(file image) Photo: Free West Papua Movement
The international watchdog group, Human Rights Monitor (HRM), has spoken out about human rights defenders in West Papua, Indonesia, being put under surveillance.
Tineke Rumkabu was questioned by security force officials, wearing full military gear, at the end of a church service in Biak, Papua in late January.
The officials, according to HRM, claimed that the supposed church meeting was a gathering in support of independence.
Rumkabu, a human rights defender in Papua, denied this and viewed the confrontation as an act of intimidation.
HRM said the arbitrary actions of the security forces raise concerns about violations of human rights, particularly the right to safety and freedom from harassment.
Rumkabu and her family have faced intimidation from the security forces before - in 2023, after she spoke via Zoom to a conference in London, in which she testified about state violence in West Papua and the plight of internally displaced people.
