Uwazi

La Ode Muhammad Safaat, a justice-seeking activist for Randi-Yusuf, member of the Same Blood Student Alliance (AMS) victim of a shooting, was arrested by officers from the Directorate of Research and General Crimes of the Regional Police Southeast Sulawesi on Monday, (28/9/2020 ).

Before the arrest, he was recording the ruin of protester’s camps in front of Southeast Sulawesi District Police office that was ruined by a group of unknown people two weeks before. While documenting, he was stopped by a police and got his cell phone confiscated and the police deleted his recording of the ruins of the camps. A few moments later, he got arrested and taken to the police office because he made a Facebook post titled “Is there any Police from Southeast Sulawesi Police District that still have functioning brain?”

During the investigation, Faat stated that the police threatened to skin him as well as gouge his eyeballs. A police officer also kicked a chair beside Faat during the investigation as a form of intimidation toward him. He was released at around 18.45 WITA although the police still process his case in order to charge him criminally.

According to the Director of Investigation and General Crimes of Southeast Sulawesi Regional Police, La Ode Aries Elfatar, Safaat was interogated at the Regional Police Headquarters Office and released at 19.30 WITa. He was accused for assaulting the institution through his Facebook post about the investigation of Randi-Yusuf's case.

Zonasultra

Kepolisian Daerah (Polda) Aceh, diminta harus taat pada aturan Dewan Pers, dalam menyelesaikan persengketaan antara Pimpinan Redaksi Metro Aceh, Bahrul Walidin dengan Direktur PT Imza Rizky Jaya, Hj Cut Rizayati. Sebagaimana diketahui, Direktur Utama PT Imza Rizky Jaya Rizayati, melalui penerima kuasa Rizaldi telah melaporkan Pemimpin Redaksi Metro Aceh Bahrul Walidin, ke Polda Aceh pada 24 Agustus 2020, dengan nomor laporan: STTLP/228/VIII/YAN.2.5/2020 SPKT, atas kasus pencemaran nama baik.

Ketua Umum Alinasi Jurnalis Indepen (AJI) Indonesia, Abdul Manan mengatakan, tudingan tentang pencemaran nama baik tersebut, bermula ketika Metro Aceh menayangkan berita yang berjudul “Hj Rizayati Dituding Wanita Penipu Ulung” pada 20 Agustus 2020.

“Berita itu ditulis berdasarkan keterangan dari korbannya Rizayanti dan sejumlah narasumber yang bertanggungjawab. Setelah beberapa saat berita tersebut tayang, maka Rizayati menghubungi Bahrul Walidin melalui pesan aplikasi WhatsApp dan mengaku keberatan diberitakan,” ujar Abdul Manan.

Abdul Manan menambahkan, direktur tersebut malah mengatakan kalau berita itu tidak sesuai dengan fakta yang sebenarnya, sementara hak jawab yang dikonfirmasi melalui telepon seluler sudah dimuat.

Bukan hanya itu saja, Rizayati diduga mengancam dengan melingkari foto-foto Bahrul Walidin dan ditambah kalimat bernada ancaman, salah satunya “Tiada Ampun Bagimu Wartawan Bodrex”.

“Maka kami meminta Polda Aceh agar melimpahkan kasus sengketa pemberitaan antara Direktur Utama PT Imza Rizky Jaya Rizayati dengan Pemimpin Redaksi Metro Aceh Bahrul Walidin ke Dewan Pers,” tutur Abdul Manan.

Tambahnya, mengapa harus melalui mekanisme Dewan Pers, karena sesuai dengan Nota Kesepahaman antara Dewan Pers dengan Kepolisian Negara Republik Indonesia tentang Koordinasi Dalam Perlindungan Kemerdekaan Pers pada 2017.

“Jurnalis dalam melaksanakan profesinya, mendapat perlindungan hukum sesuai yang tercantum dalam Pasal 8 Undang-undang Nomor 40 Tahun 1999 Tentang Pers. Selain itu, orang yang melakukan kekerasan terhadap jurnalis baik fisik maupun verbal dapat dijerat pasal pidana,” Kata Abdul Manan.

Bakata | IFJ

Juru Bicara Aliansi Gerakan Buruh Bersama Rakyat (GEBRAK) Nining Elitos mengatakan lebih dari 100 orang diamankan polisi karena hendak bergabung dalam demonstrasi menolak Rancangan Undang Undang (RUU) Omnibus Law Cipta Kerja.

Demo GEBRAK digelar di Jakarta, tepatnya di depan Gedung DPR. Nining mengatakan, massa yang diamankan itu merupakan pemuda dan mahasiswa yang berangkat menggunakan bis dan kereta.

"Kami belum tahu persis, tapi informasi kami dapat lebih dari 100-an. Informasi kami dapatkan dari komunikasi Kapolda dan Komnas HAM ada lebih dari 30 orang diamankan di Polda Metro Jaya," kata dia di depan Gedung DPR/MPR, Jumat (14/8) malam.

Nining menyayangkan penangkapan itu. Sebab, kata dia, pihaknya sudah mengirim pemberitahuan bahwa aksi itu diikuti dari berbagai elemen masyarakat.

"Artinya, aksi ini adalah aksi yang legal yang sudah diberitahukan bahwa kelompok yang turun hari ini tidak hanya pemuda. Tapi mahasiswa, petani dan sektor-sektor lain, kami menegaskan sikap kami menolak RUU Omnibus," kata dia.

Kapolres Metro Jakarta Pusat Kombes Pol Heru Novianto membenarkan ada massa yang diamankan. Namun ia mengatakan peristiwa itu ditangani oleh Polda Metro Jaya.

Kabid Humas Polda Metro Jaya Kombes Yusri Yunus mengatakan ada sekitar 70-80 orang yang diamankan aparat. Orang-orang yang diamankan itu, kata dia, bukan merupakan kelompok buruh atau mahasiswa.

"Itu adalah orang-orang yang mau bikin kacau, dia bawa bendera anarko, batu, botol, dirazia pada saat mau demo, kita periksa bukan kelompok buruh dan mahasiswa. Kelompok sendiri," kata dia saat dihubungi, Jumat (14/8) malam.

Yusri bilang, setelah diperiksa dan diambil keterangannya, sebagian besar orang yang diamankan itu kemudian dipulangkan oleh aparat.

"Yang masih proses lanjut sekitar 8 orang karena ada unsur pidana misal bawa molotov, ketapel. Masih proses lanjut pemeriksaan," kata dia.

CNN Indonesia

Kasus dugaan intimidasi terhadap terhadap Arif, wartawan Radar Mandalika yang dilakukan oknum anggota Satuan Polisi Pamong Praja (Satpol PP) Pemprov NTB saat meliput aksi demonstrasi, di depan kantor gubernur NTB pada Senin (24/8/2020) menuai reaksi berbagai pihak.

Ketua Forum Wartawan Pemprov dan DPRD NTB, Fahrul Mustofa menyesalkan kejadian yang menimpa jurnalis yang tengah melakukan tugas peliputan tersebut.

“Setelah menonton langsung aksi intimidasi itu, serta mendengar langsung informasi dari kawan-kawan yang menyaksikan kejadian itu, kami mengecam aksi brutal itu. Sekali lagi, itu enggak etis dan enggak boleh lagi terjadi,” tegasnya, Selasa (25/8/2020).

Menurut Fahrul, aksi aparat itu harus disikapi oleh kepala OPD yang bersangkutan. Bila perlu Sekda NTB HL Gita Ariadi selaku pembina kepagawaian harus menegur Kepala Satpol PP NTB.

Pasalnya, antara jurnalis dan pemerintah daerah adalah mitra strategis guna menyiarkan program-program pemerintah sekaligus mengawal jalannnya pemerintah daerah.

"Sesuai PP Nomor 53 tahun 2010 tentang disiplin PNS sudah diatur sangsi pada PNS/ASN yang melakukan pelanggaran disiplin itu. Maka, kami minta oknum Satpol PP itu agar ditindak dan diberikan sangsi sesuai peraturan perundang-undangan," tegasnya.

Terpisah, Sekretaris Forum Wartawan DPRD NTB dan Pemprov NTB, Iman Maqdis juga menyayangkan tindakan premenisme yang dilakukan oknum Satpol PP itu.

Padahal, menurutnya, tugas Satpol PP adalah menjaga ketertiban dan keamanan, serta bukan melakukan intimidasi.

"Kalaupun ada mediasi, sekali lagi itu sifatnya pribadi dan bukan kelembagaan. Kami minta agar persoalan ini akan terus berlanjut, sehingga ada efek jera agar tidak muncul persoalan serupa di kemudian hari," tandasnya.

Terkait masalah tersebut, sejumlah organisasi pers seperti Aliansi Jurnalis Independen (AJI) Mataram, PWI NTB, AMSI NTB hingga IJTI setempat juga menyesalkan tindakan represif tersebut.

Sebelumnya, Kepala Satpol PP NTB, Tri Budi Prayitno telah meminta maaf secara terbuka atas aksi represif dan yang dilakukan salah satu anggotanya.

Perlu diketahui, Arif mendapat diintimidasi kala meliput Aliansi Mahasiswa Peduli Palestina NTB di depan kantor Gubernur NTB, Senin (24/8/2020) lalu. Saat itu dia didorong dan diminta menghapus rekaman gambarnya oleh seorang oknum Satpol PP.

Bkpp.demak | IFJ

Dalam rentang waktu satu bulan terakhir, beberapa anggota masyarakat adat Kinipan, Kecamatan Batang Kawa, Kabupaten Lamandau Kalimantan Tengah ditangkap. Koalisi Keadilan untuk Kinipan menganggap penangkapan masyarakat adat Kinipan ini adalah upaya kriminalisasi membungkam perjuangan masyarakat adat Kinipan dalam perlawanan terhadap ekspansi perkebunan PT Sawit Mandiri Lestari (SML).

