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INDIA: VIOLENCE SPREADS TO FIVE MORE STATES
Another man killed, more houses and churches attacked in Orissa's Kandhamal district.
NEW DELHI, September 16 (Compass Direct News) – A policeman was killed today, the body of another victim of Hindu extremist violence was discovered and more houses and churches burned in Orissa state's Kandhamal district even as anti-Christian violence spread to at least five more states across India over the weekend.
Christians and churches were targeted in Karnataka, Kerala, Madhya Pradesh, Uttar Pradesh and Jharkhand as fallout from violence in Orissa that began following the assassination of a Vishwa Hindu Parishad (World Hindu Council or VHP) leader, Laxmanananda Saraswati, and four of his disciples in Kandhamal district on August 23.
A mob of around 500 rioters today killed a policeman and burned down a police station in Orissa's Kandhamal district, where Hindu extremists launched a spate of attacks three weeks ago blaming local Christians of killing Saraswati and his disciples. Maoists have claimed responsibility for the murders of the Hindu leaders.
"A large number of attackers armed with country-made guns and crude weapons gunned down a constable and set ablaze the police station at Gochapada early this morning," Director General of Police Gopal Nanda told The Indian Express. Gochapada is 36 kilometers (22 miles) from Phulbani, the district headquarters of Kandhamal.
Police sources told the daily that the mob was demanding release of a man held by security personnel, but local residents felt the attack came in retaliation for police firing into a crowd in Kurtamgarh in Tumudibandh area, killing at least one person, on Saturday (Sept. 13).
Murder in Orissa
While the body of another person was found and at least 14 houses were burned on Sunday night (Sept. 14), a church and several houses were set ablaze on the previous day.
The Statesman newspaper reported that at least nine houses of Makabali village and five in Sanakbali village were torched in the Gunjibadi area. Authorities found the body of Purander Naik, who had fled to a relief camp where mainly Christians had taken refuge, in his village of Nilungia.
"The decomposed body of Naik was found by police near the Ratingia dam yesterday," the newspaper reported yesterday. "Naik was at the G. Udayagiri relief camp for over 10 days but had left for his village to see the condition of his house and poultry. His family was at the relief camp. Apparently he was killed during his visit to the village."
The Press Trust of India reported that while nine houses were torched in Toposi village, another house was burned in Dibadi village under the Raikia police station in Kandhamal.
The Rev. Ashis Parida of the Evangelical Fellowship of India (EFI) reported that more than 2,000 Hindu extremists set fire to a church belonging to the Church of North India (CNI) denomination and several houses of Christians in Kurtamgarh village on Saturday afternoon (Sept. 13). Kurtamgarh is about seven kilometers (four miles) from the ashram (religious center) of Hindu leader Saraswati.
Compass received reports that a Hindu extremist mob on Friday (Sept. 12) burned one church and a mission hostel in Mangapanga, Tumulibandh; three churches in Mundabali, Badipankha; and one church in Baringia in Phulbani. An estimated 40 houses were also destroyed on the same day by the intolerant Hindus.
The next afternoon a large Hindu extremist mob descended on Kurtamgarh, burning several houses and the CNI Church. Sources said the extremists were targeting the village headman of the area, a Christian whose house they destroyed.
A local source said that "while the mob was attacking the Christian homes and churches, the Central Reserve Police Force (CRPF) forces took notice of it and fired in the air to disperse the crowd. To their surprise the mob retaliated with gunfire aimed at the CRPF, which wounded two soldiers of the CRPF, one of whom was reported to be quite serious and had to be taken to Behrampur for his medical treatment."
The CRPF forces retaliated with gunfire of their own, killing one person and injuring about 12. Early reports suggested that two people had died in the CRPF firing, but only one body was said to be recovered by the CRPF after the incident.
Krishan Kumar, district collector of Kandhamal, told media that on that day, "At least 400-500 people, some of them carrying firearms, attacked a man's home and set it on fire at Kurtamgarh village."
While the state government says 24 people, mainly Christian, have died in the Orissa violence, the All India Christian Council (AICC) maintained that 45 Christians were confirmed dead and five more were still missing.
According to the AICC, 14 districts of Orissa witnessed violence with Kandhamal as the epicenter. It reported at least 50,000 people from 300 villages have been affected by the violence, with hundreds still hiding in forests, and 4,000 houses and 115 churches burned or destroyed.
