Tuesday, December 3, 2013

1) Crackdown on West Papua activsts spreads beyond Indonesia’s borders



3) KNPB : The police force RESPONSIBLE FOR VIOLENCE IN PAPUA EXPO
4) Worker Killed at Freeport Mine in Papua
5) An astronaut, Czech artists  & the Yali Mek in Papua   

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1) Crackdown on West Papua activsts spreads beyond Indonesia’s borders  
Produced by Tim Roxburgh
Indonesia's crackdown on West Papuan independence activists is spreading beyond it's borders into neighbouring Papua New Guinea. Local officials and activists say that Indonesia is applying pressure to PNG's government to quash activism on the issue. Human rights lawyer Jen Robinson is better known for her role in defending Julian Assange, but for many years she's also provided support and representation for West Papuan activists. She joined The Wire on the line from Port Moresby.
Full story

Story audio

http://www.thewire.org.au/storyDetail.aspx?ID=11117

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2) The flag that even Indonesia's neighbour won't tolerate the sight of   
Produced by Tim Roxburgh
For the first time the controversial Morning Star flag has flown above an official building in Papua New Guinea. The flag belongs to an independence movement in neighbouring West Papua, which is a restive province of Indonesia. But as protestors found, flying this flag - even outside Indonesia - can have serious consequences.
Full story

Story audio

http://www.thewire.org.au/storyDetail.aspx?ID=11111
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A google translate of article in Jubi. Be-aware google translate can be a bit erratic. Original bahasa at

3) KNPB : The police force RESPONSIBLE FOR VIOLENCE IN PAPUA EXPO
Author : Aprila wiring on December 3 , 2013 at 17:17:08 WP
Editor : Victor Mambor
tabloidjubi.com believe that the readers of this site are people who are intelligent and educated . Let's use polite words in commenting on this site

Victor Yeimo in Abepura LP ( Jubi / Aprila wiring )

Jayapura , 3/12 ( Jubi ) - Victor Yeimo , Chairman of the National Committee of West Papua ( KNPB ) asked Papua Police , Inspector General of Police Tito Karnavian responsible for the riots Expo ( 26/11 ) and which has killed civilians in Papua .

" Six people were missing and KNPB sympathizers still in the process of searching by the family . I asked Papua Police Chief is responsible for this incident , "said Victor Yeimo tabloidjubi.com encountered in Prison Class IIA , Abepura , Jayapura , on Tuesday ( 3/12 ) .

Victor deplored the intimidation and violence committed by the police on peaceful demonstrations conducted KNPB , ( 26/11 ) in the Expo , Jayapura .

On information that the mass action has set up a knife to commit brutal acts , Victor questioned it .
" Why should the knife be prepared when it clashed KNPB plan ? Why not prepare a weapon . Because the blade is not possible weapon against bullets , " Victor regret .

According to Victor , clash it has been designed by the police . Patterns used also leads exactly the same as Mako Tabuni Murder Case , 2012. Related intimidation experienced by fellow journalists during the riot Expo , Victor Yeimo apologized for the impact experienced journalist colleagues .

" Actually, this should not be happening . The authorities also have to be responsible for this incident . Neither violence against journalists , civil society activists and sympathizers and KNPB , " said Victor again .

Papuan Political prisoners Filep Karma who also follow the development of this situation deplores deadly incident and he said , when KNPB want a peaceful demonstration , should positive response by the security forces .

"If KNPB a peaceful demonstration , it should not happen bentrokaan deadly , " said Filep Karma . ( Jubi / Aprila wiring )

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http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/worker-killed-at-freeport-mine-in-indonesia/

4) Worker Killed at Freeport Mine in Papua



Freeport workers share a moment with security personnel as they walk at Grasberg mine area in Tembagapura, Papua, on Aug. 14, 2013. (Reuters Photo/Muhammad Yamin)

A worker at a US-owned gold and copper mine in eastern Indonesia was killed instantly on Sunday when rocks fell from a machine, crushing him, police said.
The 27-year-old production operator was driving a car into the loading area of Freeport-McMoRan’s huge Grasberg mine in Papua province when tragedy struck, local police chief Sudirman told AFP.
“The worker was crushed to death after a machine used to load rocks onto trucks unleashed its contents onto him instead. He died on the spot,” Sudirman said.
“This is an industrial accident and we are still investigating.”
Another passenger in the car was injured but is in a stable condition, he added.
In May, a training tunnel collapsed killing 28 miners as they took part in a safety training course in what was one of Indonesia’s worst mining accidents.
The company suspended four senior employees who were accused by unions of being at fault after workers threatened to strike.
Grasberg has also been plagued by production problems in recent years.
In June, Freeport declared force majeure on shipments from the mine, saying it could not fulfill contractual obligations due to circumstances beyond its control.
In 2011 a three-month strike crippled production at the mine, and workers only halted the industrial action once Freeport agreed to a huge pay rise.
Freeport holds the world’s largest gold reserves in the restive province.
Agence France-Presse
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5) An astronaut, Czech artists  & the Yali Mek in Papua   

Novia D. Rulistia, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Art and Design | Tue, December 03 2013, 12:09 PM



Czech photographer and painter Barbora Šlapetová and sculptor Lukáš Rittstein have captured the slow shift toward “modernization” for the Yali Mek through photos, sculpture and by even introducing an astronaut to the tribe, which lives in a remote part of Papua.