Rabu (26/8/2020) siang, pasukan kepolisian yang di antaranya berseragam hitam, lengkap dengan rompi, helm dan senjata laras panjang, dilaporkan menangkap paksa Effendi Buhing, Ketua Komunitas Adat Laman Kinipan di rumahnya di Desa Kinipan, Kecamatan Batang Kawa, Kabupaten Lamandau.

Dari video penangkapan yang beredar, Effendi Buhing sempat menolak dirinya ditangkap. Karena menurut Effendi, penangkapan tersebut tidak jelas alasan dan persoalannya. Namun demikian, pihak polisi tetap memaksa menangkap dirinya.

Effendi terlihat diseret paksa oleh sejumlah personel kepolisian dari rumahnya menuju mobil berwarna hitam yang sudah disiapkan. Di dekat mobil tersebut, juga terlihat polisi berseragam warna hitam dan bersenjata api laras panjang. Penangkapan Effendi ini diiringi suara histeris warga dan keluarganya. Sejauh ini belum diketahui persoalan apa yang menyebabkan Effendi Buhing ditangkap.

Penangkapan Effendi ini menuai tanggapan keras dari Koalisi Keadilan untuk Kinipan. Koalisi yang di antaranya termasuk Aliansi Masyarakat Adat Nusantara (AMAN) Kalteng, Wahana Lingkungan Hidup (Walhi) Kalteng dan Save Our Borneo ini menyatakan sikap. Pertama, mengecam keras tindakkan represif aparat Kepolisian dari Polda Kalteng atas penangkapan Effendi Buhing di rumahnya pada Rabu, 26 Agustus 2020.

Koalisi juga mendesak Kapolda Kalteng segera membebaskan Effendi Buhing dan 5 warga Komunitas Adat Laman Kinipan lainnya yang telah ditangkap sebelumnya. Selanjutnya, Koalisi juga meminta agar upaya kriminalisasi terhadap tetua, tokoh, masyarakat adat dan pejuang lingkungan yang berjuang mempertahankan hak, hutan, wilayah adat dan ruang hidup mereka dari ancaman alih fungsi kawasan oleh PT SML dihentikan.

"Mendesak agar pemerintah melakukan evaluasi terhadap izin PT Sawit Mandiri Lestari yang beroperasi di wilayah adat Kinipan," kata Direktur Walhi Kalteng, Dimas N. Hartono, Rabu (26/8/2020).

Dimas mengatakan, pihaknya telah menyiapkan pendamping hukum untuk Effendi Buhing. Saat ini pendamping hukum yang ditunjuk tengah melakukan komunikasi dengan pihak kepolian terkait penangkapan Effendi.

Menurut Dimas, penangkapan Effendi, Riswan dan 4 warga Kinipan lainnya ini merupakan salah satu upaya kriminalisasi, agar masyarakat tidak melakukan penolakan terhadap kehadiran PT SML.

"Kita berharap polisi tidak sebatas melihat sisi ini saja. Tapi akar masalahnya ini yang harus dilihat. Masyarakat berupaya melindungi hak mereka, melindungi peninggalan nenek moyang mereka agar tidak dirusak atau dihilangkan oleh perusahaan. Apalagi kita ketahui bersama di lokasi tersebut potensi ulinnya masih sangat besar," kata Dimas.

Dimas mengatakan, berdasarkan catatan Walhi Kalteng, sejak 2005 hingga 2018 terdapat 345 konflik antara masyarakat dengan perkebunan kelapa sawit. Semua konflik tersebut rentan terjadinya kriminalisasi dan penangkapan terkait penolakan investasi yang ada di Kalteng.

"Kenapa ini bisa terjadi? Itu yang harus dilihat lebih mendalam. Kenapa masyarakat melakukan penolakan-penolakan. Karena hak mereka tidak diakui. Khususnya terkait di Kinipan itu sendiri adalah hak mereka dalam hal mengelola wilayah adatnya sendiri secara mandiri."

Sebelum Effendi Buhing ditangkap, ada 5 warga Kinipan lainnya yang juga ditangkap dan ditahan Polda Kalteng. Yakni Riswan, Desem, Yusa, Teki dan Embang. Mereka ditangkap dan ditahan di waktu yang berbeda.

Riswan ditangkap pihak Polda Kalteng satu hari menjelang peringatan kemerdekaan Republik Indonesia yang ke-75, 16 Agustus 2020. Riswan dituduh mencuri alat pemotong kayu atau chainsaw yang digunakan para penebang ulin di areal perkebunan sawit PT SML.

Sedangkan Desem, Yusa, Teki dan Embang, dibawa ke Polda Kalteng beberapa pekan sebelum Riswan ditangkap. Kala itu keempatnya dibawa untuk dimintai keterangan. Namun belakangan, beberapa dari mereka ditetapkan sebagai tersangka dan ditahan di Polda Kalteng dengan tuduhan yang sama dengan tuduhan yang dialamatkan kepada Riswan. Yakni dugaan tindak pidana pencurian dengan kekerasan, Pasal 365 KUHPidana.

Kasus Riswan

Terkait kasus Riswan, Ketua AMAN Kalteng, Ferdi Kurinianto dalam konferensi pers yang digelar pada Senin (24/8/2020) menjelaskan, Riswan ditangkap 3 pekan setelah mediasi antara komunitas adat Kinipan dengan PT SML gagal dilaksanakan di Kantor Camat Batang Kawa di Desa Kinipan, atau 2 bulan sejak kegiatan yang dituduhkan kepadanya.

Riswan yang sehari-hari bekerja sebagai Kasi Pemerintah Desa Kinipan ini ditetapkan sebagai tersangka oleh penyidik reserse kriminal umum Polda Kalteng dengan tuduhan tindak pidana pencurian dengan kekerasan sebagaimana dimaksud dalam pasal 365 KUHP.

Tindak pidana pencurian dengan kekerasan yang dituduhkan kepada Riswan tersebut merujuk pada kejadian 23 Juni 2020. Pada saat itu, warga Kinipan tengah berjaga di hulu Sungai Toin, untuk mempertahankan hutan adatnya, lalu mendengar suara mesin chain saw yang menjadi tanda masih adanya aktivitas penebangan dan pemotongan kayu ulin oleh para pekerja PT SML.

Riswan dan kawan-kawan, lanjut Ferdi, kemudian mendatangi dan menghentikan aktivitas tersebut. Sementera satu hari sebelumnya (22/6/2020) warga Komunitas Adat Kinipan berupaya menghentikan alat berat PT SML yang hendak masuk melakukan land clearing dan membabat sisa hutan Kinipan yang bahkan saat ini sudah masuk di areal bekas perladangan warga.

Padahal pada 22 Juni 2020 itu pula telah ada kesepakatan secara lisan antara perwakilan Humas Perusahaan dengan warga bahwa tidak ada lagi aktivitas lanjutan sementara menunggu perundingan pada 29 Juni 2020 di kantor Camat Batang Kawa.

"Jadi pada tanggal 22 Juni itu ada pertemuan antara warga dengan pihak perusahan di hutan. Ada lebih 50-an orang dari pihak perusahaan. Ada kesepakatan sebenarnya, bahwa tidak ada lagi pekerjaan selama menunggu kesepakatan musyarawah pada tanggal 29 Juni. Tapi nyatanya pada tanggal 23 Juni perusahaan bekerja. Begitulah yang akhirnya memunculkan respon dari warga untuk menahan mesin (chain saw) tersebut," ungkap Ferdi, Senin (24/8/2020).

Ferdi mengatakan, sejak 2012, Kinipan selalu menolak hadirnya investasi sawit di wilayah adat mereka. Pihak pemerintah desa dan tetua adat tidak pernah membubuhkan tanda tangan persetujuan untuk masuknya perusahaan perkebunan sawit skala besar di wilayah adatnya.

Penolakan masyarakat adat Kinipan tersebut kemudian menjadi konflik yang memanas dengan PT SML, terutama sejak perusahaan melakukan kegiatan land clearing dan pembabatan hutan pada awal 2018. Permintaan dan desakan warga Kinipan agar PT SML menghentikan aktivitas land clearing dan pemotongan kayu ulin, tak juga berhenti.

"Padahal warga Kinipan telah melakukan berbagai upaya untuk mencari keadilan. Mulai dari Pemerintah Kabupaten Lamandau dan Pemerintah Provinsi Kalimantan Tengah, Komnas HAM, Kementerian ATR/BPN, KemenLHK, hingga 2 kali melakukan mediasi di Kantor Staf Presiden (KSP) di Jakarta. Namun upaya mencari keadilan atas sumber daya alam dan hak-hak mereka tak kunjung didapat."

Penangkapan dan penahanan warga Kinipan akhir-akhir ini, kata Ferdi, memperlihatkan watak otoritarian dan arogansi.

"Koalisi mengupayakan proses penangguhan penahanan kepada Riswan dengan dasar bahwa Riswan memiliki riwayat kesehatan, wasir yang cukup serius, sehingga dengan adanya penangguhan penahanan ini Riswan dapat menjalani proses perawatan untuk kesembuhan penyakitnya. Penangguhan penahanan ini akan memberi ruang bagi Riswan dalam pelaksanaan tugas dan tanggung jawabnya sebagai perangkat Desa Kinipan," kata Ferdi.

Koalisi juga menyatakan, Komunitas Adat Kinipan merupakan pejuang, pahlawan lingkungan dan budaya yang berusaha untuk mempertahankan haknya dari upaya perampasan dan penghancuran oleh korporasi dan modal. Oleh sebab itu Negara semestinya melakukan upaya perlindungan bagi warga Kinipan dan memastikan terciptanya rasa aman bagi masyarakat adat Kinipan.

"Bukan sebaliknya malah melakukan tindakan-tindakan represif dan intimidatif atas perjuangan warga tersebut."