Death in Relief Camps
At least 20,000 people are in the 14 relief camps set up by the state government in Kandhamal. Two elderly persons and two children are known to have died in three of the relief camps.
The Statesman reported that while two ailing men, 75-year-old Sua Naik from Budrungia village and 66-year-old Kasipatra Naik from Tatamaha village, died at the Raikia relief camp, two children, one from the Phulbani camp and the other from G. Udayagiri camp, died during the week.
One of the children was reportedly a 10-year-old girl who had been hiding in the forest since the violence began who died from disease attained by being constantly on the run. The name of the girl was not known, but she was said to be from Kotgarh.
The Statesman also reported that the chief secretary of Orissa state, Ajit Tripathy, held a review meeting yesterday to discuss health and sanitation measures at the relief camps.
Orissa is ruled by a coalition of a regional party, Biju Janata Dal, and the Hindu nationalist Bharatiya Janata Party (BJP).
Attacks in Karnataka
Attacks were reported also from the southern state of Karnataka, where Hindu extremists ratcheted up hostilities after the state education ministry served show-cause notices to over 2,000 Christian schools in the state for staying shut on Aug. 29 to protest the violence against Christians in Orissa.
On Sunday (Sept. 14), Hindu extremists attacked several churches in Karnataka's district of Dakshina Kannada, in Udupi and Chikmagalur, on the pretext that Christians were engaging in "forcible" conversions of Hindus to Christianity.
In Dakshina Kannada district, suspected extremists from the Bajrang Dal, VHP's youth wing, attacked the Adoration Monastery near the Milagres Church on Falnir Road in Mangalore region.
"The 10-member group barged into the prayer hall and damaged the tabernacle, where the holy Eucharist is kept," reported the Times of India. "They damaged windowpanes, furniture as well as the crucifix. Police said the same group attempted to vandalize another prayer hall in Kankanady, but were driven back."
The daily added that Christians later gathered in large numbers in front of the Milagres Hall to protest the attacks, which resulted in a day-long stand off between the protestors, who reportedly hurled stones at the police, with officers using batons in return. Several vehicles were damaged in the tussle.
In Udupi district, three churches of the New Life Fellowship were attacked by suspected Bajrang Dal extremists while Sunday prayers were in progress, reported the daily. At least 15 Hindu extremists entered its prayer hall, attacking worshippers and ransacking the hall during the worship service. A music system and projector were damaged.
In Shiroor area, Hindu extremists attacked another prayer hall of the New Life Fellowship, burning a vehicle and striking some members of the congregation, including the pastor.
The daily reported another attack on a church in Mudur, near Kollur, resulted in damaged materials. It added that police prevented yet another such attack in prayer halls of the New Life Fellowship in Kaup and Karkala areas.
In Chikmagalur district, extremists attacked three churches and the house of a new convert. "In one incident, 15 activists came in a vehicle and barged into Harvest India church in Makkikoppa near Jayapura in Koppa Taluka [Block] in the morning and assaulted a parishioner and the Protestant pastor," the daily reported. "They broke the window panes and the plastic chairs."
On Sunday night (Sept. 14), a mob attacked a prayer hall in the Padavu Pre-University College on the Mangalore-Udupi Road.
Yesterday morning, Hindu extremists attacked a shop in Kalladka village and the St. Ann's Friary Grotto near Canara College, about 25 kilometers (almost 16 miles) from Mangalore, in two separate incidents. A Christian prayer hall in Chickballapur district, about 50 kilometers (31 miles) from Bangalore, also was attacked.
Some Christians reportedly retaliated by targeting policemen in different parts of Dakshina Kannada district. At least four policemen were injured, with one reportedly stabbed yesterday.
According to Indo-Asian News Service (IANS), police arrested about 100 people, almost all Christians, for staging allegedly violent protests.
Hindu extremists also attacked churches in Belthangady, Moodabidri, Koloor, Kodaikal, Hemanagatta, Kadur and Puttur, Kundapur and Balehanoor. All together 18 churches and prayer halls in and around Mangalore and in Udipi and Chikmaglur districts were attacked on Sunday (Sept. 14).
