He was warmly welcomed by Governor Dominggus Mandacan and Commander of the XVIII/Kasuari Regional Military, Command Major General I Nyoman Cantiasa.
Before going to Manokwari, Abdurachman, who was sworn in on November 17, 2021 by President Joko Widodo in place of General Andika Perkasa, visited Jayapura, the capital of Papua province, on Tuesday.
During his first working visit to Papua and West Papua, he was accompanied by his wife, Rahma Dudung Abdurachman, according to the XVIII/Kasuari Regional Military Command's spokesperson, Colonel Hendra Pesireron.
General Abdurachman and his entourage will stay in Manokwari until Thursday and then proceed to Makassar, the capital of South Sulawesi province, Pesireron said.
While visiting the compound of the Army Strategic Reserves' (Kostrad's) Raider 754/ENK20/3Raider Battalion in Timika, Mimika district, Papua province, on Tuesday, he gave several directives to army personnel.
First, General Abdurachman ordered them to care for Papuan communities and win their hearts and minds. He then urged them to make the utmost effort to persuade Papuan separatists to declare allegiance to Indonesia.
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Papua has borne witness to a spate of violence against civilians and security personnel in the past few years.
Intan Jaya recorded its bloodiest month in September 2020, with notorious armed groups launching a series of attacks that claimed the lives of two soldiers and two civilians and left two others injured.
Armed groups have continued their acts of terror this year, too.
On January 6, 2021, at least 10 armed Papuans vandalized and torched a Quest Kodiak aircraft belonging to the Mission Aviation Fellowship (MAF) at the Pagamba village airstrip.
Armed groups often employ hit-and-run tactics against Indonesian security personnel and unleash acts of terror against civilians to instill fear among the people.
On February 8, 2021, an armed rebel reportedly shot a 32-year-old man at close range in Bilogai village, Sugapa sub-district.
The victim, identified by his initials as RNR, sustained gunshot wounds on the face and right shoulder and was taken to the Timika Public Hospital in Mimika district on February 9.
On February 9, six armed Papuans fatally stabbed a motorcycle taxi (ojek) driver.
Thereafter, on the morning of September 13, several members of the Lamek Tablo-led separatist terrorist group torched several public facilities, including a public health center, and homes in Kiwirok.
The separatist terrorists reportedly assaulted and tortured several health workers from the Kiwirok Public Health Center.
One health worker, identified as Gabriela Meilan, died, while four others sustained serious injuries in the attack.(
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Translator: Hans AK, Rahmad Nasution
Editor: Suharto
Copyright © ANTARA 2021
