safe,” she said.
Hana urged the National Commission on Violence Against Women (Komnas Perempuan) to promptly form an investigative team and uncover the perpetrators of the attacks on IS and AK.
“We also call on the Yahukimo Regency Government and the Mountainous Papua Governor to withdraw all military forces, both organic and non-organic, from Yahukimo,” she said.
Hana emphasized that the armed conflict between the West Papua National Liberation Army and the Indonesian Military in Yahukimo threatens the right to life of Indigenous Papuans.
“We urge the international community, the UN Human Rights Council, and international journalists to come to Papua to identify cases of state violence through the military, resulting in human rights violations in Papua,” she concluded. (*)
