| Daeron 2005-01-11, 7:11 pm |
| "West Papua has the highest HIV rate in Indonesia. Much of it is due to the
ongoing harassment that Papuan women face from Indonesian soldiers"
http://westpapua.ouvaton.org/?q=node/view/125
Papua's women and children under fire
Papua's women and children have been under relentless attack since Indonesia
first invaded, leaving immense psychological scars. Reports of raids on
villages usually contain references to sexual violations, and often
describe women and children forced to watch family members being raped or
tortured to death. Early reports document Indonesian soldiers picking up
children by the feet and smashing their heads against rocks as mothers
pleaded for mercy. These raids are designed to terrorize and demoralize as
well as to destroy.
In its 2003 annual human rights report on Indonesia, the U.S. government
stated without any ambiguity that rape and other brutalities against women
have been made a weapon of war by the Indonesian military.
An infamous example of women and children being massacred took place on
Biak, a tiny island off the coast of Papua. At 5 a.m. on July 6, 1998, the
Indonesian army opened fire on a group of young people sleeping in the main
square. The entire population of the town was then forced at gunpoint to
the harbour, where for an entire day Biak men, women and children were
subjected to physical, psychological and sexual abuses.
The local Catholic church reported that more than 100 people - mostly
women, some with babies and young children - were then forced on board two
Navy vessels and taken out to sea. Over the next few weeks, their naked
bodies and body parts washed ashore or were found in fishing nets. Most of
the victims had been mutilated in gruesome ways.
HIV/AIDS
West Papua has the highest HIV rate in Indonesia. Much of it is due to the
ongoing harassment that Papuan women face from Indonesian soldiers, as well
as the severe lack of health services for Papuans in the region.
AIDS was first detected in the province in 1992. Studies undertaken by
international researchers report that brothels established and run by the
Indonesian military are a principal source of the deadly disease. The
military is also reported to be relocating HIV-infected prostitutes from
other parts of Indonesia to Papua.
Indonesian government spokespersons attempt to blame the spread of HIV/AIDS
on the Papuans' risky sexual behavior. Urbanization, however, is closer to
the root of the problem. More and more young people are displaced from
rural communities (see other Special Topics) to become sex workers in the
towns and cities. Ninety percent of sex workers in Jayapura (the capital of
Papua) are native Papuans, and less than five percent of them use condoms.
A recent report by university of Victoria professor Dr. Leslie Butt and
colleagues, notes that there are virtually no government initiatives for
AIDS education in rural locations, where the majority of indigenous Papuans
live. The most vulnerable people in Papuan society are slowly being killed
by an unseen, undiagnosed, yet preventable disease.
WESTPAN:
Tel: +1 250 381 4131..Fax: +i 250 388 5258
web: www.westpapua.ca
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For AIDS/HIV+ resources, visit the s.s.a.h+ website at :
http://www.webcom.com/benny/ssah/ssah+.html
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