Wamena

Wamena is a town and the capital of the Indonesian province of Highland Papua. It also serves as the seat of Jayawijaya Regency. It is the largest town in Indonesian Papua's highlands, in the Baliem Valley and had a population of 64,967 at the 2020 Census. Wamena is the urban centre of a rural area housing highland Papua's highest concentration of population, with over 300,000 people inhabiting the Baliem Valley and surrounding areas. These people belong to a number of related ethnic groups, the most prominent of which are Dani, Lani and Yali.

The town is also home to the Persiwa Wamena football team, who play in Indonesia's premier league.

History

As far as the outside world was concerned, the discovery of the Baliem Valley, where Wamena is located, and the unexpected presence of its large agricultural population was made by Richard Archbold’s third zoological expedition to New Guinea in 1938. On 21 June an aerial reconnaissance flight southwards from Hollandia (now Jayapura) found what the expedition called the ‘Grand Valley’. Since it was almost completely cut off from the outside world, the area was spared by the fightings for the control of New Guinea during World War II. The town itself was founded by the Dutch in 1956, as one of the last town founded during their presence in Western New Guinea. Since then the valley has gradually been opened up to a limited amount of tourism.

In 2003, during what would be called afterward the Wamena incident, an unidentified mob led by the Free Papua Movement raided the Indonesian Army's armoury of the town, killing two Indonesian soldiers and stealing several assault rifles. Reprisals were harsh, affecting 25 villagers, displacing around 7,000 villagers and killing 50 in the process, torture and destruction of properties by the Indonesian army was also reported.

During the 2019 Papua protests, several government buildings were destroyed by angry mob, the police and the military retaliated, leaving 16 civilians killed and 65 injured. According to local authorities, the particular set of protests was triggered by a separate racism incident within the city. A ''Kompas'' correspondent in Wamena reported that gunshots sounded across the city and that civilians were taking shelter in police stations and military bases. Out of the 16 civilians killed, 13 had come from outside the province, and most deaths occurred as they were trapped in buildings torched by the angry mob. Responding to the protests, the Ministry of Communication and Information Technology reactivated the internet blackout in Wamena.
Owing to the rioting and unrest, around 15,000 civilians were evacuated from Wamena, with a further 1,726 internally displaced within the town in early October. Going the opposite direction, around 2,000 Papuan students returned from other cities across Indonesia to their home towns and cities, reporting a feeling of intimidation and danger.

Climate

Wamena features a tropical rainforest climate ( Köppen ''Af''), albeit a relatively mild version due to its high altitude.

Economy

Wamena claims a broader variety of fresh fruits and vegetables than other regions in Papua. On early 6 June 2013, a modern market was built in the town center to allow traditional farmers to sell their harvests at a proper price.

Transport

Because of its relatively isolated location, the main form of access to the area is air travel. The town and the surrounding valley are served by the only Wamena Airport, which can accommodate the TNI's Hercules airplanes. Dimonim Air, Trigana Air, Aviastar Mandiri, Susi Air, Merpati and Wings Air serve the airport. The airport was razed by fire on 26 September 2011; all buildings including the departure and arrival terminals were engulfed by fire.

Parts of Trans-Papua Highway is passing Wamena, linking the town by road with cities across Papua such as Jayapura.

Health

The largely Papuan town is densely settled and has extreme rates of HIV infection, with a claim of 5,100 cases recorded by Antara. On 16 June 2015, Jayawijaya regional secretary Yohanis Walilo rectified the total HIV cases to 4,521 HIV cases.

References

External links

{{Provincial capitals in Indonesia

Populated places in Highland Papua
Districts of Highland Papua
Regency seats of Highland Papua