Police reportedly had arrested seven Bajrang Dal members by Sunday night. Schools and shops remained shut in Mangalore yesterday in protest, and vehicles were kept off the roads. Christians continued to protest, and in some places police had to fire tear gas shells to maintain order. A curfew was imposed in Mangalore as well.
But that did not stop Hindu extremists from throwing stones at a church in Mangalore yesterday morning, in spite of an order the previous day banning assembly of more than five people for three days. Chief Minister B.S. Yeddyurappa stoked fires by stating, "There is no room for forcible conversion in democracy. No one should indulge in it."
Asked what action he was going to take against the Bajrang Dal during a press conference yesterday evening, the chief minister said only, "Whoever was involved in this act will be arrested very soon."
But he was quick to blame church groups, saying "No one has the right to insult any other religion. As we know some community called 'New Life' is converting people, we have asked the bishop to support us in this regard. But as per the bishop, New Life is not under his control and the bishop is not the in charge of this community."
There was little to suggest the involvement of New Life Fellowship churches in forced conversion. NDTV 24X7, a national television news channel reported that "so far there seems to be little evidence that New Life is carrying out forcible conversions."
A team from the National Commission for Minorities (NCM) will reportedly make an on-the-spot assessment of attacks on churches and prayer halls in different parts of Karnataka and submit its report to the federal government. Members will visit churches damaged in attacks in Dakshina Kannada, Udupi and Chikmagalur districts, as well as Mangalore.
Bajrang Dal representatives unabashedly admitted to the violence that was carried out on Sunday (Sept. 14), telling NDTV 24X7 that they are targeting evangelical groups in and around Mangalore.
Violence in Other States
In the northern state of Uttar Pradesh, Bajrang Dal extremists on Sunday (Sept. 14) attacked two pastors in Kanpur district, accusing them of beating their supporters, reported IANS.
Govindnagar police station inspector N.K. Singh told IANS that the pastor of the New India Church of God, Jitendra Singh, approached officers late Sunday night and submitted a written complaint against Ram Babu Bajpai, a local leader of the Bajrang Dal.
Pastor Singh said Bajpai, along with a large number of his supporters, attacked him in the church compound in the presence of his wife, Helena Singh, and fellow pastor Anil Gilbert.
Both sides filed complaints
According to the complaint by the Hindu extremists, "The Bajrang Dal has alleged that the church was involved in converting Hindus to Christianity by offering them money, and the pastors attacked them when its activists opposed the practice," IANS added.
In the north-central state of Madhya Pradesh, at 1:30 p.m. today five unidentified people carrying air guns shot a guard of the Caramel Convent in Banduha village (under the Ghatia police station) in Ujjain district, Madhya Pradesh state. Father Anand Muttungal of the Catholic Bishops' Conference of Madhya Pradesh state reported that Amar Singh's injuries were not fatal.
Fr. Muttungal said that the culprits asked Singh to call the nuns, and when he told them they were away the assailants beat and shot him.
Hindu extremists in Madhya Pradesh also burned the 80-year-old Masihi Mandir church of the CNI denomination in Chhawni (Cantonment) area of Indore city at 10:30 p.m. on Saturday (Sept. 13), reported EFI.
"The fire was spotted by a few onlookers, who managed to extinguish it quickly," EFI reported. "The doors, windows and other wooden material were burned."
In the southern state of Kerala, on Sunday night (Sept. 14) Hindu extremists attacked the Jaya Mata Convent School, a Christian kindergarten that doubled as a church in Kottakkani area in Kasargode district under the Catholic diocese of Teleicherry, reported the Times of India.
The Hindu extremists launched the attack to protest conversions
"On Monday morning, we saw the glass panes of a box containing the figure of Mother Mary, as well as window panes of the school, smashed," Vicar Antony Punnoor told the daily. "It seemed someone had hurled stones."
The Kerala state interior minister, Kodiyeri Balakrishnan, told the daily that the incident would be investigated.
"Cops would also examine if the attack had any link with such incidents in Karnataka," he reportedly said. "No one will be allowed to create communal riots in the state."
In the western state of Jharkhand, Hindu villagers attacked Christians of a Believers' Church and pressured them to "reconvert" to Hinduism in Talatad village (under Patratu police station) in Hazaribagh district on Sunday (Sept. 14), reported the Christian Legal Association.
