Indonesia Benny Wenda[1] Joko Widodo The 2019 Papua protests were a series of protests by Papuans in Indonesia that began on 19 August 2019 and mainly took place across Indonesian Papua region in response to the arrests of 43 Papuan students in Surabaya, East Java for alleged disrespect of the Indonesian flag.

In several locations, the protests turned into general riots, resulting in the destruction of government buildings in Wamena, Sorong and Jayapura.

After December 2018, tens of thousands of civilians around the Nduga Regency were displaced following an increased military presence after a massacre of workers constructing the Trans-Papua Highway, and conflict with separatist fighters.

[9] On 15 August 2019, the anniversary of the 1962 New York Agreement and coinciding with a discussion on Papua in the Pacific Islands Forum in Tuvalu,[10][11] protests by Papuans were held across several cities in Indonesia, including Jayapura, Sentani, Ternate, Ambon, Bandung, Yogyakarta, Jakarta, and Malang.

[14][15] On 16 August 2019, around the celebrations of the Independence of Indonesia, forty-three Papuan students in Surabaya, East Java were arrested by police following reports that an Indonesian flag was damaged outside the building where they lived.

[17] Civil militias from the Islamic Defenders Front and the Pancasila Youth were reported to be present at the location and had attacked the students verbally and physically.

[19] On 19 August, a crowd of what was estimated by an AFP reporter to be "several thousand" began protesting in Manokwari, the capital of West Papua province.

[22] West Papua's vice governor Mohamad Lakotani [id] remarked that the city's economy was completely paralyzed by the protests.

Indonesian Armed Forces told media that 300 soldiers were deployed to Manokwari on 21 August,[24] with an overall count of 1,200 security personnel across the week.

[8] Jayapura, the region's largest city and the provincial capital of Papua, saw hundreds of protesters who forcefully took down the Indonesian flag in front of governor Lukas Enembe's office.

Footage emerged of Indonesian security troops allegedly firing live rounds into nonviolent protesting crowds during the previous week, killing 6-8 demonstrators.

The Indonesian Embassy in Canberra responded to the accusation with the statement: "Law enforcement officers have tried to reason with the crowd and calmed them down.

Indonesian authorities banned what they deemed were "violent protests" and warned that any person caught "supporting separatism" or "expressing separatist opinions" in public would be arrested and charged with treason.

[55] On Wednesday, 4 September, East Java Regional Police chief Luki Hermawan accused human rights lawyer Veronica Koman of sparking the Papua protests by using her Twitter account to spread information about the arrest of 43 Papuan students in East Java, stating that "she was very active in spreading provocative news.

"[62] Later, Indonesian officials submitted an Interpol notice to arrest Koman - who according to police spokesman had left for Australia - following a raid in her deserted Jakarta home.

[64] On 5 September, the Indonesian government partially lifted the internet blackout that it had imposed on the region while warning that it could abruptly reinstate it at any point if it deems that the situation had "worsened".

A Kompas correspondent in Wamena reported that gunshots sounded across the city and that civilians were taking shelter in police stations and military bases.

Indonesian police said the death toll had risen to 33 with 8 Papuan victims and that rebel sympathizers had burned buildings and set fire to vehicles.

Some of the Indonesian police's version of these events has subsequently been questioned in an investigative article by two Jakarta Post journalists in which the Papuan victim count was likely to be higher.

Based on testimony of the local residents of Hom-hom, they did not recognize the arsonists, which wore high school clothes, and suspect they are not from Wamena and look too old to be students.

There were many native Wamena Papuans protecting migrants from the rioters and arsonists, as confirmed by regional La Pago customary council chief Dominikus Surabut, who expressed sorry for not being able to help everyone.

[75] Responding to the protests, the Indonesian Ministry of Communication and Information Technology implemented an internet shutdown around Sorong, in a move that was stated to be one to combat disinformation,[19] later expanded to cover the entire region.

[76] On the night of 19 August, President Joko Widodo released a statement urging calm and noted to the Papuans that "it's OK to be emotional, but it's better to be forgiving.

[19] Coordinating Minister for Political, Legal, and Security Affairs Wiranto also released a statement that promised a "complete and fair" investigation into the incident in Surabaya and added that the situation in Papua was under control.

[77] Deputy Speaker of the People's Representative Council Fadli Zon called for an investigation into parties responsible for the racism incident in Surabaya.

[79] Bishop of Amboina Petrus Canisius Mandagi [id] called for peaceful protests and remarked that Papuans "should not be savage like those who spout racism".

[51] United Nations — UN Human Rights Commissioner Michelle Bachelet urged the Indonesian government to enter into talks with Papuans.

[87][88] Vanuatu — Prime Minister Charlot Salwai criticized alleged human rights abuses perpetrated by the Indonesian government before the United Nations General Assembly, citing Papua as one of the few remaining Pacific territories that have "yet to break the shackles of colonialism".

An Indonesian diplomat present at the meeting condemned the Vanuatu Prime Minister's statement and declared that "Papua is, has [been] and will always be, part of Indonesia".

[94] Despite broad criticism from human rights activists, reporters, and Papuan civilians realising their daily activities was severely hindered by the blackout, Indonesian authority defended the decision as necessary to prevent the spread of hate speech and hoax that may worsen the protests.