June 20, 2013
  
  • Promoting nonviolence and protecting human rights defenders since 1981
Indonesia > Who we work with > PBI Partners in Indonesia 

PBI partners in Indonesia

The Indonesia Project partnered with human rights defenders to develop strong networks and capacity for conflict transformation among grassroots organizations, civic officials and religious groups.

BUK (Bersatu untuk Kebenaran - United for Truth)

BUK is a solidarity network for survivors of violent human rights abuses throughout Papua, including Wasior, Wamena, Timika, Biak, and Abepura. Peneas Lokbere is the coordinator of BUK, which became a PBI partner in October 2008.

BUK is supported by FOKER LSM and KontraS Papua as well as PBHI,  a rare example of cooperation among different Papuan human rights organizations. BUK offers an opportunity for survivors of human rights abuses to work towards reconciliation themselves. This is particularly important, because the Truth and Reconciliation Body defined under the Special Autonomy Law (Undang Undang 21/2001) for Papua has yet to materialize.

FOKER LSM (Forum Kerjasama Lembaga Swadaya Masyarakat Papua, NGO Cooperation Forum of Papua)

FOKER LSM is an umbrella organization representing a growing network of small and large NGOs (currently 118), throughout Papua. FOKER’s mandate is to build-up, train, and link grassroots NGOs with the broader goal of creating true participatory democratic government capable of advocating for local issues on a large scale. FOKER’s program empowers participants, traditional institutions and civil organizations in a process aimed at strengthening civil society.

As the center of a Papua-wide network, FOKER is one of the few reliable sources of news in the province. FOKER compiles articles from mainstream media into a monthly newsletter and dissects information about public policy, redistributing it in easy-to-read versions for a wide audience.

FOKER work includes organizing workshops on investigating and reporting human rights violations, and conducting field surveys on the state of human rights in outerlying regions of Papua. They also have plans to open a resource centre (FOKER branch office) in Wamena.

Humi Inane (Women’s Voice)

Humi Inane is a local NGO that officially became a client on December 10, 2009. Humi Inane work for women’s rights in the Central Highlands of Papua. They provide protective accompaniment for victims and witnesses in cases of violence against women and for individuals in women’s collectives. Other aspects of the work that they focus on relate to the issue of the reproductive rights of women, the rights of children and the 2004 Domestic Violence law (Number 23). Humi Inane also undertake workshops and discussions at the village level.


JAPH&HAM (Jaringan Advokasi Penegakan Hukum & HAM - Advocacy Network for Upholding Law & Human Rights)

JAPH&HAM became a PBI partner in 2007, replacing the individual partner relationship with the organization’s director, Theo Hesegem. Theo had become a PBI partner in 2005 after being subjected to intimidation. 

JAPH&HAM investigates and reports on human rights violations in the mountainous area of Wamena. Cases of torture, abuse, unlawful arrest, deaths of prisoners in custody, beatings and alleged poisonings are some examples of cases they investigate. They provide support and legal counsel to relatives of victims of violations and encourage families to bring cases forward through official channels. JAPH&HAM carries out human rights education in rural communities. They also have a program of human rights trainings with the police.

JAPH&HAM director, Theo Hesegem, is one of the original local organizers of the annual International Peace Day and International Human Rights Day. These events have included parades, ceremonial traditional feasts, radio discussions, film screenings, inspection visits to the local jail, commemorations in memory of the victims of human rights violations, and public assemblies.

KontraS Papua (Komisi untuk Orang Hilang dan Korban Tindak Kekerasan - Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence)

KontraS is a human rights NGO whose Papuan branch was established in Jayapura in June 2000. PBI accepted KontraS Papua as a partner organisation for protective services in 2005, following increasing threats against the director and other staff.

The mandate of KontraS is to advocate for ‘disappeared’ persons and for victims of violence. KontraS offers free legal representation to indigenous Papuans, especially those involved in human rights work. By offering free legal services, KontraS Papua mitigates the impact of systemic inequalities and human rights abuses and supports the development of a rights-based justice system. Other activities include fact-finding missions, monitoring of demonstrations and facilitation of dialogue.

LP3BH (Yayasan Lembaga Penelitian, Pengkajian dan Pengembangan Bantuan Hukum - The Institute for Research, Investigation and Development of Legal Aid)

In June 2006, PBI signed a partner contract with LP3BH, an NGO based in Manokwari. LP3BH empowers local civil society through education and advocacy about basic human rights and legal aid. LP3BH works throughout the Bird's Head area of West Papua, with special focus on the districts of Manokwari, Teluk Bintuni and Teluk Wondama (Wasior).

LP3BH monitors the environment for human rights and the upholding of law and due process in West Papua. They conduct trainings for communities in legal issues and provide legal assistance to victims of human rights violations. In 2008, LP3BH represented 12 Papuans who were convicted of raising the Bintang Kejora flag at peaceful demonstrations. LP3BH is challenging the legality of Regulation 77/ 2007, that criminalizes such actions.

LP3BH also acts in a monitoring and advisory capacity with the largest economic project in the province, the British Petroleum (BP) Tangguh LNG project.

Yan Christian Warinussy, the Executive Director of LP3BH, was awarded Canada’s ‘John Humphrey Freedom Award’ in 2005. In 2009, he travelled to Europe where he undertook a three-week PBI-sponsored speaking-tour.

In the past, Yan Christian experienced direct threats from authorities, and in 1998 spent three months in jail. Protective services provided by PBI led to a significant decrease in efforts to intimidate LP3BH in carrying out their work.

SKP (Sekretariat Keadilan dan Perdamaian Keuskupan Jayapura - Office for Justice and Peace of the Catholic Diocese in Jayapura)

In September 2006, PBI signed a partner contract with SKP, the Office for Justice and Peace of the Catholic Diocese. SKP is under the Franciscan Order and Franciscan International. Their central office in Jayapura represents the SKP sections in Merauke, Sorong, Timika and Agats. All SKP branches were included in the partner contract, meaning that any of their staff and volunteers could request Protective Accompaniment Services from PBI.

SKP is involved in a broad range of activities including advocacy for victims of human rights abuses; publication and documentation of human rights abuses (including research and investigation); education and awareness programs; peace-building activities; supporting IDPs and expatriates returning from Papua New Guinea; and interfaith dialogue and cooperation. SKP acted as an advisor and a link to authorities on a project to secure a permanent market place for women street vendors (‘mama-mama’) in Jayapura.

This project is closed

Peace Brigades International (PBI) has closed its current phase of operations in Indonesia as a result of a series of challenges and constraints during the past year.

Our departure means the withdrawal of the last international human rights organisation from Papua after other organisations have had their operations disrupted.

The website is an archive from late 2010.

>> Read the closing statement of the Indonesia Project

 


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