Pastor Elias Erbaye Died Protecting the Newcomers from the Armed Criminal Group

Papua - The head of the Synod of the Indonesian Gospel Camp Church (GKII), Pastor Daniel Ronda, strongly condemned the Armed Criminal Group attack that killed 10 civilians in Noggolait Village, Nduga Regency, Papua some time ago.

His party also expressed condolences for the death of the GKII pastor, Pastor Elias Erbaye, who was the victim of that inhumane attack.

Daniel said, Pastor Elias Erbaye died while protecting newcomers. Pastor Elias' actions prove that Papuans do not discriminate outsiders.

“Pastor Elias proved that the Papuan people do not discriminate against anyone. Because he got shot while protecting newcomers," said Daniel in the discussion held by the Fellowship of Indonesian Churches, Tuesday, July 19, 2022.

Daniel said that his party strongly condemned the violent attacks carried out on civilians, especially religious leaders. He also hopes that the state will truly protect their people.

Moreover, Daniel also asked the security forces not to suspect the Church was protecting the Armed Criminal Group. Daniel emphasized that in the armed conflict between the government and the group, the church is in a neutral position. However, the church’s attitude does not mean the church betrays the state.

“On the other hand, when we came into contact with the security forces, we became the targets of the Armed Criminal Group. This is a dilemma for us, and we asked the state to pay attention to this issue,” said Daniel.

Daniel asked the security forces not to simplify this case as a criminal case, however, he asked to resolve this conflict with a humanist approach.

“There needs to be peaceful efforts in solving this issue and I asked not to use this issue to wage war in the media, so that the government does not carelessly say ‘eliminate them all’. Those acts only shows they do not know the real situation on the field. It's as if Papuans don't love this nation," he concluded.