Jayapura, Jubi – In the two years following the attack by the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB) on the Military Post in Maybrat Regency’s Kisor, that resulted in the reported deaths of four Indonesian Military (TNI) members, a significant number of individuals who had evacuated from five districts within Maybrat ever since the incident continued to opt for staying in multiple refugee camps, situated both in Maybrat and the Sorong area.
The Maybrat Displaced People Care Civil Society Coalition, which has been conducting advocacy and assistance, in an online press conference on Thursday, August 3, 2023, revealed that until now the Maybrat displaced people still need serious attention and handling.
Heri Lobya of the Franciscan Papuan Justice, Peace and Integrity of Creation Secretariat (SKPKC) said that according to the data released by the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) on July 28, 2023, as many as 5,296 displaced people are still staying in camps, whereas 138 people died after the attack on the Kisor Military Post.
He explained that Maybrat displaced people need help, attention, and assistance from various parties because they live spread out in various areas such as in the forest, neighboring villages such as in the North Aifat area, as well as in Sorong District, South Sorong Regency, and Bintuni.
“They live in suffering and they face various difficulties from several aspects of life such as education, health, housing, and economy,” said Lobya.
“In terms of getting assistance from the government and schools, due to the problem of basic education data, children from villages who go to school in the city have difficulty getting assistance because the data is not synchronized,” he added.
From the health aspect, until now the displaced people often experience illness such as fever, ulcers, diarrhea, high blood pressure, sprained hands, eye pain, cholesterol, wet lungs, cough, respiratory tract problem, stroke, stomachache, sore knees, and mental health problems in pregnant women.
Recently, it has been difficult for them to get access to medical services due to lack of money for treatment. There are even pregnant women who have to struggle alone to give birth to their children in refugee camps without medical assistance.
The Maybrat displaced people are experiencing housing difficulties because they still have to live with several families in one house. Even in one family there can be seven to nine people.
Human rights advocate Yohanis Mambrasar said that in September it would be two years since the Kisor incident. “The Maybrat Regency, Provincial and Central governments have indeed done various things and provided aid. But there are also some things that have not been addressed thoroughly that then become a problem for the displaced people themselves, so they still need serious attention,” he said. (*)
