| Biak Massacre | |
|---|---|
| Part of the Papua Conflict | |
| Location | Biak, Indonesia |
| Coordinates | 8°35′15″S 125°20′31″E / 8.5875°S 125.342°E |
| Date | July 2–6, 1998 (UTC+9) |
| Target | Pro-independence civilians, members of the Free Papua Movement |
Attack type | Massacre |
| Deaths | 40–150 |
| Perpetrators | Indonesian Armed Forces, Indonesian National Police |
| Motive | Indonesian nationalism, Anti-Christian sentiment |
The Biak massacre was the killing of West Papuan pro-independence demonstrators on the island of Biak, Papua Province, Indonesia, in 1998.
On the morning of 2 July 1998, unarmed villagers, including Nobel Peace prize nominee and political prisoner Filep Karma raised the West Papuan Morning Star flag at a water tower. In the afternoon, Indonesia police and military fired tear gas in an effort to disperse the crowd but was unsuccessful. This resulted in a stand-off that lasted several days until the morning of 6 July where the Indonesian security forces surrounded and fired upon the crowd.[1]
According to Elsham Papua, a local human rights organization, 8 people were killed and a further 32 bodies were found near Biak in the following days.[2] The Free Papua Movement claimed that around 150 people were killed.[3]
To this day, no one has been charged with the killings and the massacre is not officially recognized. No government or international enquiry has reported on it.[4]