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| Southeast Asia |
| Dozens wounded, detained in West Papua crackdown |
| 2019-08-25 |
| [Al Jazeera] Several demonstrators have been injured and dozens detained as Indonesian authorities crack down on separatist protests in the West Papua region, according to witnesses, but the police strongly deny anyone was maimed. A family member of one of the injured protesters, who asked not to be identified for security reasons, confirmed to Al Jazeera on Friday that a relative was injured during the protests in Fakfak Regency, West Papua province. Rights groups They urged the authorities in West Papua to "ensure the safety" of all people across the region, and refrain from using excessive force in dealing with the situation. "Police have the right to remove part of the protests that is violent, but must guarantee the rights and the safety of others who want to protest racial and discriminatory treatment of Papuan students by the police and mass organizations in Surabaya and Malang, East Java," Usman Hamid, executive director at Amnesty, said in a statement. Violent protests started earlier this week when authorities detained Papuan students studying in the island of Java for reportedly holding a pro-independence rally. Another group of Papuan students was accused of damaging the Indonesian flag. Related: West Papua: 2019-08-21 Indonesia deploys troops to West Papua region as protests spread West Papua: 2019-08-21 Protesters burn parliament building in Indonesian town West Papua: 2018-12-22 Indonesia drops chemical weapons on West Papuan villages Related: Amnesty International: 2019-08-20 Iraq has executed 100 since January, 8,000 on death row: official Amnesty International: 2019-08-10 Meet Janna Jihad, Palestine’s new pin-up Amnesty International: 2019-07-27 Saudi Trial to Resume of Dissident Cleric, Says Amnesty Related: Human Rights Watch: 2019-08-20 Iraq has executed 100 since January, 8,000 on death row: official Human Rights Watch: 2019-08-19 Germany to repatriate over 100 ISIS-linked children, adults from Syria: monitor Human Rights Watch: 2019-08-17 Oil flows to Iraq’s Haritha power station after pipeline repair |
| Posted by:Fred |