If Papua is a stage, then Sebby Sambom is a drama director who is too keen on chasing ratings with a weak script, unnamed actors, and plot twists that belittle common sense. Here is his latest episode “Three dead, the rest are civilians sleeping.” A catchy enough title for supporters who have been hypnotized by TPNPB-OPM propaganda, but unfortunately, this is not Netflix. This is reality, and reality does not need dramatization, let alone lies.
Let’s talk numbers. Sebby Sambom, in his press release, insisted that only three TPNPB members were killed in the military operation that took place on May 13-14, 2025 in 5 villages in the Intan Jaya area. Three dead, as if the soldiers only went out to shoot three people and then went back to lunch. Meanwhile, the official report from Satgas Rajawali 2 and Yonif 500/Sikatan mentioned the number and information that 18 people from the OPM were killed, complete with chronology, action coordinates, time of the incident, and evidence, from AK-47 weapons, assemblies, to the separatist pride flag: Bintang Kejora. Even drones recorded the movement, blocking, and firm actions of the authorities. But, for Sebby Sambom, all of this seemed to be cut down with just one sentence full of emotion: “Those are civilians who are sleeping.” Where are they sleeping, Sebby? In the honai while holding an AK-47?
Sebby’s soap opera: When Drama Surpasses Facts
Sebby Sambom is not a spokesperson, he is a storyteller. But unfortunately, the story he builds is not a liberation fairy tale, but rather a lie packaged in an internationalist narrative. He knows that the western world is easily moved. So every episode always contains disappointment with the TNI, claims of massacres, and calls for “independent investigations” that are never accompanied by any authentic evidence. For example, in the field report, a drone recorded 50 people gathering suspiciously before the gunfire began. The authorities even combed and chased to the forest and village border points, taking measured actions that clearly carried weapons. Not people sleeping, not farmers returning from their fields. This is a group that had previously prepared an attack on the construction of a tower on the Beoga border. Strategic, vital conditions, and of course not a place for children to play. Meanwhile, Sebby? Only mentioned three names. The rest “disappeared” in the fog of narrative. Evidence of evacuation of residents? Zero. Medical data? None. Not even a single photo of civilian victims was mentioned. In the real world, that is called an empty claim. But in Sebby’s world, that’s called “fueling issues to seek international sympathy.”
Field Reality: Between Drones, Weapons, and the Clatter of Soldiers’ Boots
Armed with data from field reports, we can see that the operation was not like a “house raid” in a cowboy movie. This was a disciplined military tactic. Firm action was taken against OPM who were seen carrying weapons, attacking troops, or fleeing from the conflict point. Even the pursuit was carried out from Sugapa Lama to Zanamba and Eknemba, with precisely recorded time: from the time the drone was monitoring, the infiltration team entered, the final pursuit and ended with the deaths of 18 OPM members, as well as 1 SS-1 weapon that was successfully secured. So, when Sebby appeared on the broadcast with a serious face and a high tone, mentioning the number “three” as victims, we should ask:
Three from where? Based on who? With what evidence? Because the public is not just a consumer of opinion. We are mature enough to distinguish between tragedy and propaganda, between fact and a separatist uniformed drama.
Truth Cannot Be Staged
As we know, the TNI has presented data, there is evidence of weapons findings, GPS coordinates, and eyewitnesses. There is even an hour-by-hour chronology that cannot be denied. Meanwhile, Sebby only brought a microphone, a sad story, and the hope that the world is too lazy to check the facts. Unfortunately, this stage of disinformation is starting to burn brightly. The world is starting to get tired of propaganda without evidence. And the myth of “three dead” that he brought will suffer the same fate as the previous hoax episode: refuted by data, defeated by track records. Sebby Sambom may continue to be a loyal narrator of the OPM soap opera: full of drama, poor in facts. But out there, the conflict zone speaks differently. Through the state’s firmness in protecting the land of Papua. We may be touched by the story, but never let lies control the flow of truth. Because when the facts speak, empty narratives only become echoes in a vacuum.