Koalisi juga meminta agar pemerintah harus segera menyelesaikan konflik Kinipan dengan PT SML melalui mekanisme yang sesuai dengan konteks masyarakat adat Laman Kinipan. Adil, jujur, terbuka serta mengedepankan asas sebagaimana yang tertuang dalam Pancasila.

Kemudian, pemerintah harus segera mengesahkan RUU Masyarakat Adat dan Raperda Masyarakat Adat Kalimantan Tengah sebagai jaminan untuk memastikan masyarakat adat dan hak-haknya sebagai subjek hukum terlindungi secara konstitusional.

"Penangkapan Riswan bukan hanya bersifat individual, tapi ini adalah kasus kolektif komunitas adat Laman Kinipan yang dilatarbelakangi oleh konflik tenurial yang tak kunjung selesai antara komunitas adat laman Kinipan dengan PT SML."

Terkait 4 warga Kinipan lain yang juga ditahan Polda. Ferdi menjelaskan, sejauh ini pendampingan hukum terhadap keempat warga tersebut ditangani oleh Fordayak. Karena keempat warga tersebut adalah anggota pasukan Motanoi yang merupakan bagian dari Fordayak. Namun berdasarkan informasi yang didapat, beberapa di antaranya sudah ditetapkan sebagai tersangka oleh Polda Kalteng.

Parlin Bayu Hutabarat, salah seorang kuasa hukum Riswan meminta penangguhan penahanan terhadap Riswan dapat segera dikabulkan. Karena apa yang dituduhkan bukanlah kejahatan luar biasa.

"Kami melihat ini bukan extra ordinary crime. Ini bagian dari perjuangan. Riswan meyakini apa yang dilakukan itu adalah mempertahankan hutan adat. Terlepas itu pendirian penyidik seperti apa jaksa seperti apa, tapi pendirian kami apa yang dilakukan klien kami adalah mempertahankan hutan adat," kata Parlin, Senin (24/8/2020).

Kabid Humas Polda Kalteng, Kombes Pol Hendra Rochmawan membenarkan kabar tentang penangkapan Effendi Buhing tersebut. Hendra mengatakan, penangkapan ini berawal dari 3 laporan PT SML.

"Pada prinsipnya Polda Kalteng profesional dalam menanggapi laporan polisi tersebut dengan bukti permulaan yang cukup sehingga perlu dilaksanakan penangkapan. Pada prinsipnya semua pihak mempunyai hak yang sama di muka hukum. Nanti dari penangkapan ini tentu ada pemeriksaan dan penyelidikan ini dapat memberi ruang jawab atas laporan tersebut," kata Kombes Pol Hendra Rochmawan, Rabu (26/8/2020).

Di kesempatan sebelumnya, saat ditanya tentang peluang penangguhan penahanan Riswan yang diajukan oleh pihak kuasa hukum Riswan, Hendra hanya mengatakan, pihaknya masih melakukan proses penyidikan terlebih dahulu.

Humas PT SML, Wendi, saat diminta konfrmasi, menyatakan tidak bersedia memberikan keterangan melalui sambungan telepon.

Betahita | Tempo.co

Aksi mahasiswa Pergerakan Mahasiswa Islam Indonesia (PMII) mendesak Bupati Blitar Rijanto bersikap tegas terhadap praktik tambang pasir (Galian C) ilegal dibubarkan sekelompok preman. Dengan berteriak kasar, massa yang datang dengan menumpang empat truk memaksa para aktivis mahasiswa menghentikan aksi unjuk rasa di Kantor Pemkab Blitar.

"Mereka berteriak-teriak dan inginnya kami membubarkan diri," ujar Ketua PMII Blitar Fathur Rohman, Rabu (26/8/2020).

Tidak diketahui pasti dari mana puluhan orang itu berasal. Dari penampilan dan tindak tanduknya yang kasar, kata Rohman, mereka seperti kelompok preman. "Sepertinya preman," ujar Rohman.

Gerombolan orang yang berjumlah lebih besar tersebut langsung membayangi massa aktivis mahasiswa yang berjumlah sekitar 50an orang. Begitu turun dari truk yang sepintas terlihat bekas pengangkut material pasir, mereka langsung menyatroni para aktivis mahasiswa yang tengah berorasi. Tidak hanya menghardik dan berteriak kasar.

Ada beberapa yang juga melakukan aksi melempar yang untungnya berhasil dihindari. "Intinya kami dipaksa bubar tidak melanjutkan demo," kata Fathur Rohman.

Tekanan massa tandingan yang berlangsung di Kantor Pemkab dan Polres Blitar tersebut tidak menyurutkan semangat para aktivis untuk terus menyuarakan aspirasi.

Puluhan aktivis PMII Blitar Raya mendesak Blitar Rijanto untuk bersikap tegas terhadap praktek tambang pasir liar (Galian C) yang marak di Kabupaten Blitar.

Para aktivis mendesak Pemkab segera menerbitkan regulasi yang jelas. "Kami tidak menuntut penutupan tambang. Tapi meminta ada regulasi jelas untuk penertiban dan pengelolaan," kata Fathur Rohman.

Dalam orasinya para aktivis menuding pemkab terkesan membiarkan praktik pertambangan ilegal. Bertahun tahun para penambang, yakni terutama dari kelompok pemodal, leluasa melakukan aktivitas ilegalnya.

Mulai di kawasan DAS Brantas hingga di wilayah Gunung Kelud, yakni di Kecamatan Kademangan, Sutojayan, Garum, Gandusari dan Nglegok, mayoritas penambang tidak ada yang berizin.

"Kalau pun ada yang berizin, setelah kita cek mereka hanya klaim," papar Fathur Rohman.

Tidak hanya merusak lingkungan, yakni terutama mata air dan pencemaran lingkungan. Aktivitas tambang liar dengan ratusan kendaraan pengangkut material yang berlalu lalang juga merusak jalan dan bangunan rumah warga.

Menanggapi aksi dengan dua massa yang bersitegang, Kabag Ops Polres Blitar Kompol Sapto Rachmadi mengatakan, polres hanya menerima surat pemberitahuan dari mahasiswa.

Sementara massa tandingan yang ternyata golongan para penambang pasir, kata Sapto tidak menyampaikan pemberitahuan. "Tidak sampai ada bentrokan dan kontak fisik. Mereka langsung bubar," ujar Sapto Rahmadi.

iNewsJatim

Tiga orang nelayan di Makassar, Sulawesi Selatan (Sulsel) melakukan protes terhadap kapal penambang pasir. Namun protes mereka itu berujung petaka.

Pada Minggu (23/8/2020) polisi menangkap tiga orang nelayan saat mereka melancarkan protes kepada kapal penambang pasir. Penangkapan ini juga diwarnai dengan penenggelaman kapal milik nelayan.

Tak terima dengan kejadian itu, pihak keluarga kemudian meminta bantuan hukum kepada LBH Makassar. Kepala Divisi Tanah dan Lingkungan LBH Makassar Edy Kurniawan membenarkan peristiwa tersebut.

"Ketiga nelayan (yang ditangkap) tersebut bernama Safaruddin, Faisal dan Baharuddin," kata Edy melalui keterangan tertulis yang diterima detikcom, Senin (24/8/2020).

Edy menuturkan peristiwa ini terjadi pada pukul 10.00 Wita saat kapal tambang pasir milik PT B menambang pasir di wilayah tangkap nelayan. Di area itulah para nelayan menggantungkan hidupnya.

"Akibatnya, para nelayan kehilangan hasil tangkapan karena lautnya langsung jadi keruh," beber Edy.

Merasa terganggu dengan aktivitas tambah karena air keruh, nelayan kemudian melakukan protes. Namun rencana tersebut tak sampai lantaran kapal penambang pasir itu dikawal oleh satu kapal perang dan empat kapal sekoci milik Direktorat Polairud Polda Sulsel.

Edy menerangkan seorang nelayan langsung didatangi dan ingin diborgol, namun yang bersangkutan menolak. Nelayan itu juga diancam, lepa-lepa atau kapal kecil miliknya ditenggelamkan.

"Beruntung nelayan berhasil menyelamatkan diri dengan melompat ke laut," beber Edy.

Detik News

The South Sulawesi water and police unit have arrested three student journalists in Makassar while they were covering a protest to reject sand mining on Saturday, September 12. The authorities released them on Sunday, September 13. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) stands in solidarity with its affiliate the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) Indonesia to demand an investigation into the arrest. The student journalists arrested were Hendra, the chairman of press student at the Hasanuddin University, Mansyur, the chief editor of CakrawalaIde at the Muslim Indonesia University, and Muhammad Raihan Rahman, who also a member of the CakrawalaIde publication.

The young journalists joined fishermen on their boat to protest sandmining on Kodingareng island. On the way back to Makassar, the boat was blocked by water and police unit vessels. Although the three student journalists showed their identity cards and a letter of assignment, the officers still arrested them. They were also reportedly intimidated and harassed before being escorted to the police office.

Sand mining is a controversial activity in Indonesia. Sand mining is a controversial activity in Indonesia. The operations of sand mining has impacted the fishermen and the coastal communities in the country.

The Indonesian Safety Committee for Journalists, which also supported by AJI Indonesia as its member, has condemned the arrest and remind the police that journalists are protected by the Press Law. According to the Press Law, everyone found guilty in obstructing journalists’ works will be sentenced to jail for two years at the maximum or charged with a maximum fine of IDR500 million or US$33,000.

“The Committee calls the police to investigate the officers who obstructed and intimidated the journalists. The Committee urges all the authorities to respect journalists who are on duty,” Committee added.

IFJ

The Endowment Fund for Education (LPDP), a scholarship program managed by the Finance Ministry, has demanded human rights lawyer Veronica Koman to return the scholarship funds she obtained from the program that amounts to Rp773.8 million.