Pastor Cyril Tamgaria and 18 others were worshiping in the house of Badhi Oraon when Hindu extremists surrounded the house. They beat them, took them forcibly to a temple in a nearby jungle and asked them to "return" to their old faith. Local Christians reported the incident to police, however, and officers freed the Christians.
The Rev. Dr. Babu Joseph, spokesperson of the Catholic Church in India, said in a statement that the Christian community in India has been conducting itself in a peaceful manner throughout the ordeals, and "even under extreme provocation it has exercised restraint."
"It is not to be construed as weakness," he said, "but a preferred option based on sound principles of civilized living."
Joseph added that the community continued to render its services to all sectors of society without discrimination.
"Nevertheless, baseless allegations of fraudulent conversion have long been hurled at it by certain vested interests whose chief agenda seems to be social polarization on the lines of religious beliefs," he said. "We, as responsible citizens of India, will not succumb to their divisive tactics, but continue to work, in the spirit of Christ our master, for the unity, integrity and progress of the nation."
Women's Group Pans Official Assessment of Orissa
Dismissing claims by government officials, the National Federation of Indian Women (NFIW) reported that their findings from a visit to Orissa's Kandhamal district last week did match statements made by the central and state governments before the Supreme Court.
Annie Raja, general secretary of the NFIW, told media that the team she led to the riot-torn district Sept. 9-12 concluded that a judicial inquiry was inadequate to uncover abuses.
The NFIW demanded a Central Bureau of Investigation (CBI) probe into the killing of Laxmanananda Saraswati and subsequent riots in Kandhamal district. The organization's report notes that the situation in the district was tense and a sense of security was absent among the Christian minority community.
Calling conditions in the relief camps "pathetic," with about 20,000 people living with inadequate medical facilities, Raja reportedly said that camps with more than 700 children and around 30 pregnant women did not have a pediatrician or a gynecologist.
The NFIW demanded that civil society organizations and women's organizations be allowed to participate in relief and rehabilitation operations.
Orissa officials have asked the central government to allow the state to retain central and paramilitary forces until the end of October in light of approaching festivals.
Home Secretary T.K. Mishra has described the situation in Kandhamal as "satisfactory" and requested the recall of the Border Security Force, as "they did not fit into the situation" in Orissa. He added, however, that the state needed Central Reserve Police Force and Rapid Action Force personnel to deal with any rioting. He also acknowledged that sporadic violence was taking place in some villages of the Kandhamal district.
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INDONESIA: RELIGIOUS TENSIONS RISE IN WEST PAPUA
Authorities must act now to prevent Malukan-style conflict, report says.
DUBLIN, July 14 (Compass Direct News) – Authorities in West Papua, Indonesia, must move fast to prevent tension between Christian and Muslim communities escalating into a Malukan-style conflict, according to a recent report by the International Crisis Group (ICG).
The neighboring Maluku islands erupted into bitter sectarian warfare between 1999 and 2002, leaving thousands dead, injured or homeless.
While the conflict in West Papua dates back to Indonesia's takeover of the region in 1963, several developments from the beginning of the decade have heightened tension in recent months, according to ICG's June 16 report, "Communal Tensions in Papua."
New, less tolerant strands of Islam and Christianity have gained influence since 2002, creating fissures within and between religious communities, the report claims. Also, faith issues have acquired a political dimension, since many Papuan Christians believe a Special Autonomy Law passed in 2001 was too limited, while Muslim migrants firmly support centralized rule from Jakarta and accuse Christians of separatism.
Most importantly, an influx of Muslim migrants, initially sponsored by the government, has changed demographics in the region, with Papuan Christians now fearing they will become a minority.
Indonesian troops and special police forces assigned to the region to quell independence movements have tortured and sometimes executed Christians suspected of involvement with the Free Papua Movement, according to other reports from local human rights organizations.
Manokwari: Trouble in 'Gospel City'
Two incidents covered in the ICG report illustrate the potential for violence. In May, church leaders in the city of Manokwari – commonly referred to as "Gospel City" – circulated the second draft of a regulation designed to protect Christian values and traditions, drawing heavy criticism.
