P

olice have detained seven people following the attack on the Pirime police subprecinct station in Lanny Jaya regency, Papua, on Nov. 27, in which three police personnel — Second Insp. Rofli Takubesi, First Brig. Daniel Makuker and Brig. Jefri Rumkorem — were killed.

“The seven men were arrested in separate places. YW, 40, was captured in Pirime moments after the attack as he resisted arrest while attacking police personnel with a machete. He was later paralyzed with a gunshot to his leg. He is still receiving treatment at the Wamena General Hospital,” said Papua Police spokesman Adj. Sr. Comr. I Gede Sumerta Jaya in Jayapura on Friday.

The six other suspects — KW, 40, LK, 22, TW, 24, GK, 35, DTT, 45 and TT, 17, were arrested by police in Waragame village, Piramid district in Jayawijaya regency, during an operation.

Police seized evidence from them in the form of a Morning Star separatist flag, Free Papua Movement (OPM) membership cards, a laptop, a United Kingdom flag and a Papua New Guinea flag, five OPM militia notebooks and a machete.

At least 10 police officers have been shot dead so far this year by unknown assailants in the province. The rising frequency of violence in Papua by armed civilian groups is believed to be a reaction by local community members to the frustration of dealing with hardships in the underdeveloped region.

Sumerta said police had yet to ascertain whether or not the seven men were involved in the attack on the police station, but police were currently investigating the case.

He added that six individuals in the group might have been involved in the attack because the place where they were caught was a route usually used by armed militias.

The individuals are thought to be part of a wider network of armed civilian groups operating in the Pegunungan Tengah area of Papua.

“The group forms part of a collaboration with several armed civilian groups, such as the RM, EW, MW and OW groups, while the attackers were from the JJ group,” said Sumerta.

The RM group was involved in a shootout with the police when Papua Police chief Insp. Gen. Tito Karnavian visited the crime scene in Pirime on Wednesday.

Sumerta further said the Lanny Jaya regency administration and religious and community figures had urged Tito to resolve the case and persuade the groups to give up their weapons and surrender. “However, if the efforts are in vain, the Papua Police chief will ask directives from the National Police chief before taking further action,” he said.

Regarding the police’s continuing manhunt of the police station assailants, the National Commission on Human Rights head Otto Nur Abdullan said he had not received any reports of alleged human rights violations.

“We have not yet received any reports of human rights violations when authorities have been scouring for perpetrators,” said Otto.

“This is progress for Papua,” he added, after meeting Karnavian in Jayapura on Friday.

Sumerta further said the Papua Police had strengthened security ahead of the Free Papua movement’s (OPM) anniversary, which falls on July 1, but is often celebrated on Dec. 1.

Sumerta said that the police would deploy two-thirds of its officers stationed in Papua to “anticipate the activity of pro-Papua liberation supporters”.