Rome Newsroom, Nov 4, 2020 / 13:00 pm
Catholic bishops in Indonesia met with government officials this week to express concern about the violence in Papua province after a Catholic catechist was shot and killed by security forces.
Cardinal Ignatius Suharyo Hardjoatmodjo of Jakarta, chairman of the Indonesian bishops' conference, was part of the delegation of three bishops that met with Indonesia's security minister Mohammad Mahfud MD in Jakarta on Nov. 1.
Two of Papua's bishops also took part in the meeting, which was held days after Rufinus Tigau was killed by soldiers in Intan Jaya district, Papua province.
Tigau, 28, had served as a catechist and translator at St. Michael Bilogai Parish since 2015, a local priest told UCA News. A military spokesman said that Tigau was a member of the Armed Separatist Criminal Group -- a claim which his diocesan apostolic administrator has disputed.