The illegal sale of government-issued weapons and ammunition by rogue Indonesian soldiers to separatist rebels in the Papua region surged in 2022, military officials said, warning that service members caught aiding the separatists could face execution.
Twenty-seven cases of such illicit sales by army personnel were reported last year, compared with 10 in 2021 in six Papua provinces, Adm. Yudo Margono, commander of the Indonesian military (TNI), said this week.
The military will harshly punish any personnel involved in such transactions, including buying and selling illegal weapons, TNI spokesman Rear Adm. Julius Widjojono said. Headquarters will continue monitoring to prevent illegal weapons trading, especially in the far-eastern Papua region, he said.
“In the future, Adm. Yudo will impose maximum punishment, the death penalty, if military personnel are found to have committed wrongdoing,” Julius told BenarNews on Thursday.
Indonesia as a whole is notorious for corruption across the government and public sector.
“Apart from buying and selling, the abuse includes carrying weapons in inappropriate places, threatening people with arms,” Julius said.
Source : Benar
