Jayapura – The surge in shootings and violence targeting civilians in Wamena, Jayawijaya Regency (Highland Papua), has prompted the Papua Representative Office of the National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM) to urge the police to immediately block transport routes classified as high-risk for crime.
Frits Ramandey, Head of the Komnas HAM Papua Representative Office, emphasized that closing or restricting access to roads with a high potential for ambushes is an emergency mitigation measure to prevent further loss of life.
Police are urged to take a firm stance by prohibiting both local residents and newcomers from traversing areas prone to threats, in an effort to break the cycle of armed violence in the region.
“The police need to take preventive measures by blocking or prohibiting the public from passing through points designated as high-risk areas. These restrictions aim to minimize the risk of civilians—whether newcomers or locals—becoming targets of violence,” Frits stated in a written release on Friday (September 17, 2026).
In addition to demanding concrete action from security forces, Komnas HAM Papua strongly condemns the killings and systematic terror directed at unarmed civilians, acts which meet the criteria for gross human rights violations.
Repeated armed criminal acts in residential areas and transit routes have sparked widespread fear and severely undermined social stability in Wamena.
Frits issued a specific public warning to the leadership of the Armed Criminal Group (KKB) to exercise control over all their members in the field, particularly regarding the cessation of displaying heinous acts on social media.
The dissemination of video footage showing executions and acts of violence in the digital public sphere is considered a form of dangerous psychological terror, deliberately created to intimidate the populace. Komnas HAM warned that such visual propaganda maneuvers could prompt the government to adopt a harsher approach toward the group, ultimately triggering a prolonged escalation of the conflict.
“Disseminating videos of executions or violence constitutes a form of psychological terror. Such actions risk altering the government’s perception of the perpetrators, potentially leading to a more aggressive security response and resulting in further loss of life,” the commission asserted.
By issuing these recommendations, Komnas HAM Papua hopes that security forces and the conflicting parties will uphold humanitarian norms to ensure the safety of civilians in Papua.