The LPDP president director, Rionald Silaban, confirmed the information to Tempo on Tuesday, August 11. �That is correct, LPDP has asked Veronica Koman Liau to return the entire scholarship funds we have granted.�

According to Rionald, the LPDP scholarship contract requires recipients who study abroad to return to Indonesia after they had completed their studies. He claimed that LPDP, through numerous methods, attempted to summon Veronica Koman upon this specific requirement.

�The person had refused to return to Indonesia,� said Rionald.

However, Veronica denied she had ignored the rule and in a written statement mentioned that she had returned to Indonesia in September of 2018 after completing her Masters of Laws at the Australian National University.

Rionald Silaban did not answer Tempo�s question regarding Veronica�s confirmation.

In October of 2018, Veronica Koman claimed to have conducted a human rights advocacy and served at the Human Rights Advocates Association for Papua (PAHAM Papua) based in Jayapura. She continued to venture into an advocacy mission at the United Nations in Switzerland in March 2019 before returning to Indonesia again.

�While in Australia in August of 2019, I was summoned by the Indonesian police and my name was then included in their most-wanted list (DPO) in September of 2019,� said Veronica who was subjected to death and rape threats during the time as she voiced against the narrative echoed by authorities in August - September of 2019.

Tempo.co

Representatives from news websites tempo.co and tirto.id visited the Jakarta Police headquarters on Tuesday to report recent cyberattacks they have encountered.“As the owner of tirto.id, I feel like my house has been ransacked by thieves. Therefore, I’ve made the police report [today] in the hope of finding the perpetrators,” tirto.id editor in chief Atmaji Sapto Anggoro said in a statement made available to The Jakarta Post on Tuesday.

He explained that someone had broken into the media company’s website and deleted at least seven articles, including some that scrutinized the coronavirus drug development involving the State Intelligence Agency (BIN) and the Indonesian Military (TNI). The attack occurred on Friday. Tempo.co chief editor Setri Yasa, meanwhile, said the website was not accessible starting on Thursday midnight. The hacker took down the homepage replacing it with a statement that read “Stop hoaxes. Don’t lie to the Indonesian people, return to true journalistic ethics, obey the Press Council. Don’t [bow to] people who pay. Defaced by @xdigeembok.” The problem was resolved by at around 2:26 a.m. the @xdigembook Twitter account claimed to be responsible for the hacks on the following morning. It also replied to one of the Tempo articles, saying “Just wait. I will stick boogers onto your system again.”

Tempo.co, which is a part of Tempo Media Group that also publishes Koran Tempo daily and Tempo weekly magazine, claimed to have suffered material and other losses because of the attack, hence it had filed the report to the police. In their reports, they said the hackers had violated the 1999 Press Law by hindering the work of journalists, as well as the 2016 Electronic Information and Transactions (ITE) Law by destroying or removing electronic information. The Legal Aid Institute for the Press (LBH Pers), tempo.co and tirto.id's lawyer in the case, hoped that the police could soon proceed with their investigation and find the perpetrators to protect press freedom in the country. “We want the police to be serious in handling our clients’ reports to prove that the state is there to protect the rights of its citizens,” LBH Pers director Ade Wahyudin said.

The social media account of a University of Indonesia (UI) epidemiologist, Pandu Riono, was also hacked previously. He is known to be critical of the government’s COVID-19 related policies, such as tourism promotion amid the pandemic and the ineffectiveness of rapid antibody tests that have become a requirement for traveling. Prior to the hacking, the scientist criticized Airlangga University in Surabaya, East Java, for not reporting its potential vaccine to the Food and Drug Monitoring Agency (BPOM) to undergo clinical trials, but handing it over to BIN and TNI instead.

Jakarta Post

Diananta Putra Sumedi, a former chief editor of online local media banjarhits.id, was found guilty and sentenced to three months 15 days for his reporting of a land dispute. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) Indonesia express dismay over the conviction and call on authorities to stop criminalising journalists.

The panel of judges lead by Meir Elisabeth at the hearing in Kotabaru District Court, South Kalimantan on August 10 said that Diananta was guilty of inciting hatred and breaching the code of journalism ethics. The judges ruled he violated the article of 28 of the Information and Electronic Transactions Law (ITE Law).

Diananta was arrested by the special crimes investigation directorate of South Kalimantan despite the Indonesian Press Council resolving the dispute in January, 2020. He published an article on a land conflict entitled Johnlin seizes land, Dayak complains to the South Kalimantan Police on November 9, 2019 in banjarhits.id, a partner of national news media Kumparan. Sukirman from a Dayak community council filed a report against Diananta after the publication of the article. Although the dispute has been resolved through mediation process in the Press Council, the trial of Diananta still continued.

Criminalisation of journalists is an ongoing violation against journalists in Indonesia. Despite the fact that the police have signed a memorandum of understanding with the Indonesian Press Council to settle legal disputes, journalists are still being dragged before the courts.

Speaking to the reporters after the trial, Diananta said that the conviction is a very bad precedent for press freedom in Indonesia.

IFJ

Ika Ningtyas and Zainal Ishaq, two fact-checkers from Tempo.co and also members of the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) Indonesia, were targeted by doxing attacks following their work debunking information related to Covid-19. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) joins its affiliate AJI Indonesia to denounce these online attacks and urge the public to recognise the important role of journalists in undercovering facts, particulary during a health pandemic.

CekFakta Tempo.co published four articles to verify Covid-19 claims made by a veterinarian M. Indro Cahyono from April to July. Indro had posted those claims through his social media accounts, which subsequently went viral. The results of fact-checking conducted by Ika and Zainal, found that Indra�s posted were not entirely reliable and may mislead the public.

In the article regarding the PCR test published by Zainal, a comment from an account named Nurul Indra said that Zainal�s verification was wrong and Indro should file a report against Zainal and Tempo to the police. Polymerase chain reaction (PCR) is a diagnostic test for Covid-19

On July 31, Indro shared Zainal�s photos taken from his Facebook account together with the screenshots of fact-checking articles of Tempo.co. Indro wrote �fight for terrorist of Covid-19�. On August 1, Indro continued to share Zainal and Ika�s photos online, accusing the journalists of spreading fear. Indro�s attacks amped up on August 2 when he posted Zainal�s photo and labelled him as �the God of a global virus outbreak.�

AJI, in its statement, said the two journalists have contacted and interviewed numerous reliable sources including the representative of Indonesian Young Academy of Science (ALMI) and Airlangga University molecular biologist.

�AJI condemns online attacks against our members and reminds everyone that disputes regarding the media publications should follow the Indonesian Press Law mechanism,� AJI added.

IFJ

Unjuk rasa di depan kantor Bupati Bima Senin (27/7) berlangsung ricuh. Mahasiswa dan aparat terlibat bentrok. Bahkan pendemo yang tergabung dalam Front Rakyat Merdeka (FRM) terkena lontaran peluru gas air mata di bagian dada hingga dilarikan ke Puskesmas.

Mahasiswa yang terkena tembakan gas air mata diketahui bernama Muhaimin, warga asal Desa Ngali, Kecamatan Belo. Saat itu aparat berusaha membubarkan aksi dengan menggunakan gas air mata. Muhaimin tiba tiba terkapar pingsan. Sejumlah rekan korban berupaya mengevakuasi korban kemudian dilarikan ke Puskesmas Woha.

Sementara aksi yang berlangsung di depan kantor bupati tersebut terkait izin penambangan. Massa menuntut agar SK nomor 188.45/357/004/2010 terkait penyesuaian Izin Usaha Pertambangan (IUP) PT. Sumber Mineral Nusantara segera dicabut.

Menurut Kordum aksi, Imam Hidayat, izin tersebut bukan yang baru, melainkan penyesuaian terhadap izin yang lama. Yakni kuasa pertambangan nomor 621 tahun 2008 tanggal 22 Mei 2008. Mereka meminta agar izin itu segera dicabut dan diminta hentikan upaya �perampasan� lahan di setiap kecamatan yang ada di Kabupaten Bima.

Sebaliknya, yang jadi tuntutan mahasiswa agar Pemda menutup sejumlah kekurangan pelayanan langsung kepada masyarakat. Seperti menghadirkan mobil sampah, Damkar di setiap kecamatan, perbaikan infrastruktur jalan, lampu jalan dan drainase.

Massa juga mendesak Bupati Bima untuk mengevaluasi kinerja PD.Wawo, juga mendesak agar mengevaluasi kinerja KP3 tingkat Kabupaten Bima.

Kicknews

Puluhan demonstran yang terdiri dari 36 laki-laki dan seorang perempuan ditangkap polisi dalam aksi tolak Omnibus Law RUU Cipta Kerja di Makassar. "Massa unjuk rasa tanpa izin, lakukan perusakan, ada yang bawa sajam," ucap Kabid Humas Polda Sulawesi Selatan Kombes Pol Ibrahim Tompo, ketika dikonfirmasi Tirto, Kamis (16/7/2020). Tompo mengklaim peserta aksi juga mengabaikan perintah untuk membubarkan diri dari petugas. Kini mereka dibawa ke Polrestabes Makassar guna pemeriksaan. Massa yang terdiri dari aliansi mahasiswa dan buruh di Makassar berdemonstrasi di sekitar gedung DPRD Sulawesi Selatan dan bawah flyover Jalan Urip Sumoharjo, Kamis (16/7/2020). Demonstran dan aparat sempat bentrok saat demo berlangsung. Kabag Ops Polrestabes Makassar AKBP Anwar Danu mengatakan bentrokan karena aksi yang semula berjalan damai disusupi kelompok tertentu, namun dia tidak menyebut detail nama kelompok tersebut. "Sebenarnya semua bisa berjalan dengan baik cuma karena ada kelompok tertentu yang memanfaatkan situasi, dia melihat situasi tidak kondusif akhirnya anggota mengambil tindakan untuk membubarkan," kata Anwar. Demo menolak Omnibus Law RUU Cipta Kerja juga digelar di Makassar Maret lalu. Massa yang tergabung dalam Gerakan Rakyat Menolak (Geram) bersama gabungan mahasiswa berdemonstrasi di depan kantor Gubernur Sulawesi Selatan. Baca juga artikel terkait DEMO TOLAK OMNIBUS LAW atau tulisan menarik lainnya Adi Briantika

Baca selengkapnya di artikel "Aksi Tolak Omnibus Law di Makassar, 37 Demonstran Ditangkap Polisi", https://tirto.id/fRCG

Tirto

Wartawan media online Garis62.com, wilayah peliputan di kabupaten Batu Bara, Muhammad Murhim, mengalami pengancaman teror dari oknum PT Waskita Karya, salah satu perusahaan BUMN, yang saat ini tengah melaksanakan proyek pembangunan Tol Kuala Tanjung � Indrapura, pada Kamis, 1 Juli 2020.

