Jayapura – 42 Political Prisoners

Twenty-six people were prosecuted and two put on a police wanted list in relation to the protest in Jayapura on 29 and 30 August 2019 that turned violent. During interrogation by police, they were not granted access to lawyers and subjected to threats and beatings to confess their alleged crime. One person was arrested – and later prosecuted – when traveling with a key activist who was charged with treason, while twelve people were prosecuted in relation to the protest in Jayapura on 23 September 2019 that turned violent, and another key activist has been put on a police wanted list, for involvement in the Uprising.

The Jayapura political prisoners were part of a total of 135 political prisoners charged with non-treason charges. A hundred of them were prosecuted; 29 were charged, charges which remain; while six people have been put on the police’s wanted list. West Papuans refer to the people below as ‘anti-racist political prisoners’. Some of them did commit the acts when expressing their political views, while many others were subjected to torture to force them to confess to acts that they did not commit. All have been released except six people in Wamena.

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