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She tweeted about the attack on Papuan students. Now, she is state enemy No. 1
Human rights lawyer Veronica Koman is firmly in the government’s crosshairs after the East Java Police named her a suspect for allegedly provoking protests and riots in Papua and West Papua.
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Hands up: People stand and raise their hands after police officers asked them to leave a Papuan student dormitory on Jl. Kalasan in Surabaya, East Java, on Saturday. The police took 43 people in for questioning after an incident on Friday, during which people reportedly found a red-and-white flag thrown in front of the dorm. (Antara/Didik Suhartono)
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uman rights lawyer Veronica Koman is firmly in the government’s crosshairs after the East Java Police named her a suspect for allegedly provoking protests and riots in Papua and West Papua.
The government’s focus on Veronica was in evidence on Thursday, when Coordinating Political, Legal and Security Affairs Minister Wiranto mentioned her as “the most important part” of his press conference regarding the situation in Papua.
“I think it’s already viral, what she said as provocation, inciting [Papuans] to continue to carry out resistance, to conduct violent demonstrations. She has been named a suspect,” Wiranto said, adding that she was being “pursued by Interpol” because she was currently outside the country.
On Wednesday, the East Java Police announced that they had named Veronica a suspect for allegedly violating four different laws, including the 2008 Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) Law. East Java Police chief Insp. Luki Hermawan said the activist had “aggressively provoked” citizens via twitter account @VeronicaKoman by giving out information on the recent protests and riots.
Veronica, who is also a lawyer for the National Committee for West Papua (KNPB), has regularly tweeted videos of marches and rallies in various cities and regions since protests first broke out in Papua and West Papua on August 19.
Since the government instituted an internet blackout for the country's easternmost provinces on August 21, her tweets have been one of the only sources of information from the restive region, including those surrounding the protests that broke out in the two provinces.
Veronica has a long track record of human rights activism and advocacy. She first became known for her advocacy for Papuans after she represented two Papuan university students who were charged with assaulting police during a demonstration on self-determination in Jakarta in 2015. At the time, Veronica was working for the Jakarta Legal Aid Society (LBH Jakarta).