Acaman itu diduga kuat dilatarbelakangi oleh pemberitaan yang ditulis Murhim dan tayang di berita garis62.com, beberapa jam sebelum Murhim diancam-ancam.

Gara-gara berita yang dimuat murhim berisikan konten dampak dari pembangunan PT Waskita Karya, membangun Tol Indrapura � Kuala Tanjang, ada sebanyak puluhan rumah warga retak-retak, jalan rusak dan berlumpur, sehingga warga melakukan aksi protes ke Balai Desa Sipare-pare, menuntut agar PT Waskita Karya secepatnya bertangung Jawab.

Atas kejadian itu, tak lama kemudian datanglah salah seorang Oknum PT Waskita Karya mengaku-ngaku sebagai Humas ke kafe Kono Kopi, tempat dimana biasanya Murhim melakukan aktivitas editing jurnalistik, namanya adalah Joko Bagus Triono.

Joko datang ternyata tak semdirian, Joko datang bersama dua rekannya yang bertubuh tegap, besar dan kekar, termasuk satu diantaranya juga ada dari oknum polisi, mengaku dari Pamprapid Poldasu, duduk di dekat Mhd Murhim.

Saat itulah Joko meminjam pistol rekannya, lalu joko memainkan pistol dengan cara diputar-putar di jarinya dan mengarah di hadapan Muhammad Murhim.

Terkait ini, Persatuan Wartawan Indonesia (PWI) kabupaten Batu Bara, mengecam keras pelaku dugaan teror mengancam nyawa wartawan, yakni Mhd Murhim.

PWI menyatakan kebebasan pers di Batu Bara belum menggembirakan

Akibat dari peristiwa teror itu, Murhim mengaku ketakutan.

Selain takut, Murhim juga mengaku mengalami trauma besar, akibatnya, Murhim tak lagi berani meliput terkiat kerusakan lingkungan akibat dampak pembangunan Tol Indrapura � Kuala Tanjung yang dikerjakan PT Waskita Karya. Akhirnya Murhim pun kemudian mengadukan kasus tersebut ke Polres Batubara, menganggap pristiwa tersebut mendapat back up�an dari Polisi.

Dimana saat kejadian tersebut, salah satu diantara yang mendampingi Joko Agus triono mengancam Murhim, merupakan salah satu oknum polisi, mengaku dari Pamprapid Polda Sumut.

�Kita sangat menyayangkan dan menyesalkan tindakan intimidasi dan ancaman kepada wartawan. Wartawan dalam menjalankan tugas dilindungi oleh undang -undang,� kecam Ketua PWI Batubara, Alpian, seperti dilansir dari medanbisnisdaily.com, pada Jumat, (3/7/2020) dini hari.

Menurut Alpian, intimidasi dan ancaman yang dilakukan oleh oknum PT Waskita Karya sebagai pelaksana proyek Tol Indrapura � Kuala Tanjung tersebut, tidak bertanggung jawab, jelas sangat mencederai kemerdekaan pers sebagai pilar keempat dari berjalannya negara demokrasi.

Tak hanya itu kata Alpian, tindakan yang dilakukan oleh oknum PT Waskita tersebut, lanjut Alpian, sangat bertentangan dengan amanat Undang-Undang Nomor 40 Tahun 1999 tentang Pers.

Lebih lanjut Alpian menegaskan, bahwa pers punya kewenangan dan tangung jawab untuk mencari, mengelola, dan menyebarluaskan informasi berdasarkan fakta serta apapun permasalahannya, pers tetap dilindungi undang-undang dalam menjalankan tugasnya.

�Intimidasi dan ancaman serta penghalangan terhadap wartawan dalam menjalankan tugas jurnalistik dapat dihukum dan didenda sesuai dengan aturan yang berlaku,� tegas Alvian.

Lebih lanjut Alpian mengatakan, apabila ada sengketa dalam kasus pemberitaan dimedia massa, seharusnya pihak PT Waskita Karya dapat menyelesaikannya melalui hak jawab dan hak koreksi sesuai dengan Undang-Undang Nomor 40 Tahun 1999 tentang Pers.

�Apabila ada masyarakat atau satu kelompok yang keberatan tentang pemberitaan dimedia massa, yang bersangkutan bisa menggunakan hak jawab dan koreksi sesuai dengan undang-undang. Bukan dengan cara intimidasi atau ancaman (teror),� ujarnya.

Untuk itu, PWI Kabupaten Batubara menginggatkan kepada pihak Kepolisian agar serius mengusut tuntas kasus intimidasi dan ancaman terhadap wartawan yang terjadi di Batubara, sesuai dengan undang-undang yang berlaku.

PWI Kabupaten Batubara kemudian menginggatkan sekaliguas meminta kepada pihak Kepolisian daerah dibawah Ikhwan Lubis, agar memberi perhatian khusus untuk kasus dugaaan ancaman teror dengan pistol, yang terjadi di kabupaten Batu Bara, dan meminta pelakunya jika terbukti, segera ditangkap, diadili dan dihukum.

�Kami PWI kabupaten Batubara meminta pihak Kepolisian untuk serius mengusut tuntas kasus intimidasi dan ancaman terhadap wartawan. Kita berharap, kasus seperti ini tidak lagi terjadi di Batu Bara,� pungkasnya.

Polkrim News

Ratusan aktivis Pergerakan Mahasiswa Islam Indonesia (PMII) cabang Kabupaten Pamekasan, Madura, melakukan demonstrasi di Kantor Pemkab Pamekasan, Kamis (25/6/2020).

Dalam aksinya, massa PMII Pamekasan menyuarakan perihal maraknya dugaan adanya ratusan tambang galian C ilegal di Kabupaten Pamekasan yang dibiarkan beroperasi.

Namun, terjadi insiden bentrok antara aktivis Pergerakan Mahasiswa Islam Indonesia (PMII) cabang Kabupaten Pamekasan, Madura dengan aparat kepolisian.

Berdasarkan informasi yang diterima TribunMadura.com, sebanyak 28 orang kini menjalani pemeriksaan oleh pihak Polda Jatim, Jumat (26/6/2020).

Tiga orang peserta demo mengalami luka-luka dan sempat menjalani perawatan di RSUD Dr H Slamet Martodirdjo Kamupaten Pamekasan.

Peserta demonstrasu yang mengalami luka di kepala adalah Ketua Rayon Sakera IAIN Madura, Fiki.

Kemudian, Wakil Ketua 1 Pengurus Cabang (PC) PMII Pamekasan, M Yasin mendapat luka memar pada bagian dada, dan Saiful Anam memperoleh luka memar pada bagian tubuh.

Adapun 20 orang lainnya merupakan anggota kepolisian dari Satuan Samapta Bhayangkara (Satbhara) Polres Pamekasan.

Kemudian, lima orang anggota Satpol PP Kabupaten Pamekasan serta tiga orang perwakilan mahasiswa atau massa PMII Pamekasan.

Kabid Humas Polda Jatim, Kombes Pol Trunoyudo Wisnu Andiko mengatakan, bahwa pengusutan insiden ini telah dikomandoi langsung oleh Kabid Profesi dan Pengamanan (Propam) Polda Jatim Kombes Pol Puji Hendro Wibowo.

Artikel ini telah tayang di Tribunmadura.com dengan judul Aksi Demo PMII Pamekasan Tuntut Tambang Galian C Ilegal Ditutup Berujung Bentrok, 3 Orang Terluka, https://madura.tribunnews.com/2020/06/26/aksi-demo-pmii-pamekasan-tuntut-tambang-galian-c-ilegal-ditutup-berujung-bentrok-3-orang-terluka. Penulis: Luhur Pambudi Editor: Elma Gloria Stevani

TribunMadura

YouTube removed the live webinar �Exploring non-homophobic religions� stating the content breached community guidelines. The International Federation of Journalists and its affiliate the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) Indonesia urge YouTube to explain the removal of the live stream.

The Association of Journalists for Diversity (Sejuk) broadcast on June 24 was interrupted after 48 minutes by YouTube after users reported the webinar for breaching community guidelines. YouTube did not specify what section of the community guidelines Sejuk breached.

In response, Sejuk noted there was no reason to stop the live stream and it did not break the law. YouTube restored the vide on June 25 on Sejuk�s channel.

YouTube has a history of discriminating against the LGBTI community with claims from YouTubers saying the platform�s algorithm systematically demonetises LGBTI content. A study by the Sealow research group found YouTube automatically demonetised 33 per cent of videos with LGBTI content in the title. A spokesperson from YouTube rejected claims stating the algorithm discriminated against LGBTI content.

A joint statement signed by Sejuk, AJI, and several other Indonesian human rights organisations said YouTube contravened Indonesia�s constitutionally guaranteed freedom of speech and expression, and the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

IFJ

Dozens killed in rallies

More than 40 people were killed in August and September 2019 after anti-government protests turned violent in Papua and West Papua provinces, which make up the Indonesian half of New Guinea island.

