21 Oct 2011

NZ urged to review links with Indonesia in light of Papua violence

2:45 pm on 21 October 2011

The Indonesia Human Rights Committee has urged New Zealand's Government to take action to protect people from ongoing security force violence in Indonesia's Papua region.

The call comes after military and police opened fire on delegates at the Third Papuan People's Congress in Jayapura this week, killing two civilians.

Last week, security forces reportedly killed two miners participating in strike action at the Freeport McMoran mine near Timika.

The Committee's Maire Leadbetter says the time is long overdue for New Zealand Crown Financial Institutes to divest from all holdings in the Freeport mine, and for the government to review its links with Indonesia's security forces.

"This is a government after all with a military relationship with Indonesia and police relationship I should say. This is what the (Indonesian) military and police that we support are doing in West Papua and what are we doing about it? We're still investing in the Freeport McMoran mine, creaming it out of Freeport McMoran that causes so much suffering to the people."

Maire Leadbetter