Papuan rebel leader killed in Highland Papua

Jakarta (ANTARA) - The Indonesian Defense Forces (TNI) confirmed on Thursday that Mayer Wenda alias Kuloi Wonda, a rebel leader of the Free Papua Movement (OPM), was slain while resisting arrest in Highland Papua province.

According to a TNI press release, TNI personnel laid an ambush for Wenda in Mukoni sub-district, Lanny Jaya district, Highland Papua, on Tuesday.

Wenda, who resisted arrest, exchanged fire with the Indonesian officers before being fatally shot along with another person, identified as his brother.

According to head of the TNI Information Office, Major General Kristomei Sianturi, Wenda—known to be the deputy commander of an OPM military command in Lanny Jaya—had been on the TNI’s wanted list for over a decade.

“Mayer Wenda alias Kuloi Wonda was our fugitive who has been included in the wanted list since 2014,” Sianturi said.

As per official records, Wenda had been perpetrating crimes against the state since 2012, when he attacked and burned a police office in Pirime, Lanny Jaya district, and killed a police officer in Tolikara.

He was also reportedly responsible for intercepting and attacking security officers patrolling in Lanny Jaya in 2014, the TNI information office said.

The major general said that the TNI is committed to maintaining security in Papua and preserving Indonesia’s integrity by taking action against the Free Papua Movement.

“This success proved that every action of TNI officers against armed groups has been conducted professionally, measurably, and in line with Indonesian laws,” Sianturi added.

Over the past few years, armed Papuan groups have often employed hit-and-run tactics against Indonesian security personnel and mounted acts of terror against civilians in the districts of Intan Jaya, Nduga, Puncak, and Maybrat to incite fear among the people.

The targets of such acts of terror have included construction workers, motorcycle taxi (ojek) drivers, teachers, students, street food vendors, and also civilian aircraft.

In one high-profile case, New Zealand pilot Phillip Mark Mehrtens was taken hostage by the Egianus Kogoya-led armed group after landing his Susi Air plane in Papua’s Nduga district on February 7, 2023. He was held captive for over a year before being released in September 2024.