Family statement regarding the murder of 4 Papuans in Timika, West Papua

West Papua

A chronological report of the incident and the demands of the victim’s family for the premeditated murder of civilians by the Indonesian military

 

  1. AUGUST 22, 2022

Below is the chronology of events prepared by the family of the four murdered civilians from Nduga Tribe, West Papuan, who were mutilated by the Indonesian Military in Timika on Monday, August 22, 2022.

On Monday, August 22, 2022, at 7pm the victims Irian Nirigi and Arnold Lokbere left the house in a black Toyota Avanza PA1082WR. The driver changed cars because the Toyota Avanza was intended to be used by the owner.

The Toyota Avanza was parked in SP IV in front of Bank BRI and replaced with red Toyota Astra Calya car with the chassis number MHKA6GJ6JKJ115394.

They then picked up Atis Tini at KM 11 Kadun Jaya Village at around 7.45pm.

The three Papuans along with another victim travelling in another car then returned to Kamoro Jaya Village, Wania District SP 1 Timika.

The victim’s family is convinced that the murder of the four victims took place in SP 1 as reported in the local media.

Since Monday, August 22, 2022, the family did not receive any reports regarding the murders until the body of Arnold Lokbere was discovered on August 26.

The victims are civilians who buy building materials and household goods in Timika and transport to Nduga by ship and resell.

The victim’s family was shocked by the news received via online media that one of the four victims was a TPNPB (West Papua Liberation Army) sympathizer of Egianus Kogoya whose group operate in Mimika.

We, the families of the victims, believe that this is untrue. The Regent of Nduga has also publically stated that the four victims were civilians and not members of the TPNPB.

  • THE SEARCH FOR THE MUTILATED VICTIMS

The victim’s family began to suspect that the four-missing people had come to harm and began searching for them on Wednesday, August 24, 2022 to no avail.

On Thursday, August 25, 2022, the search continued with the family checking with the Resort Police, Polsek, Kodim Mimika, the General Hospital of Mimika, RSMM Mimika, and other places.

On Friday, August 26, 2022, the search continued to around 8pm. A few hours later the family received news that four mutilated bodies had been recovered from the Lopong Bridge by members of the Kuala Kencana Police Sector and surrounding community.

Information arrived that one of the bodies was that of Arnold Lokbere. At around 10.30pm, the Resort Police allowed family members to see the body in the morgue of the Mimika Hospital and confirm that it was Arnold Lokbere.

On Friday, August 26, 2022 the victim’s family continued their search and found the dismembered body of Lemaniol Nirigi.

On Sunday August 28, the search continued for the other two missing persons.

On Monday, August 29, 2022, the victim’s family continued to search.

Some of the family members staged a protest at the Timika Pomako Highway demanding justice and refuting social media reports that the victims were members of TPNPB-OPM. The gathering was attended by the Regent of Nduga, the Head of the Nduga Police, the Mimika Police Chief and his staff.

The victim’s family conveyed their demands for legal justice and a fair, transparent and impartial legal process.

On Monday afternoon around 5pm, the family discovered a third body, that of Atis Tini and took his remains to Mimika Hospital.

On Tuesday, August 30, 2022, a joint search was conducted by the victim’s family and the police along with members of BASARNAS (The Indonesian National Search Team) Mimika, Government of Mimika and Regional Council Representative (DPRD) Mimika, Lemasa (Community NGO) and various others.

The process of searching for the bodies from Saturday 27 August 2022 to 29 August 2022 was carried out by the victim’s family without the assistance of the Mimika BASARNAS and the police.

Media reports that the police and other government agencies had been searching for the missing people since Saturday 27 August is a public lie fabricated in an effort to maintain the image of the police as a law enforcement institution.

  • MISSING PROPERTY OF THE VICTIMS

Based on the statement of the wife of Irian Nirigi, there were many valuable belongings of her husband yet to be found. They include:

a. Bank Papua KCP Nduga Savings Book

b. Money IDT520,000,000.00 (Five Hundred Twenty Million Rupiah) in Bank  

    Papua KCP Nduga’s savings book

c. E-KTP (Identity card of the victim)

d. 1 cellphone registered with the village fund

e. The key to a suitcase containing church funds

After checking the area where the victim was killed, only a small traditinal bag (noken) containing a bible was found.

Missing belongings of Arnold Lokbere:

a. 4 accounts of Bank

b. Papua KCP Nduga Bank account has a balance of IDR 50,000,000.00 (Fifty Million Rupiah)

  • IDENTITY OF THE VICTIMS

1. Arnold Lokbere

Born: Tawelma, 08 March 1993

Gender: Male

Age: 29

Religion: Protestant Christian

Occupation: Self Employed

Address: Kenyam District, capital city of Nduga Regency, Papua

2. Irian Nirigi

Born: Timika, 03 April 1984

Gender: Male

Age: 38

Religion: Protestant Christian

Occupation: Village Head and Philadelphia Church Council

Address: Behind the Kenyam District Police Station, the capital of Nduga Regency

Figure 1: Unloading the mutilated body of Irian Nirigi at Mimika Hospital Mortuary on August 31, 2022

