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Three injured as Papua police fire on civilians
Jakarta Globe - May 6, 2014
The officers shot at the three men in Dogiyai district on Tuesday "because the mob had started to get out of control," Insp. Gen. Tito Karnavian, the Papua Police chief, told the Jakarta Globe.
He said the incident stemmed from a traffic accident in the district's Edeida hamlet, in which a speeding truck struck and killed two residents, Yusten Kegakoto, 18, and Jhon Anouw, 20. The driver fled to a nearby police station, fearing a backlash by onlookers.
"The mob demanded that the police hand the driver over to them, but the police refused. That's when the mob ran amok, even though they'd been warned," Tito said.
He added that the mob had dispersed after officers from the police's Mobile Brigade, or Brimob, fired into the crowd and injured three people. He also said police would call a gathering with local elders and religious leaders to quell any simmering tensions and prevent any revenge attacks.
However, residents at the scene refuted the police chief's version of the events. "When the residents went to the police station, the Brimob personnel fired without warning," said Benny Goo, a resident.
He said one of those injured was shot in the thigh, another in the chest and a third in the stomach.
The police have long been criticized for their excessive use of force in Papua, which hosts the heaviest concentration of police and military personnel of any province in the country – sent there ostensibly to put down a low-level armed insurgency that has been running for decades.
Rights groups had expressed concern about an increase in heavy-handed tactics when Tito was named the provincial police chief in 2012. Tito previously headed Densus 88, the police's counterterrorism unit, known for its high body count in its pursuit of suspected terrorists.
Source: http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/three-injured-papua-police-fire-civilians/.
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