West Papua rebels threaten to shoot New Zealand pilot if independence talks denied

The Guardian

Phillip Mehrtens, who has been held hostage since February, makes the claim in a new video released by the separatist group.

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Photo of hostage with hostage takers
New Zealand pilot Phillip Mehrtens is being held by separatists in Indonesia’s Papua region. Photograph: West Papua Liberation Army/AP.

Rebels in Indonesia’s Papua region have threatened to shoot a New Zealand pilot being held hostage if countries do not comply with their demand to start independence talks within two months, a new video released by the group shows. (...)

A low-level but increasingly deadly battle for independence has been waged in resource-rich Papua ever since it was controversially brought under Indonesian control in a vote overseen by the United Nations in 1969. (...)

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Tags: #netherlands #papua #west_papua #indonesia #hostage #west-papoea #act_of_free_choice #Free_Papua_Movement #Organisasi_Papua_Merdeka #OPM #human_rights #liberation_movement #morning_star #West_Papua_National_Liberation_Army

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