Indonesia verifying PNG claim
Mustaqim Adamrah, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta | Fri, 01/06/2012 1:44 PM
Presidential spokesman Teuku Faizasyah says the government is verifying information it has received in connection with an incident in which Indonesian Military (TNI) aircraft almost collided with a Papua New Guinea jet.
The PNG government has threatened to expel the Indonesian envoy, Andreas Sitepu, from Port Moresby if the Indonesian government fails to provide an explanation for the incident within 48 hours.
“We decided to respond to this issue as soon as we received the information at noon,” Faizasyah told The Jakarta Post on Friday.
“We are collecting information and facts from all relevant institutions, including the Foreign Ministry, the Transportation Ministry and the Indonesian Military. It’s still ongoing.”
“I hope it [the incident] didn’t happen on purpose, but was, say, perhaps a procedural issue. This is what the government is trying to examine,” said Faizasyah.
However, he refused to confirm if the Indonesian government would provide the PNG government with an explanation within 48 hours from the time it received the information.
According to radioaustralianews.net.au on Friday, two TNI aircraft almost collided with a jet carrying the PNG deputy prime minister and senior government officials who were returning from Malaysia on Nov. 29.
PNG Deputy Prime Minister Belden Namah said the jet he and other PNG government officials were on had acquired clearance from Indonesia’s immigration and customs to fly to PNG, thenational.com reported on Friday.
