JAKARTA, Indonesia (AFP) — Indonesia has cut off internet access in unrest-hit Papua over fears that a stream of offensive and racist online posts would spark more violent protests in the region, the government said Thursday. Riots and demonstrations brought several Papuan cities to a standstill this week, as buildings were torched and street battles broke out between police and protesters in Indonesia’s easternmost territory. A rebel insurgency against Jakarta’s rule has simmered for […]
Tag: Papua
Indonesia’s Papua hit by fresh unrest as troops deployed
MANOKWARI, Indonesia (AFP) — Indonesia’s Papua was hit by fresh unrest Wednesday as more than 1,000 security personnel were sent to the restive region after violent protests that saw buildings torched and street battles between police and demonstrators. Jakarta has called for calm in its easternmost territory — where an insurgency against Indonesian rule has simmered for decades — following riots triggered by the detention of dozens of Papuan students at the weekend. On […]
6.3-magnitude earthquake rocks Indonesia’s Papua
A 6.3-magnitude earthquake hit Papua, in eastern Indonesia Thursday, US seismologists said, but no tsunami warning was issued. The quake hit about 250 kilometres west of the town of Abepura in Papua province at 12:46 am local time, at a depth of 12 kilometres, according to the US Geological Survey. The quake was felt weakly in Abepura, but most people did not notice it. “I was still awake at home but I did not […]
16 bodies found after attack in Indonesia’s Papua
WAMEMA, Indonesia (AFP) — Indonesian security forces have retrieved the bodies of 16 people in the aftermath of a massacre by suspected separatist rebels in restive Papua province, the military said Thursday. The confirmed deaths, believed to be of construction workers, mark the deadliest bout of violence in years to hit a region wracked by a low-level independence insurgency. The bodies will be evacuated to the town of Timika from the remote district of Nduga, […]
Indonesia probes reports dozens of workers shot dead in Papua
by Staf Steel Agence France Presse WAMENA, Indonesia (AFP) — An Indonesian soldier was killed while investigating reports that more than two dozen construction workers were shot dead by separatist rebels in restive Papua province, officials said Tuesday. If confirmed, the killings would mark the deadliest bout of violence in years to hit a region wracked for decades by a low-level independence insurgency. Citing local police, Indonesian media reported late Monday that the workers were […]
WATCH: Saving Indonesia’s birds-of-paradise one village at a time
by Kiki Siregar Agence France-Presse SORONG, Indonesia (AFP) — Deep in Indonesia’s easternmost province, a group of birdwatchers wait in earnest hoping to glimpse the renowned birds-of-paradise. Once plentiful in Papua’s jungles, rampant poaching and deforestation have devastated populations. The tourists are in luck, their patience is rewarded: Perched on the branch of a tall tree near the remote village of Malagufuk, a red king bird-of-paradise can be seen darting between the leaves. Agricultural plantations, […]





