Fragments of Papua

Albertus Vembrianto (Freelance Photojournalist, Papua)

Discrimination and violence against the people of Papua continue to
happen.

“When a non-Papuan is shot, every mainstream media reports it. It’s different when it is a Papuan who dies because of the brutal actions of security apparatus. Almost no media in Jakarta reports it,” says Ambrosius Mulaid (24), a university student from Lembah Baliem, Papua, in Jakarta, explaining discriminations experienced by the Papuans in relation to the incident in Nduga District, Papua.

In early December, a number of mainstream media in Jakarta reported that 31 Trans-Papua workers were killed by a group of armed criminals in Nduga, Papua. After four days, the report was revised, stating that the number of the victims was 16. There were also other media that reported that the number of victims was actually 19.

Geographical distance and plain ignorance of the issues in Papua make the media in Jakarta tend to rely on the security apparatus as source of information. Other reasons include the large operational fund needed for a coverage in Papua and the ‘clearing house’ procedure applied by the government to limit foreign journalists’ access to Papua.

Serious problems regarding access to information in Papua are also faced by journalists. They also face disturbances, such as bribery and intimidation, and even violence from the security apparatus, public officers, society, pro-Indonesia activists and pro-liberation activists, when covering sensitive issues. Journalists who report about the Papuans’ discontent with their social and political situation and with violations by the security apparatus, will be watched and stalked. Consequently, there are very few reports on the developments of Papua that are at the same time critical, verified, and in-depth.

“People here often ask: Are there any malls in Papua? Are there any cars? Do Papuans still wear koteka?” shares Rosa Kamiroki (22), a university student from Nabire in Jakarta. It is not an exaggeration that Papua is still considered a primitive civilization. The fact that it is the development strategies implemented in Papua that pushes aside the native Papuans and makes them a minority is never known to the public. Is infrastructure development, like the Trans-Papua road, really the solution for the problems in Papua?

The development of the Trans-Papua, in fact, triggered many shooting incidents. The incident in early December 2018 in Nduga was not the first. The Trans-Papua project, which was in plan since the administration of Preseident Habibie, actually brought about a series of violent acts in Papua. For the Papuan people, the Trans-Papua road is not an infrastructure for them, but instead a military one, an investment opportunity for visitors and an exploitation threat to Papua’s jungles and natural resources.