Two months on since his capture in the hands of a Papuan separatist group, it does not seem like New Zealand pilot Philip Mehrtens will be able to count on an imminent rescue by the Indonesian Military (TNI), who are intent on avoiding bloodshed in the resolution of this drawn-out hostage situation.
TNI Commander-in-chief Admiral Yudo Margono said yesterday that he prefers to steer clear of a bloody conflict with Mehrtens’ captors, the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB).
“I do not want war. In war, [TPNPB] will use civilians as shields,” Yudo said in Jakarta.
The commander said the military will instead continue to attempt negotiations for Mehrtens’ release, which, of course, haven’t bore fruit.
Mehrtens was kidnapped by the insurgents after landing his single-engine Susi Air plane to drop off five passengers in the remote region of Nduga on Feb. 7. His captors then set fire to the aircraft.
Related
TPNPB, who say they still have Mehrtens in a remote stronghold, had been clear in their intention to use the pilot as leverage in negotiations with the Indonesian government. They recently told the authorities via BBC Indonesia to stop military and police searches for the hostage and for the government to begin negotiations with the group.
The region has been locked in conflict between indigenous separatist groups and Indonesian security forces for decades, with civilians occasionally getting caught in the crosshairs. Resource-rich Papua was a Dutch colony until the early 1960s, when it declared itself an independent nation in 1961. Neighboring Indonesia took control of the region by force in 1963 and officially annexed it with a UN-backed referendum in 1969 that was widely seen as a sham.