The unrest was sparked by perceived heavy-handed and racist treatment of Papuan students by security personnel on Java Island. It prompted the government to send police and military troops to the Papua region and block the internet for three weeks.

Papuan activists and their supporters, inspired by the Black Lives Matter protests in the United States, recently went on social media using the hashtag �PapuanLivesMatter� to denounce what they see as racist treatment across Indonesia of Papuans.

Protests broke out across the United States sparked by a video that showed a Minneapolis police officer kneeling on the neck of a black man, George Floyd, who said he could not breathe and later died, as other officers stood nearby.

On Wednesday, Amnesty International urged the Indonesian government to release the seven who were convicted in Balikpapan.

�We deeply regret the court�s decision. Although the sentences are much lighter than those demanded by the public prosecutors, we believe the prisoners of conscience should not have been arrested, jailed and prosecuted,� AI Indonesia executive director Usman Hamid said in a statement.

The Papua region was incorporated into Indonesia in 1969 after a U.N.-administered ballot known as the Act of Free Choice. Many Papuans and rights groups said the vote was a sham because it involved only about 1,000 people.

The provinces of Papua and West Papua make up one-fifth of Indonesia�s land mass but only 5.9 million of Indonesia�s 270 million people live there.

BenarNews

A court in Indonesia has sentenced two indigenous farmers to eight and 10 months in prison respectively for stealing oil palm fruit from a plantation company that is itself accused of stealing their land.

On June 15, the Sampit district court in East Kotawaringin, in the Bornean province of Central Kalimantan, ruled Dilik Bin Asap from Penyang village guilty of harvesting palm fruit on land claimed by the villagers but cultivated by PT Hamparan Masawit Bangun Persada (PT HMBP), an affiliate of the BEST Group. The court also found James Watt, a prominent land rights activist, guilty of ordering Dilik and other farmers to harvest the fruits.

As a result, the panel of judges sentenced Dilik to eight months in prison and James to 10 months in prison.

Another farmer, Hermanus Bin Bison, was arrested by police along with Dilik, and he died in custody, reportedly after being refused proper treatment for his ill health.

James said he wasn�t guilty and would appeal the verdict.

�But this fight isn�t my own,� he said. �It�s the Penyang villagers�, so I ask their approval first to determine the next step.�

Bama Adiyanto, a lawyer representing James and Dilik, said the judges had ignored the fact that ownership of the harvested land was still under dispute, and therefore the company didn�t have a case that the farmers had stolen from its property.

According to the Penyang villagers, PT HMBP has cleared forests and cultivated oil palms on land outside its concession, encroaching onto the community�s land. They have lodged complaints with multiple authorities, including the East Kotawaringin district government and council, and the national human rights commission, known as Komnas HAM.

In 2010, the district chief officially declared that PT HMBP was operating outside its concession and ordered it to cede the disputed land back to the community. The following year, the district council determined that the company had illegally planted on 1,800 hectares (4,450 acres), and echoed the district chief�s call to hand the land back to the villagers. Komnas HAM also called on the company to follow through.

But it wasn�t until October 2019 that PT HMBP acted. Even then, it said it would only relinquish control of a fraction of the disputed land � 117 hectares, or 290 acres � either completely or partially, offering to manage it in collaboration with the villagers. Ignored evidence

Bama said lawyers for the farmers had presented evidence in court that the harvested land wasn�t part of PT HMBP�s concession.

�The location is clearly outside the company�s [plantation area] and is owned by the locals,� he said. �In fact, it�s the company that�s in the wrong for cultivating on the location.�

Dimas Novian Hartono, the Central Kalimantan director of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi), said one of the key pieces of evidence corroborating the villagers� claim was a copy of the outcome of an investigation by the government�s land agency, BPN, conducted in 2012.

But the judges said the evidence presented couldn�t be used in the trial because the charges against Dilik and James were criminal in nature, and not a civil lawsuit, and thus the question of the ownership of the land wasn�t at issue in this case.

�So [the judges] didn�t look deeper into the root of the case,� Dimas told Mongabay.

Also during the trial, neither PT HMBP nor the prosecutors could present evidence to back up the company�s claim that it owns the permit to the harvested land.

Kurnia Warwan, an agrarian law expert at Andalas University, said this fact alone should have been enough to compel the judges to acquit James and Dilik.

�That [verdict] is very surprising,� he said. �From the beginning, this theft case has already failed to meet the element [of a crime].�

Kurnia added that the plantation law used by the prosecutors in charging James and Dilik could also be wielded against PT HMBP, given that it expressly prohibits companies from cultivating on locals� lands without their consent.

James and Dilik, Kurnia said, were therefore victims of criminalization.

Walhi also highlighted irregularities in the case. Among them: the company filed a police report against Dilik and Hermanus at 7 a.m. on the morning of Feb. 17. Yet they only started harvesting the palm fruit � their alleged crime � at 9 a.m.

James was arrested on March 7 by the Central Kalimantan police in Jakarta, where he had gone to report the earlier arrests of Dilik and Hermanus to Komnas HAM and the witness protection program, or LPSK.

Walhi said the three farmers were charged shortly after the arrests.

�All three were even interrogated [by the police] without being accompanied by legal advisers and while they were exhausted after the trip to the Central Kalimantan police headquarters,� Walhi said.

Bama said he also had difficulties meeting the three farmers after the police detained them.

�We couldn�t meet them immediately [after the arrest],� he said. �The local police always had reasons to prevent us from meeting [them] and hearing their version of the story.�

In response to the verdict, PT HMBP legal manager Wahyu Bimo said the harvested land is part of the area that the company had offered to managed in collaboration with the villagers.

�That land is planned to be developed into a plasma plantation,� he said, using the local term for smallholder plots that supply larger plantations. �The cooperative is already established. Those who join the opposition [against the company], including those who harvested [the palm fruit], are not a part of the cooperative for the plasma [program].�

Bama said he and the other lawyers for James and Dilik would file an appeal against the criminal conviction of the farmers, as well as a civil lawsuit against PT HMBP over ownership of the land. Dimas from Walhi, who is part of the legal team, said they planned to get the buy-in of all the villagers in order to mount a solid lawsuit.

Mongabay

Student journalists from the University of Lampung (Unila) were the targets of digital attacks on June 10, amid preparations to hold an online discussion on racism in Papua. The International Federation of Journalists (IFJ) and its affiliate the Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) Indonesia condemn the digital attacks and call the authorities to conduct a thorough investigation immediately.

Writing for the student publication, Teknokra, two journalists, Chairul Rahman Arif and Mitha Setiani Asih received threats after they planned an online discussion on racial discrimination against Papuans. While Chairul received intimidating messages on WhatsApp, sending him his identity card and threats to his parents� security, the attacker sent Mitha dozens of food deliveries despite not ordering food and hacked Mitha and the publication�s Instagram and Facebook account.

One of the planned speakers for the discussion, Tantowi Anwari, who works for the Journalists Association for Diversity (Sejuk) and his wife also received threats.

AJI notes the same pattern of attacks, hacking a person�s social media account, sending anonymous messages and calls on WhatsApp and receiving unexpected food deliveries has been used many times against human rights and media freedom activists in Indonesia.

IFJ

Sebanyak empat orang pemuda diancam kurungan empat bulan penjara karena nekat menggelar aksi demonstrasi saat pemberlakukan Pembatasan Sosial Berskala Besar (PSBB) di Kabupaten Bengkalis, Riau. Keempat pemuda itu menggelar aksi 'Kamisan' terkait perkara Bongku.

Empat pemuda tersebut berinisial, RHS, 23, warga Kecamatan Bengkalis dan tiga orang warga Kecamatan Rupat berinisial, MHR, 21, MAA, 21 serta MH, 23.

"Memang benar, keempat pemuda telah ditetapkan sebagai tersangka karena menggelar aksi sebagaimana dari informasi yang beredar di media sosial ada undangan ajakan untuk melaksanakan aksi "Kamisan" terkait perkara Bongku, Kamis (21/5/20) lalu," Kepala Satuan Reskrim Polres Bengkalis, AKP Andrie Setiawan, Rabu, 27 Mei 2020.

Medcon

The Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI) has urged the police to investigate the alleged doxing (dissemination of personal information) and intimidation of a journalist working for popular news outlet Detik.com following his report on President Joko �Jokowi� Widodo�s plan to monitor �new normal� preparation measures in malls in Bekasi, West Java.

�We demand the police investigate the alleged crime of doxing and threats of violence and murder against the journalist until the perpetrators are brought to court,� AJI Jakarta chairman Asnil Bambani and AJI Jakarta advocacy team head Erick Tanjung said in a joint statement on Thursday.

The harassment was apparently inspired by an article titled �Jokowi to lead the opening of several malls in Bekasi this afternoon amid pandemic� published by Detik.com on Tuesday.

Asnil said the journalist obtained all of the information from the Bekasi administration�s head of external publication.

Jakarta Post

Ratusan massa penggarap lahan PTPN II yang menamakan dirinya Serikat Petani Simalingkar Bersatu (SPSB), melakukan aksi demo ke kantor Bupati Deli Serdang, Kantor DPRD dan kantor BPN Kabupaten Deliser�dang, Senin (25/11).

Koordinator aksi, Arus Wiyono menilai, pemerintah daerah seolah tinggal diam dalam masalah konflik agraria pada lahan yang mereka klaim sudah diusahai sejak 1951.

Untuk itu, massa panggarap yang terga�bung dalam SPSB dalam orasinya me�ngusung poster dan spanduk yang isinya menuntut menghentikan darurat agraria khususnya di Simalingkar dan Pancurbatu, Kabupaten Deliserdang. Aksi mendapat pengawalan ketat pihak kepolisian dan Satpol PP Deliserdang.

Usai melakukan aksi di Kantor Bupati Deliserdang, massa bergerak ke kantor DPRD Deliserdang guna mendesak anggota DPRD Deliserdang segera membuat reko�mendasi kepada Bupati Deliserdang untuk mengesahkan tanah tersebut untuk petani, sebagai tindak lanjut dari kerja DPRD Deliserdang sebelumnya.