3. Lemaniol Nirigi

Born: Jita 26 March 1993

Gender: Male

Age: 29

Religion: Protestant Christian

Occupation: Not yet working (Nil)

Address: Kenyam District, capital city of Nduga Regency, Papua

Figure 2: Lemaniol’s mutilated body floating in the water, Kaugapu Timika, Papua

Figure 3: Handing over the victims’ bodies to the Mimika General Hospital

Figure 4: Lemaniol Nirigi’s body in the autopsy room of Mimika Hospital,

27th August 2022

Figure 5: Photo of Lemaniol Nirigi’s body in the autopsy room of Mimika Hospital,

27th August 2022

4. Atis Tini

Born: 2 October 1999

 Gender: Male          

Age: 13 years old

Religion: Protestant Christian

Occupation: Category of Child

Address: Kenyam District, capital city of Nduga Regency, Papua

  • DEMANDS BY VICTIM’S FAMILIES

Mysterious, inhuman and barbaric killings are crimes against humanity and human rights violations and cannot be accepted by anyone. The victims had their heads cut off, their feet cut off, their hands cut off, and put in sacks fill with stones and throw it into the river. This is the Indonesian military’s attempt to hide their crimes against humanity.

The following is a statement by the families of the victims:

1. ARNOLD LOKBERE

2. IRIAN NIRIGI

3. LEMANIOL NIRIGI

4. ATIS TINI

To:

1. President of the Republic of Indonesia Joko Widodo

2. National Police Chief General Drs. Listyo Sigit Prabowo, M.Si.

3. TNI Commander General Andika Perkasa

4. Papuan Police Chief

5. Pangdam Cenderawasih XVII

6. Mimika Police Chief

7. Head of the Mimika Regency SAR Agency

Immediately responsible for the lives of the four victims of mutilation, inhumane in a barbaric, systematic and structured manner. This is the work of the TNI, BIN and BAIS of the unitary state of the Republic of Indonesia. The perpetrators are the TNI, Indonesian military, in this case the unit from the Military Police (BRIMOB). These killings are major human rights violations measured and planned with the intention of destroying all evidence of the victim’s bodies.

The matters referred to above are based on several notes as supporting elements including;

1. Rented car burned in Iwaka

2. The victim’s body was mutilated or dismembered and stuffed in sacks filled with 7 stones as ballast and thrown in the river and we the victim’s families have seen the evidence in the hospital. We only saw the second body in a sack with stones and then realized the first body was disposed the same way.

Therefore:

1. The family does not accept the barbaric, and inhumane killings of our family members;

2. The four victims are civilians as supported by the Regent of Nduga Regency;

3. We demand the arrest and process of the perpetrators in accordance with the laws and regulations of Indonesia;

4. We demand to know the motive for this barbaric killing of our family members. For whatever reason, humans can’t be killed in such heinous ways;

5. The killing of civilians in Papua by the Indonesian military is just like hunting wild animals, criminals or terrorists and is carried out by people with evil character.

We the victim’s families request:

The Indonesian National Human Rights Commission, Commission I of the Indonesian House of Representatives in charge of security and defense, Kontras LBH Central and LBH Papua, Amnesty International, the the UN Human Rights Commission, immediately form an independent investigation team to investigate these murders, mutilations, and attempts to destroy the evidence.

This is the chronology and statement of the families of the victims of the murder and mutilation of 4 Papuan civilians on August 22, 2022.

Timika, August 30, 2022

Signed by Victims Family,

1. Aptor Lokbere

2. July Gwijangge

3. Latus Nirigi

4. Gilpinus Tini

Critical Notes on behalf of the Papuan nation by Papuan Human Rights Defenders

Ugent Situation in West Papua!!!

The case of the murder and mutilation of four indigenous Papuans by members of the Indonesian military and 3 civilian Indonesian immigrants in Timika on 22th of August 2022 is a Crime against Humanity.

This is an event that greatly degrades the human dignity of indigenous Papuans, so this case must be resolved thoroughly.

We urge the Indonesian government under the leadership of President Joko Widodo to immediately take responsibility.

This means that the President of Indonesia must order the death penalty and execution of the criminals who killed and mutilated 4 Papuan indigenous people who are civil citizens, and if the Indonesian government does not carry out executions of all perpetrators, then the Papuan nation will rise up and will take revenge in the same way.

We hope that this case of sadistic murder accompanied by mutilation should be brought to the attention of the international community and the United Nations, because Indonesia has been and is lying to the international community and member states of the United Nations regarding the ongoing Crimes Against Humanity being committed in West Papua.

Indonesia through its foreign minister always says that in Papua there is no human rights violations, but in fact there is serious human rights violations by the Indonesian military and police. And these killings and mutilations by members of Indonesian military is truly barbaric. We call for immediate UN intervention to end these ongoing human rights violations in West Papua.

TPNPB-OPM Spokesperson Sebby Sambom has the support of the victim’s family to share this report with all parties.

Therefore, we convey that this report is officially from the victim’s family. Thank you for your attention and good cooperation.

West Papua A chronological report of the incident and the demands of the victim’s family for the premeditated murder of civilians by the Indonesian military   Below is the chronology…

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