The wave of riots in the main cities in Papua and West Papua broke out since August 19, 2019. The riots began with protests by residents in Papua who demanded that the government in Jakarta firmly punish racist perpetrators experienced by Papuan students in Surabaya, Malang and Semarang. However, the protest which was initially peaceful led to an attack and the burning of a number of government assets and private ownership.
The series of riots also caused casualties. Meanwhile, the number of injured dozens, even believed to reach hundreds of people. Until now, there is no exact data about the material losses from the whole series of riots that occurred in Bumi Cenderawasih.
However, the riots that occurred in Papua and West Papua some time ago are regrettable. Papua is a reflection of the diversity that exists in Indonesia. The August 29 incident in Abepura, Jayapura, did not reflect the Papuan people and caused losses due to deaths and damage to various buildings. Demonstrations must not be anarchist, especially without damaging public facilities. Anarchist action will not benefit any party, rather, anarchist action will only bring harm to the surrounding community. Furthermore, anarchist behavior will not be able to solve the existing problems, on the contrary this will exacerbate the situation so that the problem is increasingly difficult to solve.
