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Nineteen inmates escape from Central Papua prison
Member of the House of Representatives Mafirion of the National Awakening Party (PKB), said the repeated prison breaks highlight serious shortcomings in the security and management of Indonesia’s correctional system.
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Systemic flaws: A member of the House of Representatives’ commission 13 inspects a jail cell on Nov. 14, 2024, in Jakarta’s Salemba Penitentiary from which seven inmates escaped. Lawmakers found that not all CCTVs in the overcrowded facility were functional. (Antara/Indrianto Eko Suwarso)
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ineteen inmates escaped from Nabire Penitentiary in Central Papua on Monday, marking the latest in a series of prison breaks that highlight deep systemic flaws within Indonesia’s correctional system.
The escape occurred around 11 a.m. during visiting hours. The inmates broke free after attacking prison officers with a machete, which is believed to have come from inside the facility and was originally intended for chopping firewood.
Three prison officers sustained hand injuries during the incident, according to Chief of the Cartenz Peace Operation, Sr. Comr. Faizal Ramadhani.
Faizal added that out of the 19 escapees, 11 have been arrested for their alleged involvement with the Free Papua Movement (OPM) armed group.
“We have deployed a team to hunt down the escapees,” Faizal said on Tuesday, as reported by Antara.
The escape occurred just two months after seven inmates broke out of Southwest Papua’s Sorong Penitentiary on April 1.
The inmates fled through a hole they had created in the prison wall using a stainless steel spoon. The bottom of the wall had weakened and become brittle due to frequent flooding.
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