Group says abuse in Papua continues

Indonesian security forces are still killing, torturing and raping civilians in their efforts to curb separatism in Papua, Human Rights Watch said today. .

The group said in a report that many serious rights violations occurred during police raids on communities believed to harbor separatist leaders or when security authorities used force to break up gatherings in Papua, a province on the western half of New Guinea island.

The report alleges that in 2005, many civilians went missing or died and that tens of thousands had been displaced from their homes after paramilitary forces burned down houses in at least 13 villages in their search for members of a separatist group.