Behind The Border 'War'

Papua New Guinea

Frank Senge reports exclusively on PNG’s escalating border conflict.

N October 16, 17 And 18

this year a number of In donesian patrols crossed the border from Irian Jaya into the Papua New Guinea province of West Sepik.

The soldiers established temporary bases 300 metres into PNG. Each pat rol, consisting of about 100 men, was searching for the OPM supporters of Max Rumbiak, currently held prisoner

in Jayapura.

On October 22 another patrol cros sed the border to the PNG border vil lage of New Seram, where they took

eight prisoners including a mother, a

three-year-old child and another child, fi has been established by PNG intelli gence sources that the patrol was com manded by Second Lieutenant Sujari of 431 Battalion, based in Jayapura.

Seven prisoners were released after initial questioning, but a Mr Chris Elias was taken across the border to Skofro where he was questioned about his relationship with OPM rebels and his nationality. He was later taken to the border and released after being held for two days.

The kidnapping of PNG citizens and the incursions, totalling seven this year, have incensed PNG authorities and burnt a hole in the Treaty of Mutual Respect, Friendship and Co

operation recently signed by the two

countries. Immediately after the raids PNG authorities held a series of

‘emergency’ National Security Council

meetings, and relayed the usual pro test notes to Jakarta.

But after the latest incursion, the government is on edge: there is a feel ing that the incursions have occurred too often for Indonesian soldiers to have ‘misread’ their maps or for a ‘hot-headed’ junior commander to have defied orders in pursuit of Free

Papua Movement fighters.

One official said: “People are losing sleep over this. We are concerned ab out the three million people of PNG.”

Chairman of the Permanent Par

liamentary Committee on Foreign

Affairs and Defence Benias Sabumei put it aptly: “This time it was hos tages; next time there will be dead Papua New Guineans.”

Publicly, Foreign Affairs Minister

Michael Somare often referred to among OPM circles as “the silent fighter” proclaimed that PNG and Indonesia were still good friends. “We used to have a good rapport. There’s just those border incursions,” he said.

Privately, he is said to be fuming.

He has every reason to be: informa tion obtained exclusively by Pacific Is lands Monthly reveals that there is more to “just those border incursions” than meets the eye ... as Mr Somare is aware. It is apparent now that PNG

authorities, particularly in Foreign

Affairs and Defence, have indeed been losing sleep and have been

withholding information that might

alarm the public.

Two men, for example, were killed in PNG in April this year by Indone sian soldiers illegally camped there.

Indonesian troops are openly defying PNG Defence Force requests to move away from PNG, are setting up camp in PNG territory and mounting anti- OPM operations that last for weeks.

The killing occurred during a cross border raid on April 3. A Mr Hendri kus Tabuni was killed in the raid on

Hans Bomai Camp: the following day

there was another raid one kilometre into PNG. The Indonesians set up another camp from which many small patrols were carried out inside PNG territory, and in one of these patrols a Mr Elly Jikwa was shot dead and his body left by a riverbank.

Though both men are named, their nationality and whether they are OPM sympathisers or not is being withheld.

PNG Defence Force troops in the area made requests to the Indonesians to withdraw, but their commanding officer ret used until July 24.

PNG officials are convinced the ac tion was not due to any ‘navigational error’, as Indonesian troops were more than aware of the position of their camp in relation to the border maker. Tney are equally sure the ac tion had the full backing of higher military authorities and was not just (as Indonesia has claimed of other illegal border incursions) a matter of a

junior officer defying orders.

Officials said this was partly con firmed at a meeting between the PNG and Indonesian Defence Ministers in

May. Indonesian officials produced

falsified evidence that one border marker was 200 metres into Irian Jaya and accused PNGDF troops of cros sing into Irian Jaya.

On July 3, a helicopter carrying 13 armed Indonesian soldiers landed at the village of Irim Kwi in the Western Province, well inside PNG territory.

The patrol also established a camp there, chopping down some local fruit

trees in the process.

They were flown back to Irian Jaya on July 8 by helicopter; later that month, during a joint border survey, an Indonesian patrol shot at PNG sol diers at Ingemoit. Again PNG main tains its soldiers were shot at inside their own territory and, while they were under very strict instructions not to shoot, were forced to return fire to force a withdrawal.

PNG has already communicated that it considers the unprovoked attack on its soldiers “a fragrant violation of its territorial sovereignty and an act of aggression that violates and under

mines the principles of good neigh

bourly relations”. Indonesian soldiers involved allegedly did not wear proper uniforms for identity purposes as re

quired under international practice.

Mr Somare raised the matter with some heat in Parliament.

Then there was a series of incur sions in October into West Sepik pro vince — about which PNG has pro tested to Indonesia without success.

After the October incursions Port Moresby dispatched a strong protest to Indonesia, even threatening to boycott the Joint Border Committee meetings in Medan, Sumatra from November 7-9.

Receiving no response — in fact, a denial by Foreign Minister Ali Alatas was reported — PNG went to the meeting regardless, and informed the Indonesians that it would refer any further violations of the common bor der to the International Court of Jus tice in The Hague.

PNG has also presented a vague threat to both the OPM and the In donesian military that it would be tak

ing steps to “prevent illegal groups

from using its territory as a base from which illegal acts are launched”.

There is growing unease that the spirit of the treaty signed between the two countries is likely to be lost: “It’s setting the pace backwards,” one senior Foreign Affairs official said.

The treaty specifically mentions that Indonesia will not conduct military pursuit of OPM rebels without the knowledge of PNG, and then only on its own side of the border. However, one of the greatest difficulties in that is that the border is one of the least developed areas of the two countries.

There is no line of communication

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or effective means of transportation over land; no clear line delineates the border and there are only 13 cement markets set at intervals across the almost 300-kilometre-long border.

Traditional landowners have gar dens and homes on each side of the border: Papua New Guineans who live on the border speak fluent Bahasa In donesia, harbour OPM fighters and

make shopping trips into Jayapura

where goods are cheap (this is quite

legal, as they have border crossing

passes authorised and recognised by the two governments).

Throughout the border region peo ple are shifting their nationality at will whenever the situation suits them, simply for economic gain. If there is a project in PNG, those in Indonesia cross over: Papua New Guineans do likewise when there are jobs offering on the other side.

Already about 140 Papua New Gui nean citizens are border-crossers in the Indonesian district of Waris. PNG is negotiating for their return. But in the midst of this confusing situation

some 600 fully fledged OPM fighters

operate, irritating both governments.

PNG wants to protest to the OPM, too, but has nobody on whom to serve the protest and even less chance of it having any effect.

In the meantime, Foreign Relations and Defence Committee Chairman Sabumei has warned that: “The very existence of OPM has now become a serious threat to the lives of our Papua New Guinea citizens, and the government must accept that reality and do what it can to solve the prob lem once and for all.”

Apart from protests, negotiations

and development of the border, PNG can do little to stem border crossings for the present. It is caught in a dilemma if it allows the situation to continue, it might come to “dead Papua New Guineans” mistaken by In donesian forces for OPM fighters. If it reacts militarily, it could be dragging itself (and po sibly Australia) into a conflict with global consequences.

If PNG were to combine forces with Indonesia to wipe out the OPM thorn in both their sides, they risk the wrath of world humanitarian organisations and more importantly that of the Melanesian people . . . the greatest number of whom are PNG citizens.

However there is a nagging thought in the back of PNG’s leaders’ minds that the incursions are orchestrated with the aim of irritating PNG into doing something rash. It is a dilemma any PNG government would avoid at all costs, but one the present govern ment is finding itself increasingly pressured to face head on. □