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Police seize weapons and ammunition from Aimas clash site
Sorong Police officers confiscated on Saturday weapons and ammunition at the scene of a recent clash between demonstrators and police in Aimas district, Sorong regency, West Papua
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S
orong Police officers confiscated on Saturday weapons and ammunition at the scene of a recent clash between demonstrators and police in Aimas district, Sorong regency, West Papua.
Two Papuans were reportedly shot dead during the clash, which took place in the city of Sorong on May 1 during a demonstration to mark Papua's integration into Indonesia.
The victims have been identified as Abner Malagawak, 22, andThomas Blesya, 22.
"At the crime scene we found one homemade FN rifle and hundreds of bullets, as well as traditional weapons such as bows and arrows,'said Papua Police spokesman Sr. Comr. I Gede Sumerta Jaya on Sunday.
Police have yet to confirm the cause of the deaths because the victims' families refused to have autopsies carried out on the bodies and they have now been buried.Sumerta said a meeting would be held between the families ofthe victims and security personnel to resolve the issue.
'The local church and the Sorong administration will mediate the meeting,' said Sumerta.
Yan Christian Warinussy, the executive director of a legal aid organization based in Manokwari, West Papua, has requested access to allow human rights activists to conduct their own investigation.
"We urge the West Papua governor, the Papua Police chief and the leader of the military command to provide open access to humanitarian investigations that are currently being carried out by human rights organizations and the National Commission on Human Rights [Komnas HAM],' Warinussy said in a press release obtained by The Jakarta Post. (asw/dic)
