Jakarta, IO – Riot breaks out in Sinakma village, Wamena, Papua Highlands province, on Thursday (23/2), allegedly triggered by rumour of child kidnapping, reported Kompas, Friday (24/2).
“Of the dead victims, eight are natives while the othe two are migrants. The 18 injured are security personnel hit by stones and arrows, one of them a ranking officer,” said Papua Police chief Mathius Fakhiri.
“Material losses included two shophouses and 13 houses that were burned down, plus vehicles belonging to security force which were damaged after being hit by stones,” said Faakhiri.
The riot started when locals stopped a car transporting goods in Sinakma on Thursday (23/2) afternoon. The two people in the vehicle were accused of kidnapping a child. The Jayawijaya Police chief, who received the report, went to the location to contain the situation. Parties involved agreed to resolve the problem at Jayawijaya Police station. But suddenly a group of locals appeared who carried out provocations which then sparked the riot.
Read: Papua armed criminal group sets condition for hostage pilot release
Not only did they try to attack the two alleged kidnappers, the increasingly violent crowd also attacked the security forces trying to control the situation. They ignored police warnings to disperse and continued with the rampage, committing vandalism and arson. (rr)