Kabag Sekretaris Perusahaan PTPN II, Irwan yang didampingi Kabag Hukum Pertanahan PTPN II, Kennedy Sibarani dan Humas PTPN II, Sutan Panjaitan, serta Sastra SH Mkn dan Dr Ali Yusran Gea SH Mkn MH selaku Kuasa Hukum PTPN II mengatakan, mereka menghormati aksi demo yang dilakukan para petani walaupun pihak PTPN II telah memenangkan gugatan petani di PTUN dengan putusan NO 119/G/2018 yang menyatakan gugatan petani sebagai penggugat tidak diterima dan dikuatkan lagi dengan putusan PTUN Medan no.146/B/2019.

Pihak PTPN II menghimbau masyarakat yang telah menguasai lahan yang masih bersertifikat HGU No 171 Simalingkar A dengan luas 854.26 ha berakhir tahun 2034 agar secara sukarela mengembalikannya ke pihak PTPN II yang diberikan amanah untuk mengelola aset Negara.

Radarindo.co

Nasib Naas menimpa seorang wartawan media online bernama Ahmad Sahib warga desa Kediri kabupaten Lombok barat. Lantaran Berita yang ia tulis berimbas terhadap pemukulan yang di lakukan oleh seorang Kepala Dusun Karang Bedil Utara berinisial MN di Di Wilayah Desa Kediri induk, Kecamatan Kediri Kabupaten Lombok Barat.

Kejadian bermula ketika Ahmad Sahib menulis berita seorang nenek tua renta asal Dusun Karang Bedil Utara yang kehidupannya di bawah garis kemiskinan, dalam berita tersebut diterangkan bahwa nenek tua itu jarang mendapat bantuan sosial dari pemerintah terutama disinyalir minim perhatian dari pemerintah setempat.

Laman berita online yang dishare di beberapa akun media sosial warga itu VIRAL dan menuai protes serta tanggapan para netizen.

Di duga tidak terima dengan pemberitaan itu, oknum Kadus MN mendatangi rumah korban dan melayangkan bokem mentah ke arah wajah AS. Akibat hantaman ini, tulang hidung AS patah dan bersimbah darah.

Korban langsung di larikan ke Rumah Sakit Gerung untuk mendapatkan pertolongan.

Salah seorang warga Desa Kediri yang berada di Lokasi kejadian mengatakan, Pemukulan terjadi ketika korban berada di rumahnya sedang menunggu waktu berbuka puasa, lalu datang pelaku, kemudian terjadi cek cok mulut dan berakhir dengan pemukulan.

" kejadiannya tadi sebelum datang waktu berbuka puasa, karena kebetulan saya tetanggan sama korban, saya dengar mereka cek cok mulut, setelah saya datang, korban sudah berlumuran darah." Ungkap Radi salah satu tetangga korban.

Ditambahkan oleh Radi yang juga sebagai petugas puskesmas Kediri bahwa saat ini kondisi korban sangat kritis mengingat tulang hidungnya mengalami patah ringan, dan rahangnya juga mengalami luka sehingga berlumuran darah.

"Saat ini, pasien sedang dalam perawatan medis dan kami akan rujuk ke rumah Sakit Umum Patut Patuh Patju untuk mendapatkan perawatan medis lebih lanjut." Jelas Radi.

Swara Konsumer Indonesia

Activists have condemned the arrest of a journalist in Indonesia for reporting on a land conflict between a palm oil company owned by a powerful tycoon and indigenous groups in Borneo.

Police arrested Diananta Putra Sumedi on May 4 and charged him under a controversial 2016 law on electronic communications. The law has frequently been used to bring charges against individuals, including journalists, on the nebulous grounds that their writings or statements �cause offense.� Diananta faces up to six years in prison if convicted.

In a statement, the International Federation of Journalists called on the Indonesian police to release Diananta, the chief editor of the news site banjarhits.id and correspondent for investigative outlet Tempo.

�IFJ has seen continued efforts to criminalize journalists in Indonesia,� it said. �The Press Council has a clear complaints mechanism for solving disputes, and this has been ignored. IFJ urges the police to release Diananta immediately, respect decisions made by the Press Council and ensure the safety of journalists in the country.�

The case stems from a news report published by banjarhits.id and syndicated by the bigger news site Kumparan on Nov. 19, 2019, under the heading �Jhonlin seizes land, Dayaks complain to the South Kalimantan Police.� It quoted indigenous Dayak people in the village of Cantung Kiri Hilir, South Kalimantan province, as being critical of the palm oil firm Jhonlin Agro Raya (JAR). The company is part of the Jhonlin Group owned by tycoon Andi Syamsudin Arsyad, popularly known as Haji Isam, part of the large ethnic Bugis community that migrated to Borneo from the island of Sulawesi.

The report quoted Sukirman, a Dayak member, as saying that the alleged land grabbing by JAR could trigger conflict between the Dayak and Bugis communities. Sukirman also said in the article that Haji Isam had treated the Dayak people unjustly.

Following the article�s publication, Sukirman filed a complaint with the police, saying he had never said the things attributed to him. He also said he didn�t want to inflame ethnic tensions and preferred to resolve the land dispute amicably or through the courts.

He also complained to the Press Council, which mediates disputes over news reporting. The council ruled on Jan. 9 that the article breached the journalistic code of ethics, and on Feb. 5 it recommended that Kumparan publish a right of reply and delete the original article, explaining why.

JAR also reported Kumparan to the Press Council, leading to the news site taking down three articles related to the land conflict between the company and the villagers, including the one quoting Sukirman. The other two were headed �For the sake of palm oil, Jhonlin displaces the land of people in three villages in Kotabaru,� and �Dayaks in all Kalimantan will occupy contested land in Kotabaru.�

A Google search for the land conflict now yields no media coverage of the case, except stories about Diananta�s arrest. JAR did not respond to an inquiry by Mongabay.

Yet despite the Press Council having already ruled on the case, the police pushed on with the criminal complaint. They refused to release Diananta after his lawyers argued that his family depended on him for their livelihood and cited the risk of keeping him in a crowded jail cell amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

The police said Diananta might destroy evidence relating to the investigation if released. They also said he might publish more stories deemed �negative.� South Kalimantan police spokesman Mochammad Rifai said investigators had questioned all parties involved in the case, as well as experts, and concluded there were grounds for criminal charges.

The Alliance of Independent Journalists (AJI), the Indonesian affiliate of the IFJ, condemned the continued detention in the wake of the Press Council�s resolution and the compliance of the respective media outlets.

�According to the memorandum of understanding signed by Press Council and the Chief of National Police, it is clear that every dispute related with journalism should be settled in the Press Council,� AJI said. �AJI condemns the arrest which shows the fact that police neglected the MoU and do not respect the press freedom.�

This isn�t the first time a journalist�s coverage of Haji Isam�s Jhonlin Group has landed them in hot water. In 2018, Jhonlin subsidiary PT Multi Sarana Agro Mandiri (MSAM) filed a police complaint against Muhammad Yusuf over at least 23 online news reports about a land conflict involving the company.

Parts of MSAM�s concession in Pulau Laut, a small island off the coast of South Kalimantan, are claimed by several other firms as well as by farmers who accuse the company of bulldozing their crops to make way for its plantation, which Yusuf reported on. Police arrested him on the same charges under the electronic communications act as Diananta. Yusuf died of a heart attack after more than a month in custody.

Mongabay

N/A

RadarSorong

Indigenous rights activists in Indonesia have condemned local authorities over the death in custody of a farmer accused of stealing palm fruit from a plantation company in Borneo.

Hermanus Bin Bison, 35, was among three indigenous farmers in the Bornean province of Central Kalimantan jailed since Feb. 17 following a complaint by PT Hamparan Masawit Bangun Persada (HMBP), an affiliate of the BEST Group. The company itself stands accused of stealing the farmers� land, but has never been investigated.

Hermanus died shortly after midnight on April 26 at a hospital in East Kotawaringin district, Central Kalimantan, were he was transferred from detention after falling ill, including being unable to walk, on April 25. He is survived by his wife and two daughters, ages 6 and 7.

Aryo Nugroho, the farmers� lawyer and head of the legal aid institute in Palangkaraya, the provincial capital, said Hermanus had suffered ill health throughout his time in detention but never given adequate treatment.

At a court hearing on April 6, in which Hermanus was confined to a wheelchair because of difficulty walking, his legal team asked that he be released to seek treatment. The court rejected the request. On April 9, a doctor who visited him in his jail cell, which he shared with several other inmates, found he had asthenia, a condition of abnormal physical weakness, and a fever of 39� Celsius (102� Fahrenheit), prompting fears he might have COVID-19 and risk infecting others in the overcrowded jail cell.

The lawyers once again petitioned to have him released, and this time the court acquiesced. At Murjani General Hospital in East Kotawaringin later that day, however, doctors said he had a simple cold and could be returned to jail. Back in custody, Hermanus�s condition continued to deteriorate, until he was hospitalized again on April 25. He died just hours later.

Aryo said the initial hospital check was inadequate. �The treatment only consisted of him being questioned. There was no checkup like blood tests or chest x-rays,� he said.

Dimas Hartono, the director of the Central Kalimantan chapter of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi), said Hermanus had received better treatment from the doctor summoned to the jail than from the hospital. Despite his being sent to hospital with a high fever the first time, hospital staff didn�t record his temperature, Dimas said.

Police also failed to act on the doctor�s advice that Hermanus be held separately from the other detainees, instead keeping him in a small cell with several other people.

�The recommendation by the doctor who was summoned to the jail was not followed up on by either side,� Dimas told Mongabay.

