By: Levi Raema Wenda*)
Strict action against the Papuan Separatist Terrorist Group (KST) by the security forces must continue not only to its members, but also to its supporters. Firm action will have a clear effect that there should not be certain parties that threaten the sovereignty of the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia.
KST Papua, Free Papua Organization (OPM) is a group that was born in the 1960s. The main goal of this group is to separate the Earth of Cenderawasih from the lap of Mother Earth. To achieve its goals, KST Papua often provokes the Papuan people by carrying out attacks and acts of violence against civilians, be it Papuans or migrants. This group is also often involved in clashes with law enforcement officers tasked with maintaining security and order in Papua.
KST Papua often justifies various ways to achieve its main goal. KST Papua bravely infiltrated the Government Institution to launch its action. This was revealed after the police managed to thwart an attempt to supply hundreds of rounds of ammunition to KST Papua. What is more surprising than this case is that the perpetrator is a member of the State Civil Apparatus (ASN).
This ASN with the initials AN was arrested while supplying hundreds of rounds of ammunition to KST Papua in Elelim District, Yalimo Regency, Papua. The perpetrators were arrested with cash worth Rp. 450 million and hundreds of rounds of ammunition. The money will be used by the perpetrators to find ammunition which will later be supplied to KST Papua. The suspect and his evidence have now been taken into custody by the police.
From this case, it is known that the money worth Rp. 450 million is thought to have come from unscrupulous officials. This is in accordance with what was conveyed by the Directorate of General Criminal Investigation (Ditreskrimum) of the Papua Regional Police (Polda), Police Commissioner Faizal Ramadhani, in Jayapura on Wednesday, July 13, 2022.
The arrest of the ASN with the initials AN stems from the observation of officers who saw AN’s suspicious movements while driving a two-wheeled vehicle on June 29, 2022. Then on July 2, 2022, the police arrested T in Jayapura who was suspected of selling 160 rounds of ammunition to AN. And a few days later the Military Regional Military Police (Pomdam) XVII/Cenderawasih arrested Corporal Two (Kopda) BI and Corporal One (Koptu) TJR who were suspected of being involved in the case.
AN, who is a member of the ASN, apparently got his ammunition not only from Jayapura, but also from neighboring Papua New Guinea. Kombes Faizal explained that AN crossed into Papua New Guinea via the Bintang Mountains area. To avoid border checks, AN returned to Papua via the traditional route in Keerom Regency.
After leaving Keerom, AN then left for Jayapura to go to Wamena (Jayawijaya Regency) by motorbike. Before arriving at Wamena, AN was arrested in Elelim District, Yalimo District. Kombes Faizal then emphasized that even though AN was an ASN of the Nduga Regency Government (Pemkab), AN was a member of KST Papua under the leadership of Egianus Kogoya.
The arrest of the Nduga Regency Government ASN person received appreciation from the Papuan Regional Police Chief (Kapolda) Inspector General of Police (Irjen Pol) Mathius D Fakhiri. The Papuan police chief emphasized that AN’s arrest would save many lives. This is because the supply of ammunition for KST Papua will be hampered and will disrupt their activities. Fakhri added that KST Papua always tries to shoot at close range from the target so as not to waste ammunition, by reducing the amount of ammunition for KST Papua, many lives can be saved. The police will also investigate the source of funding for KST Papua to carry out its activities.
The arrest of those who support the Papuan KST operation is not the first to happen. According to the Alliance for Democracy for Papua (ALDP), 51 people have been arrested and made suspects in cases of buying and selling weapons and ammunition in Papua in the last 10 years.
The Director of ALDP, Arum Siregar, revealed that the sale of weapons and ammunition to KST Papua was not only carried out by civilians, but also by TNI and Polri officers. He added that of the 51 people involved, 20 of them were TNI and Polri officers. Over the past 10 years, the ALDP has recorded that 9,605 ammunition and 52 weapons were almost sold by individuals to KST Papua, and were successfully thwarted. A success, considering that if the weapons and ammunition made it into the hands of KST Papua, it is likely that many Indonesian people’s lives would have to be sacrificed.
It is known that there are six locations that are the entrances to the mountainous region which is the basis for the location of KST Papua, such as Nabire, Timika, Jayapura, and Sorong which are the main access routes for transactions that are easy to enter mountainous areas.
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