Tag Archives: Astra Group

Community Anxious, Wants Protection from the Law

By admin | Published: February 13, 2014

[awasMIFEE note: This is an update on the case where a man from Sanggase village died in police custody after being arrested on New Year’s Eve. The victim’s, referred to in previous articles as Roni, is given his full name, Petrus Aluend. The police appear not to have conducted a serious investigation into the incident, […]

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Update: Chronology of Okaba Death in Police Custody

By admin | Published: January 14, 2014

Further details of the police brutality that resulted in the death of Roni, a man from Sanggase Village, Merauke Regency, after he was arrested on New Year’s Eve: 31st December (evening) The victim and residents of Sanggase were holding a New Year’s Eve party with music and alcohol, when an alcohol-influenced quarrel broke out between […]

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Police and Company Security Guard beat a man to Death while in Police Detention.

By admin | Published: January 5, 2014

A man was beaten to death while in police detention by a local police officer and a man working for the Astra Group as head of security. The assault took place on New Year’s Eve in Okaba near Merauke. The Astra Group has plans for a massive sugar cane plantation which has met with opposition […]

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Three Years of MIFEE (part 2): First Villages Feel the Impact as the Plantation Menace Spreads.

By admin | Published: October 23, 2013

The forest villages of Merauke are as remote as it is possible to imagine in the twenty-first century. Nowhere in Indonesia is further from Jakarta – 3700 kilometres as the crow flies. 662 km of forest and a high mountain range separate Merauke from the Papuan capital, Jayapura, which is also the focus of most […]

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People of Woboyu Traumatised by Gunshots / Continuing Opposition to Plantations.

By admin | Published: September 2, 2013

On 29th September, Romanus Mbaraka, the Bupati or Regency Leader of Merauke, travelled to Kampung Wambi in Okaba District, to try to convince local people that plantation development did not necessarily have to be a bad thing. Hundreds of people from surrounding villages came to hear him speak. A local journalist with tabloidjubi.com also travelled […]

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Merauke Bupati orders Mayora and Astra to Stop Work Awaiting Further Discussions

By admin | Published: August 20, 2013

After up to 100 local people occupied PT Mayora’s office in Merauke last week, FORMASI SSUMAWOMA managed to get an audience with Merauke Regency Leader (Bupati) Romanus Mbaraka to discuss their opposition to PT Mayora and PT Astra. During the two-hour discussion they heard some encouraging words from the Bupati, who agreed to sign an […]

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Breaking News: Mayora and Astra Offices Occupied in Merauke.

By admin | Published: August 12, 2013

Around 100 people from the SSUMAWOMA Malind Woyu Maklew Intellectual Forum are currently occupying PT Mayora and PT Astra’s company offices on Jalan Ternate, Merauke City. The occupation started at 11.00 local time, involving youth and community members from the Malind Muli Woyu Maklew sub-ethnic group, from villages such as Wamal, Dokib, Wambi, Dodalim and […]

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Marind Intellectuals Oppose Corporations

By admin | Published: June 23, 2013

Over the last few months, a series of meetings have taken place in villages around Merauke to discuss development plans, within the framework of local adat, or customary law,. In each one, a resolution has been made, a clear rejection of all investment. The document below, from a new grouping of Marind intellectuals called FORMASI […]

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