The journey of Šlapetová and Rittstein started when the couple decided to fulfill a childhood dream to travel the world after living under a communist regime.

“Because our borders were closed by the communists during our younger times, we dreamed of going as far as we could; not only over land, but traveling through culture and time,” Šlapetová said. “So that’s why we wanted to go to as far as a ‘stone age’ time.”

Their choice took them to Papua. “From the visual information we had gathered, we wanted to see the reality. And we fell in love with it since the first time we entered the land,” Šlapetová said during a recent visit to Jakarta.

Šlapetová and Rittstein first came to Papua in 1997, traveling through the province to look for tribes that could show how people “from the stone age” could live today.

The exploration led them to the Yali Mek tribe in Kosarek Village, about 35 miles southeast of Wamena. 

 “We spent 14 days with some tribes before having a deep interaction with the Yali Mek. We came to the conclusion that the Yali Mek were the best, with their great imagination — untouched by civilization,” she said.

The Yali Mek live in the province’s highlands, which meant that the pair had to take a missionary plane followed by a long walk to reach their location.

After getting permission from every family of the tribe, Šlapetová then started to bring out her camera. Šlapetová took pictures of the men who wore penis gourds (koteka) and topless women holding their kids inside wooden huts with roofs made of tree bark or palm leaves.

In other photos, Šlapetová showed how the men, with bows and carved arrowheads, hunted animals such as pigs for food.

She also wanted to make her photos look like paintings. In 2003, she started to rearrange the images, combining the photos with items found in the world that she was closer to.

Later, Šlapetová started to use a “magic box” made from glass to create experimental photographs.

“It came naturally, because I started to feel the spirits behind them. You couldn’t have it in a documentary picture and you didn’t have time to paint them. So it was very easy and helpful to make it more like a painting [by using the magic box],” she said.

Meanwhile, Rittstein captured interactions with the Yali Mek by making casts of the tribe’s heroes.

“It was a big adventure for them,” Rittstein said. “They called it [the cast] white, hard mud. As I did my work, it started to become an attraction and everyone wanted to be part of it.”

The people asked him to show them his results during the next visit.

The wish came true. In 2008, two years later, Rittstein brought the casts from Prague. “They received it with a big celebration. We witnessed the mix of traditional ritual with a contemporary art happening,” he said.

Rittstein and Šlapetová also organized an art installation in Prague that featured Šlapetová’s photos and 10 sculptures of Rittstein’s interactions with the Yali Mek.

Their visits to the village — which sometimes lasted for two to three months, before the pair had children — gave them opportunities to take documentary pictures and to be involved in two-way conversations, aided by translators. 

“We talked about love, we talked about our beliefs, we talked about the world and many things,” she said.

On one night, they were talking about stars and Šlapetová asked what stars meant for the Yali Mek. “They said that they are the eyes of people that travel into the skies, looking back and making lights while the people are sleeping.”

Šlapetová then told them that out there, there were people who went there and saw the stars themselves. “And they were curious about them.”

Later, another wish of the tribesmen came true. The couple brought an American astronaut, Leroy Chiao, to meet the Yali Mek.

In images captured by Šlapetová, Chiao, a mission specialist on three Space Shuttle missions and a former commander of the International Space Station, compared his experiences in reaching the sky with the Papuans.

Looking at the pictures, it is evident that the Yali Mek have changed. “The chief, he’s completely changed. He now wears clothes, uniforms, and even has a cell phone,” Šlapetová said.

She said that she realized that their visits to the village had to some extent affect the tribe, as it was their first encounter with art.

Rittstein said that he and Šlapetová wanted to show the Yali Mek that there was more to life than just the material world. “There’s also art, and they can play with it.”

Their stories of Papua are told through the books Why the Night Is Black and Do Not Come Any Closer, published in Prague. They also preserved the stories in a video recording that has been screened to the Yali.

The artists are currently in Papua to give an Indonesian version of the books to young Papuans who attend school to help them understand the almost forgotten tales of their ancestors.

“They want to see everything they have done with us during the long period of communication,” Šlapetová said. 

— Photos courtesy of Barbora Šlapetová

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