The Jakarta Post
The Regional Representatives Council (DPD) has strongly urged the government to cease military operations and withdraw special forces from Papua and West Papua to end the prolonged violence in the country’s easternmost provinces.
The DPD said that the presence of the non-garrison troops, who mostly belong to elite forces within the Indonesian Military (TNI), had caused animosity among local groups who have launched attacks against them.
“If Jakarta wants to end violence, the militaristic approach has to stop, and all non-garrison troops from the military elite forces must be withdrawn from the two provinces because their presence and their irregular operations have triggered attacks on garrison troops and innocent civilians,” DPD deputy chairman Laode Ida said on Tuesday.
The council suggested that after the withdrawal of these troops, the security operation s...