Pro-Government Militias
Laskar Merah Putih (Indonesia)
Basic Group Information
| Name assigned by coder: | no |
| PGM ID Number: | 335 |
| Country: | Indonesia |
| Date formed: | Aug. 1, 2003 |
| Accuracy of date formed: | month |
| Details of Formation: | The group was established by former leader of Aitarak (Eurico Guterres) in Timor in 2003 to fight secessionists first in West Papua and then in Aceh. It was apparently supported by the military and appears to be a militia offshoot of the Front of Red and White Defenders, a nationalist group, but not a PGM. (There is another group with this name between 2000 and 2002 and after 2009 that organized nationalist protests against Malaysian Embassy. This group is not a PGM and the group coded here is explicitly stated in the sources to have been established in 2003.) |
| Date dissolved: | Jan. 1, 2006 |
| Accuracy of date dissolved: | year |
| Details of Termination: | The last activity of Laskar Merah Putih was reported in 2005. The group’s leader is imprisoned in 2006 for his activities in East Timor. There is no more evidence for the group. |
| Termination Type(s): | government defects |
Former and Successor Group Information
| Predecessor group(s): | none |
| Successor group(s): | none |
| Private Military Company? | no |
| Former Group? | no |
| Former Armed Group? | no |
| Former Rebel Group? | no |
| Former Rebel Group UCDP ID: | none |
| PGM Becomes Rebel Group? | no |
| Successor Rebel Group UCDP ID: | none |
Government Relation, Support, and Training
| Government Relation: | informal (type 1) |
| Created by the Government?: | no | Main Creating Government Institution: | none |
| Government Link(s): | state (institution); military (institution) |
| If link to party, name of party: | None |
| Training and Equipment: | no |
| Shared Information and Joint Operations: | no |
| Shared Personnel: | no |
| Type(s) of Material Support: | domestic government; plunder and loot; military |
| State Sponsor(s): | none |
| Other Connection(s): |
Group Characteristics
| Membership: | ideology |
| Primary Membership: | nationalist |
| Alternative Primary Membership: | no information |
| Location: | West Papua; North Aceh, Timika |
| Force Strength: | [15000, 18000] |
| Target(s): | unarmed political opposition, government critics; rebels, insurgents, or other armed group; ethnic group |
| Purpose(s): | protect national borders and integrity; intimidation of ethnic/religious groups |
Ethnic Characteristics
| Ethnic Target(s): | Papuans (Indonesia); Acehnese (Indonesia) |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Targeting: | given |
| Ethnic Membership: | none |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Membership: | not applicable |
| Ethnic Purpose: | Papuans (Indonesia); Acehnese (Indonesia) |
| Quality of Information for Ethnic Purpose: | given |
Other Information
| Other Information: | Even though the group claims to have up to 18,000 members the real number is apparently much smaller. Its name translates to “Red and White Warriors”. |
New Variables from Meta-Analysis
Purpose
| Purpose: | The group was used for anti-separatist actions using violence and intimidation in the aftermath of the Papuan referendum. Papuans who were not in favour of splitting their province were thus targeted. One goal was also to destabilize Papua. In addition, the PGM acted against Aceh independence and Acehnese civilians were supposed to be intimidated by the group. |
| Relative Benefit(s) of PGM Use | unknown |
Treatment of Civilians
| Treatment of Civilians: | The group attacked and intimidated Papuan and Acehnese civilians. Civilians were killed by the militia in Papua after the independence vote and it was responsible for looting. The PGM contributed to the risk of destabilization of Papua and an escalation of violence. |
| Type(s) of Violence against Civilians: | killing |
Reasons for Membership
| PGM Members Coerced? | no information |
| PGM Members Paid? | no information |
| Reasons for Membership: | Looting may have posed a material incentive to join the group. It consists of refugees and recruited non-Papuan migrants with the goal to fight separatists. |
| PGM Members Killed? | no information |
PGM Size
| Size: | At its formation the group had 200 members. Later in 2003, the militia claimed it had 18,000 members. In 2005 there were 900 reported members in Aceh and it claimed to draw on 15,000 members across all of Indonesia. |
Weapons and Training
| Weapons and Training: |
Organisation
| Organisation: | The group was secretly backed by the government or the military and a former leader stated it was registered with the government. It was linked to Aitarak via that group’s former leader Eurico Guterres who formed this PGM. |
Reference(s) for Meta-Analysis
Evidence
- Examine the evidence for this coding.