The "Regulation on Designating Villages for Mental Spiritual Guidance" came in response to a proposed mosque building project on Mansiman Island, considered the "birthplace" of Christianity in the region since the first two missionaries to West Papua landed there in 1855.
A local politician first proposed building a Grand Mosque and Islamic study center on the island in 2005. Uproar followed, with Christians asking whether Muslims would be offended if the most visible landmark in the deeply Islamic province of Aceh was a church.
The Manokwari District Interchurch Cooperation Board issued a statement decrying the "discriminatory and unjust" stance of the national government towards Christianity, pointing to a total of 991 attacks against Christians, churches and individuals throughout Indonesia dating back to 1949; trauma suffered by Christians in conflict areas such as the Malukus, and legal discrimination against churches under a 1969 Joint Ministerial Decree (SKB) regulating the establishment of places of worship.
Civil authorities then rejected the building proposal submitted by the mosque committee, citing objections from church leaders.
In response, Muslims claimed that Islam had come to Papua long before Christian missionaries arrived. One Muslim also told ICG that the rejection of a "house of Allah" provided grounds for jihad.
Jihadi groups outside Papua were quick to offer assistance. Three Javanese followers of the infamous Abu Bakar Ba'asyir traveled to Manokwari in December 2005 and drew up a hit list of 38 pastors leading the campaign against the Great Mosque. A similar group from the Malukus arrived in January 2006, but local Muslims turned both groups away.
The Evangelical Christian Church (GKI) of Papua decided in February 2006 that a regulation should be adopted to preserve Manokwari's status as the Gospel City. In March the GKI circulated a first draft of the "Regulation on Implementing Mental Spiritual Guidance." Muslims believed the draft law referred to the proselytizing and conversion of Muslims, which further inflamed tensions.
Both Muslim and Christian leaders denounced the draft regulation, but it became a national issue, with major Muslim newspapers portraying it as an attack on Islam. Another jihadi group, the Laskar Jundullah in South Sulawesi, briefly discussed launching a new jihad in Manokwari, spreading rumors that the draft regulation was a foreign plot to combine Maluku and Papua into a single independent Christian state.
On the contrary, Christians fear they will be increasingly marginalized in the region, according to John Barr, general secretary for the international mission wing of the Uniting Church in Australia.
"Christianity came to West Papua more than 100 years ago, and most Papuans eagerly adopted it to the point that Christianity reinforces and now underlines their identity," he told Compass. "Where Papuan culture appears to be in the process of being eroded, Christianity serves to maintain local values and provide Papuans with a strong sense of who they are."
Formally declaring Manokwari a Gospel City is an attempt to address this despair, he explained. "It's an attempt to be proactive about the future."
Kaimana's Iron Christmas Tree
Tensions also erupted unexpectedly last year in Kaimana, a district historically known for religious tolerance, with Christians sitting on mosque development committees and Muslims assisting in the construction of churches, according to ICG.
In October 2007, during the Muslim celebration of Ramadan, the Protestant Church of Indonesia in Papua (GPI) scheduled a fund-raising concert at a school situated between two mosques. Muslims were incensed when plans for the concert emerged, but mosque leaders averted a clash by asking GPI to reschedule the event for 9 p.m., after evening prayers.
In December 2007, GPI leaders erected an iron Christmas tree crowned with a Star of David in a public park near the town center, claiming they had a permit to do so from the deputy district head. Local Muslims were furious, and a crowd quickly gathered. Rumors spread that Christian neighborhoods would be attacked and panic took hold, with some Christians fleeing into the jungle.
District head Hasan Achmad intervened and negotiated a compromise; the tree could remain in the park until January 21.
Tensions remained high, however, with GPI leaders calling an emergency meeting on December 28 following rumors of impending attacks on Christians. The rumors came to nothing, and on January 21 the GPI reluctantly complied with orders to remove the tree. By then, however, mutual trust and acceptance had been shattered.
Both Sides Aggrieved
ICG concludes that potential for communal conflict is high because both sides consider themselves aggrieved.
In some areas, local governments have controlled tensions by pairing a Papuan Christian district leader with a non-Papuan Muslim deputy. This has proved effective in some areas, but not all, the report stated.
ICG suggests that in areas where conflict is greatest, indigenous Papuan Muslim organizations such as the Papuan Muslim Council might play a bridging role.
