Jakarta (ANTARA) - Indonesian House of Representatives (DPR RI) Commission III member Aboebakar Alhabsyi regretted a clash between military (TNI) and police (Polri) officers that left three policemen dead and two wounded in Kasonaweja, Mamberamo Raya, Papua, Sunday.

"The incident is very unfortunate, especially in the midst of our concentrated efforts against the coronavirus outbreak. All components of this nation, including the TNI and Polri, should work together to fight the spread of COVID-19. An incident such as this should have been avoided and must not have occurred in the first place," Alhabsyi noted in a statement here on Monday.

The PKS politician, concurrently chairperson of the Code of Ethics Court of the DPR RI, suggested to set up a joint team responsible for enforcing discipline and the rule of law in resolving the clash.

Alhabsyi called on the Chief of the Papua Provincial Police (Kapolda) and Regional Military Commander (Pangdam) XVII Cenderawasih to sit together to intensify communication between members to avert any counter-action.

"I urge the National Police and TNI to establish better communication, so that events such as this can be avoided. The energy we have should be focused on saving the people's lives from the coronavirus pandemic, not like this," he affirmed.

Spokesman of the Papua Police Senior Commissioner Ahmad Kamal stated in Jayapura on Sunday that the clash broke out on Sunday morning over a misunderstanding between an Army officer of Yonif 755/Kostrad and a policeman of Mamberamo Raya (Mamra) Police Resort.

The local police and military commanders had met to discuss the incident and agreed to establish a joint team to conduct an investigation.

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Translator: Abdu Faisal, Fardah
Editor: Sri Haryati
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