Indonesian Church leader seeks truce in Papua Escalated violence feared after the government branded separatists as terrorists
Police pallbearers carry the coffin of one of their officers in Mimika on April 28 after he was killed in a gun battle in Indonesia s restive Papua region between police and separatist rebels. (Photo: Saldi Hermanto/AFP)
A Church leader in Indonesia s troubled eastern Papua region has called for a truce after the government ordered a crackdown on separatists, branding them as terrorists.
Father Marthen Kuayo, apostolic administrator of Timika diocese, urged to a ceasefire after the government listed separatists as terrorists on April 29.
Indian lay Catholic cleared for sainthood
Despite the Covid-19 pandemic worsening in India, Catholics expressed joy after the Vatican cleared the way for an 18th century martyr to be declared a saint. Religious minorities including Christians continue to face repression in various Asian nations.
UCA News Reporter
Published: May 07, 2021 11:45 AM GMT ▾
Updated: May 07, 2021 12:10 PM GMT
Catholics in India cheered as Pope Francis cleared the way for an 18th century martyr to be declared a saint. Devasahayam Pillai will become the first Indian lay Catholic to achieve sainthood as the pope confirmed his canonization on Monday.
Pillai was born to an upper-caste Hindu family in 1712 and became a Christian in 1745. He was a trusted soldier of the Hindu king who was enraged over his embracing of Christianity.
Church leaders call for truce in Indonesian province of Papua
Escalating violence in the province of Papua, Indonesia, has prompted Church leaders in the region to call on the military and separatist groups to declare a ceasefire in order to find “a dignified, humane, open, and respectful solution” to the crisis.
Vatican News staff reporter
The Church in the province of Papua in Indonesia is calling on military leaders and rebel groups to declare a truce to avoid the risk of escalation of violence in the region.
Church leaders have expressed concern that a recent move by the government to add separatists to a list of terrorist groups could exacerbate tensions in the eastern Indonesia. A note from the Diocese of Timika, Papua, describes the decision as “an unproductive move that could undermine the efforts of religious leaders to forge peace in the region.”
Reuters
Indonesia’s military and national police chiefs visited the rebellious Papua region Friday, in a rare joint trip to discuss security there with field commanders after insurgents dealt government forces setbacks, including assassinating an army general last month.
Air Marshal Hadi Tjahjanto, head of the armed forces (TNI), and Gen. Listyo Sigit Prabowo, the chief of police, arrived together on Thursday night as a firefight with the separatist rebels flared up in Papua’s Ilaga district. Ilaga is in Puncak, a regency where insurgents have mounted deadly attacks lately.
On Friday, the chiefs met in nearby Mimika regency with leaders and members of a joint military-police counter-insurgency task force, before the two were scheduled to return to Jakarta in the late afternoon, officials said.
ACLED Regional Overview - Southeast Asia (24-30 April 2021)
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Last week in Southeast Asia, anti-coup demonstrators in Myanmar demonstrated in opposition to the consensus reached by Association of Southeast Asian Nations (ASEAN) leaders and Myanmar s military chief during a meeting on 24 April. Meanwhile, there was an increase in reports of explosives being used to attack government and military infrastructure in the country. Additionally, fighting between the Myanmar military and newly-formed armed resistance groups increased in Sagaing region and Chin state. Tensions also continue to remain high in Kayin and Kachin states as ethnic armed organizations (EAOs) clash with the military over control of strategic bases. In Indonesia, fighting between Papuan separatists and state forces increased last week after the rebels shot dead a high-ranking intelligence official. Meanwhile, a diplomatic spat between the Philippine and Chinese governments over disputed territory in the South C