Other West Papua observers such as Barr and Elizabeth Kendal of the World Evangelical Alliance (WEA) believe ICG's report is a useful analysis but somewhat biased toward the Muslim point of view.
In her analysis, Kendal remarked on ICG's unquestioning acceptance of Muslim claims that Islam came first to West Papua, and that Christian colonialists then proceeded to obliterate all traces of Islam, despite no evidence that Islam ever became popular in the region. She also criticized the report for suggesting that the development of indigenous Muslim scholars and teachers was a realistic solution to the problem.
"The report forecasts that if Muslim-versus-Christian clashes do erupt, they will remain localized," Kendal added. "I do not agree with that assessment. The jihadist groups, the pro-Indonesian militias and in particular the Indonesian military are looking for an excuse to unleash violent repression and ethnic-religious cleansing. Any clash therefore has incendiary potential."
Outside Influences
According to ICG, there are multiple reasons for the breakdown in trust throughout West Papua.
New strands of Christianity and Islam began arriving in West Papua early this decade, bringing voices not necessarily in tune with the traditional tolerance of Papuans. Salafism, an ultra-Puritan method of practicing Islam, eventually made it to Papua after spreading rapidly through Indonesia in the 1990s. Some Papuan Muslims who had studied elsewhere in Indonesia or in the Middle East also returned with new, less tolerant interpretations of their faith.
Newer evangelical churches such as the Congregation of the Holy Way, Bethel and Bethany churches began to hold mass religious rallies, locally known as KKRs, in public places. Often these meetings featured testimonies from Muslim converts. Muslim residents objected to the KKRs and responded by publicly questioning basic tenets of the Christian faith, such as the divinity of Jesus, further compounding tensions.
An influx of both Christian and Muslim refugees from the neighboring Maluku islands brought its own problems, with refugees sharing personal accounts and video clips of bloody confrontations in Ambon and Seram. Video clips of beheadings in Iraq also circulated on cell phones, reinforcing negative images of Islam in some circles.
Human rights organizations began to report sightings of jihadi groups and training camps in West Papua. ICG's report contends that most if not all of these "jihadis" were members of a non-violent Islamic missionary group, Jemaah Tabligh, active in Papua since 1988. Jemaah Tabligh members dress as the Moluccan Laskar Jihad members do, with men in white robes and turbans and women in full veils rather than headscarves.
Kendal, who analyzed ICG's report for the WEA, noted that the source who rejected reports of jihadi sightings was identified in the footnotes as a "Muslim activist."
Ja'far Umar Thalib, the leader of Laskar Jihad, admitted that some of his men arrived in Papua in late 2000 to assess "the needs of Muslims." Thalib then sent approximately 200 men to Papua in 2001 to "crush" the Papuan independence movement, which he claimed was a Christian conspiracy to secede from Indonesia and form a Christian state.
Changing Demographics
The Indonesian government launched a migration program in 1975 that brought an influx of Muslim citizens into the mostly Christian territory of West Papua, sparking Papuan fears of a religious takeover. The program ended in 1985, but migration continued; of approximately 2.5 million inhabitants of West Papua today, 1 million are migrants.
Officially, Christians still make up about 56 percent of the total population and 95 percent of the indigenous population in West Papua, according to Jim Elmslie of the West Papua Project at the Center for Peace and Conflict Studies, University of Sydney, Australia. But both communities dispute these figures. Christians claim the number of Muslim migrants is deliberately downplayed, while Muslims claim authorities have combined animist and Christian populations to project a Christian majority.
When the Indonesian government took control of the region in 1963, it passed a new law declaring all land and natural resources property of the Indonesian state. This measure gave migrants and multinational oil companies access to Papuan ancestral lands, sparking angry demonstrations from indigenous landowners, many of them Christians.
Toward a Solution
While potential for conflict is high, Barr said a church-sponsored human rights group, ELSHAM, is already conducting workshops in peace education and conflict resolution, and churches have worked hard to rectify abuses of both Muslim and Christian communities.
This has occasionally put Christians at risk. For example, Kendal reports that in January 2007, Indonesian police occupied the headquarters of the indigenous Kingmi church in Jayapura, accusing the Rev. Benny Giay and the Rev. Noakh Nawipa of engineering an attack on a gold and copper mine in August 2002 in support of the independence movement. Giay and Nawipa rejected the allegations and said they were targeted because of their non-violent work for peace and justice in West Papua.