Aryo said the actions by the hospital and the police raised questions about Hermanus�s death. �They said his condition was not an emergency, and yet he passed away two weeks later.�

Nur Hidayati, the national director of Walhi, said the way Hermanus was treated was in stark contrast to how politicians or businesspeople implicated in corruption were dealt with. Corruption convicts have been known to enjoy lavish lifestyles behind bars by bribing prison staff to get their cell upgraded, often to the level of a studio-type apartment. Graft convicts have also been documented abusing their right to hospital visits to actually go shopping or pursue other leisure activities on the outside.

Nur called on higher authorities to investigate the judges, prosecutors and police for allegedly hampering Hermanus�s access to adequate medical treatment. She also urged the government to address the root of the problem, which is the long-standing conflict between the villagers and the palm oil company.

�The agrarian conflict, which is the root cause of Hermanus� death, has to be solved immediately,� Nur said.

PT HMBP legal department staff Hendri declined to comment on the issue of Hermanus� detention, saying only that the firm would let the law take its course.

�For the case of the three people, because this is a legal matter, we entrust this case to the authorities,� he said.

Nur also called for Hermanus�s two co-defendants, James Watt and Dilik Bin Asap, to be released from detention as part of a wider government program to ease prison overcrowding in response to the COVID-19 outbreak. But Aryo said he was pessimistic the court would allow it, given that the judges haven�t let Hermanus�s death delay the ongoing trial.

The latest hearing took place on April 27.

�Our hope was to get the trial postponed out of respect for Hermanus�s death,� Aryo said. �But the judges went ahead with their decision, even though his body hasn�t been buried yet.�

Mongabay

The Indonesian government should immediately release at least 70 Papuan and Moluccan activists imprisoned for peacefully voicing their political views, Human Rights Watch said today. The government should adopt measures to ensure that police and prosecutors, especially in the eastern provinces, protect free expression rights in accordance with a 2018 constitutional court ruling.

From April 25 to 27, 2020, the police in Maluku arrested 23 activists, including at least two children, who allegedly participated in flag-raising ceremonies commemorating the 70th anniversary of the declaration of independence of the Republic of South Moluccas (Republik Maluku Selatan, RMS) in 1950. The police indicated that seven of the activists will be charged with treason under article 106 of the criminal code, which carries a maximum sentence of life in prison.

�Detaining and prosecuting Papuan and Moluccan activists for peacefully voicing their political views backtracks on the government�s commitments to free expression,� said Andreas Harsono, senior Indonesia researcher at Human Rights Watch. �These activists should never have been imprisoned, and detaining them in the midst of the Covid-19 pandemic could be deadly.�

On April 25, three activists walked openly into the Moluccan police headquarters in Ambon, the capital of Maluku province, carrying the RMS flag. They shouted �Mena muria,� a popular salute among Moluccan people, traditionally used among boat rowers that means, �You go, I follow.� Police arrested the three men � Johanes Pattiasina, Simon Viktor Taihutu, and Abner Litamahuputty � as well as four other activists who unfurled the flags in some other towns.

On April 24, a court in Jakarta, Indonesia�s capital, convicted six Papuan activists for treason and sentenced them to between eight and nine months in prison. The five men and one woman were involved in a rally on August 28, 2019, outside the State Palace in Jakarta, during which they unfurled the Morning Star flag, a symbol of Papuan independence. The rally, involving more than 500 people, was held to protest racist attacks by the police against Papuan students in Surabaya, Java Island, on August 17.

The six activists are among 63 political prisoners in prison for peacefully expressing their political beliefs. On April 15, 2020, their lawyers submitted information on their cases to the United Nations Working Group on Arbitrary Detention.

Human Rights Watch, along with Amnesty International, Kontras, and other human rights groups, have for more than a decade pressed the Indonesian government to release political prisoners.

In May 2015, President Joko �Jokowi� Widodo pardoned and released five Papuan prisoners from Abepura prison, Jayapura. He publicly promised to release all Moluccan and Papuan prisoners, and said he wanted �to stop the stigma of conflict in Papua and to create a sense of peace.� His administration gradually released nearly 100 political prisoners, mostly by reducing sentences.

In January 2018, Indonesia�s Constitutional Court rejected a judicial review to annul the criminal code�s six treason articles, including article 106, but found that those articles were often disproportionally applied against political activists raising the Morning Star flag in Papua and the RMS flag in the Moluccas Islands.

President Jokowi should drop all charges for peaceful political expression, order the release of all political prisoners, and review the failure of law enforcement officers, especially in the Moluccas Islands and Papua and West Papua provinces, to follow the Constitutional Court ruling, Human Rights Watch said.

Concerned governments, including the United States, European Union member countries, and Australia, should raise the situation of Indonesia�s political prisoners in bilateral meetings. The Polish government should raise concerns about the treatment of Jakub Skrzypski, a Polish national who was arrested in West Papua and sentenced in May 2019 to five years in prison under article 106.

Human Rights Watch takes no position on claims to self-determination in Indonesia or in any other country. Consistent with international law, however, Human Rights Watch supports the right of all individuals, including independence supporters, to express their political views peacefully without fear of arrest or other forms of reprisal.

�President Jokowi succeeded in releasing many political prisoners in his first five years in office,� Harsono said. �Jokowi�s second term should not produce as many political prisoners as his predecessor. These cases are a bitter betrayal of his government�s prior policy and contrary to a top court ruling.�

HRW

An Indonesian court sentenced six activists to prison on Friday after finding them guilty of treason for participating in a protest last year calling for a self-determination referendum in the restive Papua province.

Surya Anta, Ambrosius Mulait, Charles Kossay, Dano Tabuni, and Arina Elopere were ordered to serve nine months, while Isay Wenda was handed an eight-month prison term during a hearing at the Central Jakarta district court via video link to observe social distancing measures imposed to suppress the COVID-19 pandemic.

�The defendants are guilty of treason," Judge Agustinus Setya Wahyu Triwiranto said during the sentencing.

The activists were arrested in August 2019 after taking part in a rally in Jakarta. Prosecutors accused them of demanding a referendum on self-determination for Papua and waving separatist Morning Star flags in front of the presidential palace.

All but one of the activists are native Papuans.

The protest was among many held across the country amid unrest in Papua triggered by perceived ill-treatment of Papuans on Java island.

Barring an appeal by prosecutors, who had sought an 18-month sentence for each of the activists, Isay Wenda could be released next month, while the rest are expected to walk free in June.

�But I can�t be sure, because it [the release] depends on the prosecutor. If they appeal, it will be different,� Tigor Hutape, a lawyer for the activists, told BenarNews.

�We have not yet communicated with the defendants,� he said. �We will decide later whether to appeal or accept the verdict.�

More than 40 people were killed in the unrest between August and September 2019 in Papua and West Papua provinces, which make up the Indonesian half of New Guinea island.

Jakarta has blamed the separatist United Liberation Movement of West Papua and the National Committee for West Papua for the uprising that started in mid-August, when thousands joined protests calling for a vote on self-determination.

Police arrested dozens of pro-referendum Papuan activists in the wake of the unrest, which prompted authorities to send thousands of additional police and troops to the region.

Human rights groups have urged President Joko �Jokowi� Widodo�s government to release the detainees, whom they described as political prisoners, saying they were at risk of contracting COVID-19 during the pandemic.

On Friday, London-based human rights group TAPOL called for their immediate release, citing statements from Michelle Bachelet, the U.N. High Commissioner for Human Rights, who previously said political prisoners should be among the first to be released amid the pandemic.

�We therefore reiterate the urgency of releasing all political prisoners currently detained in overcrowded prisons where it is impossible to practice physical distancing,� the group said in a statement.

Indonesia reported 436 new infections on Friday, taking its cumulative tally to 8,211, with 42 new fatalities, bringing the country�s death toll to 689.

Earlier this month, more than 60 political prisoners, mostly the Papuan activists detained over pro-independence protests, wrote a letter to the Working Group on Arbitrary Detention and three U.N. special rapporteurs, asking for help in urging Indonesia to release them unconditionally.

�Not only is their detention illegal, it also threatens their safety,� said Jennifer Robinson, one of the human rights lawyers representing them.

The Papua region was incorporated into Indonesia in 1969 after a U.N.-administered ballot known as the Act of Free Choice. Many Papuans and rights groups said the vote was a sham because it involved only 1,000 people.

The provinces of Papua and West Papua make up one-fifth of Indonesia�s land mass but only 5.9 million of Indonesia�s 250 million people live there.

Tensions rose in Papua in December 2018 after separatist rebels allegedly killed 19 members of a crew building a highway in Nduga regency. Authorities immediately sent more than 750 soldiers and police to the region after the killings.

BenarNews

A public coalition identified as the �Koalisi Tolak Kriminalisasi dan Rekayasa Kasus� has pressed President Joko �Jokowi� Widodo to release Ravio Patra from prison after the member of the Open Government Partnership Steering Committee (OGP SC) was arrested on late Wednesday night, April 22.

�Stop the criminalization process and stop all acts that attempt to silence other citizens,� said the coalition�s representative and SAFEnet executive director Damar Juniarto in today�s press release.

According to Damar, the police�s legal standing behind Ravio�s arrest is flawed as he said that Ravio recalled his Whatsapp had been hacked.

�When Ravio turned on his Whatsapp, a notice appeared 'You've registered your number on another phone' when he checked his SMS inbox, there was a request for an OTP to be sent,� Damar Juniarto explained.

The message that became central in his arrest read; �Crisis has arrived, time to burn! We must gather and partake in the national simultaneous looting on April 30. All the stores nearby are free to be looted.�

Damar said that Ravio immediately reported the incident to Whatsapp, which was confirmed by the chat app�s head of security that Ravio�s account had been hacked.

He encouraged police to investigate the hacker who used Ravio�s Whatsapp account to send the provocative message instead of arresting Ravio. �The motive behind this is plotting Ravio Patra as the person initiating public unrest,� he said.

Tempo.co