Indonesia Defends High Number Of Military In Papua

Johnny
Blades RNZ Pacific senior journalist

Indonesia has
defended the high number of military personnel it has
deployed to West Papua, which dwarfs the size of deployments
to other parts of the republic.

But under Indonesian
president Subianto Prabowo, a former military strongman,
militarisation of Papua is changing gears and being shaped
by a type of warfare that includes drone
technology.

Recent research
reported by Project Multatuli, says that 56,517
Indonesian military forces are deployed in Papua – at least
six times more military per capita than any other region in
Indonesia.

The figures also note that Indonesia’s
military far outnumbers the amount of Papuan
pro-independence fighters, estimated at 1438 members of
various disparate, small groups with only 361
firearms.

The research figures come amid ongoing
violent incidents related to a long running conflict between
Indonesia’s security forces and the West Papua National
Liberation Army, or armed factions of the OPM Free West
Papua Movement.

The Indonesian Embassy in New Zealand
said not all the numbers are active combatants or personnel
directed to fight Papuan resistance forces.

It said
the assignment of military doctors, medics, and territorial
development divisions was part of efforts to provide for
communities in Papua.

“Continuing the expansion of
provinces in Papua, previously from two to six, there will
be obviously the need to provide security, health, and the
capability to adapt to the new administration structure,
with also the assignment to guard and maintain the land and
maritime borders with our neighbouring countries,” a
statement from the Embassy said.

Andreas Harsono of
Human Rights Watch Indonesia said that under the country’s
new president, Prabowo Subianto, there’s been an escalation
of military sent to Papua, with at least a battalion each
year being deployed.

“The Prabowo administration is to
increase the figure up to 42 battalions by 2029. Today,
Papua has around 56,000 Indonesian soldiers. The ratio is
one soldier per 100 civilians in Papua. It is much higher
than the national ratio in Indonesia – one soldier per 696
civilians.”

The purpose of the huge military
deployment is working hand in glove with a gradual change in
demographics in Papua, whereby Papuans are becoming a
minority in many districts, and an increase in development
projects backed by the Indonesian state.

“It obviously
is more than securing the area and to protect the
population, but to grab lands to clear forests and to occupy
this vast land,” Harsono said.

“The biggest
detachments is in South Papua Province, including Merauke
and Boeven Digoel regencies, where the Indonesian government
is clearing nearly three million hectares of land and
swamps, starting to produce what President Prabowo said to
be the ‘food and energy estate’.”

Meanwhile, Papuans
are not only seeing more military personnel in their
homeland these days – they’re witnessing a new type of
warfare and technology being used by the Indonesian
military.

“Military units, usually equipped with
drones, are dispatched in areas where the Papuan militants
operate. These units patrol their respective areas with foot
soldiers and drone units also armed with grenades and other
explosives attached to the drone.”

Indonesia’s
military also works together with a large Indonesian police
presence in Papua – the research figures showed there are
26,660 police deployed in Papua region.

Additionally,
countless officers from the State Intelligence Agency, who
are scattered through the region, work in tandem with the
security forces to protect the interests of the Indonesian
state.

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