Relatives of four indigenous Papuans who were reportedly killed by security force members in the Gome District on 20 November 2020 demand a timely and thorough investigation into the murder allegations. On 3 December 2020, the families of the deceased together with other protesters gathered in front of the district police headquarters in the town of Ilaga (see photo on top, source: Jubi). A scheduled meeting between the relatives, police and local Government officials was finally cancelled because the families demanded the presence of provincial parliament representatives and the Papuan representative office of the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM).
Since the tragic shooting at the Limbaga Mountain on 20 November 2020, local Government institutions have not taken any meaningful step to investigate the incident. According to Indonesian news outlet Kompas, the regent of Puncak, Wilem Wandik, was tested positive of COVID-19 and is currently undergoing quarantine outside the Puncak regency. Wandik had promised to arrange a vehicle for the investigation team.
A group of students from the Puncak regency who met with the Papuan Legal Aid Institute (LBH Papua) explained that members of the Puncak parliament have as well not taken the initiative to investigate the killings. The majority of local MPs were currently not in the Puncak regency, explained Emanuel Gobay, the director of LBH Papua. Gobay expressed his concern over the health condition of Puncak’s regent but also emphasized that the parliament and other local government agencies have the responsibility to react upon the killings immediately.