"ICG's report does raise critical questions," Barr concluded. "Papua is part of Indonesia, and Christians need to live alongside Muslims in a harmonious society. The alternative is horrific, and the Malukus bear witness to this."
Timeline of Events in West Papua, Indonesia
An Indian trader brought Islam to Papua on this date, according to a Papuan Muslim preacher. Other scholars claim the Bacan sultanate in North Maluku brought Islam to Papua in 1569.
Two German missionaries landed on Mansiman Island, off the coast of Manokwari in West Papua.
Dutch colonialists handed the territory of West Papua (then known as West Irian Jaya) to the United Nations, which then gave it to Indonesia on condition that a referendum on integration be held by December 1969. Following the takeover, Indonesia passed a new law declaring all West Papuan land and natural resources as the property of the Indonesian state.
Under the "Act of Free Choice," 1,025 hand-picked West Papuans voted unanimously – under great duress – for integration with Indonesia.
Indonesia's Suharto government launched a migration program that would last until 1985. Thousands of Indonesian Muslims migrated to West Papua, both under this program and through voluntary migration.
The Suharto government collapsed, sparking independence demonstrations in Papua.
Violent conflict in the Maluku islands sparked a refugee influx into West Papua. Jihadi groups also established a limited presence in West Papua.
Indonesia granted limited autonomy to West Papua with a Special Autonomy Law; today, many provisions of this law have yet to be implemented.
Indonesian Special Forces abducted and murdered popular Papuan leader Theys Eluay.
The Indonesian government appointed Timbul Silaen to head the police force in West Papua. U.N. prosecutors had previously indicted Silaen for his role in war crimes and crimes against humanity while he headed the Indonesian police force in East Timor in 1999.
A politician in Manokwari promised Muslim voters that he would build a Grand Mosque and Islamic study center on Mansiman Island.
Civic authorities rejected an application for the Grand Mosque building project.
Christians in Manokwari demonstrated against the construction project.
Jihadis from Java arrived in West Papua and draw up a hit list of 38 pastors who campaigned against the mosque project. Local Muslims rejected their offer of assistance.
Police accused the indigenous Papuan Kingmi church of being the religious arm of the Free Papua Movement (OPM).
Church leaders in Manokwari outlined a draft "Regulation on Implementing Mental Spiritual Guidance," creating a national uproar.
Christians in Kaimana erected an iron Christmas Tree topped with a Star of David in a public park, infuriating local Muslims.
Christians removed the Christmas Tree from the park as agreed in a meeting with town leaders.
Church leaders in Manokwari circulated a second draft of their "Regulation on Designating Villages for Mental Spiritual Guidance."
Christians celebrated the 100th anniversary of local Christianity. In the same month, Muslims held a seminar entitled "Awakening of Irian Muslims" to assert the prior arrival of Islam in West Papua.
Posted in Christianity, Indonesia	| Tagged Abu Bakar Ba'asyir, Act of Free Choice, Australia, Barr Kendal, Benny Giay, Bethany, Bethel, Center for Peace and Conflict Studies, Christianty, church, Congregation of the Holy Way, East Timor, Elizabeth Kendal, ELSHAM, Evangelical Christian Church of Papua, execution, Free Papua Movement, Gospel City, Hasan Achmad, ICG, Indonesia, Indonesian Special Forces, International Crisis Group, Islam, Ja'far Umar Thalib, Jakarta, Jayapura, Jemaah Tabligh, Jihad, Jim Elmslie, John Barr, Kaimana, Kingmi Church, KKRs, Laskar Jundullah, Maluku Islands, Manokwari, Manokwari District Interchurch Cooperation Board, Mansiman Island, Muslim, Noakh Nawipa, Papua, Papuan Muslim Council, Persecution, Protestant Church of Indonesia in Papua, Ramadan, Regulation on Designating Villages for Mental Spiritual, Salafism, Special Autonomy Law, Suharto, Theys Eluay, Timbul Silaen, Uniting Church, University of Sydney, WEA, West Irian Jaya, West Papua, West Papua Project, World Evangelical Alliance | 2 Comments
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