Torture' Story

From Irian Jaya

From a Lae correspondent

Indonesian troops are torturing and killing civilians in Irian Jaya just across the border from Papua New Guinea, an Irianese claimed in Lae in November.

The claim was made by Mr Martinus Kambu, a second year student at the Papua New Guinea University of Technology.

He said he had proof from contacts in Irian Jaya that a leader of the Papua Freedom Movement there had died while being tortured by Indo nesian troops in September. The leader, Obet Tabuni, aged about 29, had been captured by Indonesian troops in a restaurant in the capital, Jayapura.

Tabuni was one of a group of several men who returned to Irian Jaya late in 1969 after fleeing to Papua New Guinea to escape the Indonesians. The men formed a rebel group operating between the border

and Jayapura. They were all members of the Papua Freedom Movement. . ii. , Tabum and two of the rebels had gone to Jayapura to meet one of their contacts, a doctor, in a restaurant.

However, the doctor had betrayed them and the restaurant was surrounded by soldiers who stormed in firing guns.

Tabuni, who was armed, shot and

killed the doctor who had betrayed him. He also killed a soldier, but he and his companions were captured within a few minutes .

The Indonesian military newspaper in Jayapura later carried a photo graph of Tabuni. It showed him handcuffed and was published with a warning to West Irianese not to resist Indonesians.