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Death of Papuan Moderator

The late Moderator of the Evangelical Christian Church in the Land of Papua Rev Coriunus Berotabui MTh
The Moderator of the Evangelical Christian Church in the Land of Papua Rev Coriunus Berotabui died in Cikini Hospital (Jakarta) on Sunday morning 1st June.

Rev Berotabui had been ill for a few months with lung cancer and his body was flown to Jayapura in West Papua for burial today.

Uniting International Mission Pacific Secretary Rev John Barr said attempts were made to send Mr Berotabui to Australia for treatment.

However the visa application process in the Australian Embassy in Jakarta was slow and Mr Berotabui could not wait any longer and was admitted to hospital in Jakarta in March.

“I visited Rev Berotabui and his family when passing through Jakarta in April,” Mr Barr said.

“Rev Berotabui was a good friend of the Uniting Church in Australia after serving as the General Secretary and then the Moderator of the Evangelical Christian Church in the Land of Papua.

“Rev Berotabui’s death is a terrible blow to the church and the community in Papua. He was a humble man who understood the plight of his people.”

Mr Barr said Mr Berotabui believed peace and justice would triumph in Papua and his Christian faith and ministry as a church leader centred on this conviction.

“I am very aware of the tensions and anxieties that Rev Berotabui lived under. Papuan leaders are being targeted with death threats and they constantly live with the fear of being kidnapped.

“Efforts have been made to depict church leaders as wanting to undermine the unity of the Indonesian state when all they seek is justice and peace for their people.

“There is a clear history emerging in Papua today involving the premature deaths or the critical illness of many significant leaders.

“Our partners continue to live in difficult situations under the shadow of military occupation and constant surveillance by intelligence people.

The President of the Uniting Church in Australia Rev Gregor Henderson has sent a message to church in Papua.

“Rev Corinus Berotabui knew what it meant to live in Papua today as a Papuan,” Mr Henderson said.

“He understood your struggles and he, along with his family, experienced great tragedy.

“However, Rev Corinus Berotabui maintained a strong faith and he always focused on a future where justice and peace will become a reality for all people.”

Mr Barr said he believed Papua’s future can be best guided by people like Mr Berotabui.

“Yet these people live under constant threat.

“Menacing phone calls containing death threats, surveillance of households and fear that family members will be harmed are an every day occurrence.

“Medical services that may offer an early diagnosis are simply not available to Papuans while most village people receive virtually no medical care. ”

Mr Berotabui’s son, Eko, died one year ago under circumstances that are not yet not clear. Eko was serving a four year prison sentence after being convicted of participating in a demonstration in Abepura, Jayapura in 2006.

Photo : The late Moderator of the Evangelical Christian Church in the Land of Papua Rev Coriunus Berotabui MTh