Pintu Dipalang, Jendela Breaks: Tensions Between Inter-jemaats At The Wamena Church Are Restricted By The Apparatus

WAMENA - The commotion occurred at the Baptist Church of the Hubula Region, Sinakma Village, Wamena City, Papua Mountains, on Sunday, July 13 morning.

The incident involved two groups of congregations, namely the Papuan Baptist and West Papua Baptist. Clashes due to differences in the schedule for worship.

Chaos reportedly broke out at around 08.02 WIT. Tensions peaked after one group blocked the church door from within. The action sparked anger from other parties that resulted in damage to church facilities, including two windows of the main building and two pastoral windows.

Receiving reports from residents, joint personnel were immediately deployed to the location. The Jayawijaya Police team took a persuasive approach to reduce the situation. The effort was led directly by the Head of Operations of the Jayawijaya Police together with elements of the Cartenz Peace Task Force.

"This handling proves that the synergistic collaboration between the Cartenz Damai Ops Task Force and the Jayawijaya Police is very effective in preventing horizontal conflicts. We ensure that the humanist approach remains a priority," said Head of Cartenz Peace Operations, Brigadier General Faizal Ramadhani, in his statement, Sunday, July 13.

Head of the Public Relations Task Force for Damai Cartenz Ops, Kombes Yusuf Sutejo stated that the handling was carried out in a balanced and open manner. According to him, the apparatus seeks to become a communication facilitator between the two parties so that tension does not lead to anarchic actions.

"Currently, the two groups have agreed to take the mediation route at the Jayawijaya Police Headquarters," he said.

The situation around the Sinakma Baptist Church is now back to conducive. There were no casualties in the incident. The authorities are still on standby to oversee the mediation process and maintain security stability in the Wamena area.