The Free Papua Movement or Free Papua Organization is a name given to an independence movement based on Western New Guinea, seeking secession of the territory currently under Indonesian administration. The territory is currently divided into six Indonesian provinces of Central Papua, Highland Papua, Papua, South Papua, Southwest Papua, and West Papua, also formerly known as Papua, Irian Jaya and West Irian.
In security studies and international relations, a police action is a military action undertaken without a formal declaration of war. In the 21st century, the term has been largely supplanted by "counter-insurgency". Since World War II, formal declarations of war have been rare, especially military actions conducted by the Global North during the Cold War. Rather, nations involved in military conflict sometimes describe the conflict by fighting the war under the auspices of a "police action" to show that it is a limited military operation, different from total war.
The Aceh War, also known as the Dutch War or the Infidel War (1873–1904), was an armed military conflict between the Sultanate of Aceh and the Kingdom of the Netherlands which was triggered by discussions between representatives of Aceh and the United States in Singapore during early 1873. The war was part of a series of conflicts in the late 19th century that consolidated Dutch rule over modern-day Indonesia.
The Act of Free Choice was a controversial plebiscite held between 14 July and 2 August 1969 in which 1,025 people selected by the Indonesian military in Western New Guinea voted unanimously in favor of Indonesian control.
Members of the Iraqi insurgency began taking foreign hostages in Iraq beginning in April 2004. Since then, in a dramatic instance of Islamist kidnapping they have taken captive more than 200 foreigners and thousands of Iraqis; among them, dozens of hostages were killed and others rescued or freed. In 2004, executions of captives were often filmed, and many were beheaded. However, the number of the recorded killings decreased significantly. Many hostages remain missing with no clue as to their whereabouts. The United States Department of State Hostage Working Group was organized by the U.S. Embassy, Baghdad, in the summer of 2004 to monitor foreign hostages in Iraq.
Dortheys Hiyo Eluay was an Indonesian local politician from Irian Jaya turned West Papuan independence activist. Known as the former leader of Papua Presidium Council, he was known as the community leader in West Papua region. He was murdered by members of the Indonesian Army special forces command.
Juramentado, in Philippine history, refers to a male Moro swordsman who attacked and killed targeted occupying and invading police and soldiers, expecting to be killed himself, the martyrdom undertaken as a form of jihad, considered a form of suicide attack. Unlike an amok, who commits acts of random violence against Muslims and non-Muslims alike, a juramentado was a dedicated, premeditated, and sometimes highly skilled warrior who prepared himself through a ritual of binding, shaving, and prayer in order to accomplish brazen attacks armed only with edged weapons.
Peter Woodard Galbraith is an American author, academic, commentator, politician, policy advisor, and former diplomat.
Hugh Riminton is a Sri Lankan-born Australian foreign correspondent, journalist and television news presenter. He is currently national affairs editor and occasional presenter of 10 News First. He previously co-anchored Ten Eyewitness News with Sandra Sully until February 2017.
Atika Lynn Shubert is an American CNN journalist based in Valencia, Spain. She covers Spain as well as the rest of Europe for CNN. Before her promotion she was based in Berlin and in London. Prior to working for CNN, she was a correspondent for The Washington Post and The New Zealand Herald in Indonesia as she speaks both English and Indonesian fluently. She is a graduate of the Class of 1991 of Jakarta International School. She is an Economics graduate of Tufts University in Medford, Massachusetts, US.
The Black Road is a 2005 Australian documentary by William Nessen. The film was shot on location in Aceh, and reports on the Province's battle for independence from Indonesia. Although the film was originally a television documentary, produced for SBS in Australia, it has since been shown around the world at film festivals and presentations on the subject. The film is critically acclaimed and has received several awards, both Australian and international. The Black Road was among four films on the subject of separatism that the Indonesian Film Censorship Institute banned in the country.
Istishhad is the Arabic word for "martyrdom", "death of a martyr", or "heroic death". Martyrs are given the honorific shaheed. The word derives from the root shahida, meaning "to witness". Traditionally martyrdom has an exalted place in Islam. It is widely believed among Muslims that the sins of believers who "die in the way of God" will be forgiven by Allah. Shia views on martyrdom have been profoundly influenced by internal Muslim conflicts, notably Husayn ibn Ali's martyrdom at Karbala in 680, shaping it as a central belief and practice.
The 1999 East Timorese crisis began with attacks by pro-Indonesia militia groups on civilians, and expanded to general violence throughout the country, centred in the capital Dili. The violence intensified after a majority of eligible East Timorese voters voted for independence from Indonesia. Some 1,400 civilians are believed to have died. A UN-authorized force (INTERFET) consisting mainly of Australian Defence Force personnel was deployed to East Timor to establish and maintain peace.
The insurgency in Aceh, officially designated the Rebellion in Aceh by the Indonesian government, was a conflict fought by the Free Aceh Movement (GAM) between 1976 and 2005, with the goal of making the province of Aceh independent from Indonesia. The aftermath of a strong military offensive in 2003 and the 2004 Indian Ocean earthquake and tsunami brought a peace agreement and an end to the insurgency.
Harry Burton was an Australian journalist and cameraman who was kidnapped by the Taliban on the highway to Kabul, Afghanistan and then murdered. Three other journalists suffered the same fate.
The East Timor and Indonesia Action Network (ETAN) is a nonprofit US organization supporting human rights throughout Southeast Asia and Oceania. ETAN was founded in 1991 to support the right to self-determination of Timor-Leste. In 1999, that goal was significantly realized when the people of East Timor voted for independence. Since then ETAN has focused on building on its success in support of justice and self-determination in Timor-Leste and the surrounding region.
The Papua conflict is an ongoing conflict in Western New Guinea (Papua) between Indonesia and the Free Papua Movement. Subsequent to the withdrawal of the Dutch administration from the Netherlands New Guinea in 1962 and implementation of Indonesian administration in 1963, the Free Papua Movement has conducted a low-intensity guerrilla war against Indonesia by targeting its military and police, along with ordinary Indonesian citizens.
Shadia Marhaban is an international mediator, capacity builder and activist from Aceh, Indonesia.
Damien Kingsbury, is an Australian academic specializing in political and security issues.
The military history of Indonesia includes the military history of the modern nation of Republic of Indonesia, as well as the military history of the states which preceded and formed it. It encompassed a kaleidoscope of conflicts spanning over a millennia. The ancient and medieval part of it began as tribal warfare began among indigenous populations, and escalated as kingdoms emerged. The modern part is defined by foreign colonial occupations, battles for independence through guerrilla warfare during Indonesian National Revolution, regional conquests and disputes with neighbouring countries, as well as battles between the Republic and separatist factions. Since the formation of the Republic, the military has played significant role in state affairs. However, in Post-Suharto era, the Indonesian military has retreated from politics, yet it still possesses some influences.
