Separatist Papuans who took the pilot hostage are ready for negotiations with the UN
[ad_1]
Media: Papuans separatists who took the pilot hostage are ready for negotiations with the UN
The West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB), a separatist group fighting for independence from Indonesia, has made public its demands for the release of New Zealand pilot Captain Philips Mark Mertens.
The New Zealand airline Susi Air pilot was taken hostage “as a political guarantee for negotiations for the independence of the West Papuan nation” back in February last year. How writes The Asean Daily, the separatists now want UN-mediated talks before agreeing to the release of the hostage pilot.
“We will release the pilot through negotiations with the assistance of a third party, namely the UN,” TPNPB spokesman Sebby Sambom said in a written statement. Sambom stressed that Mertens’ freedom could also be secured if the Indonesian government and New Zealand, the pilot’s homeland, met the unspoken demands of the separatists – but the spokesman refrained from detailing the specific nature of these demands, leaving Jakarta and Wellington in a state of uncertainty. At the same time, TPNPB called on the Indonesian military to stop aerial bombing and drone surveillance of the area where Mertens is being held captive.
[ad_2]
Source link
