Five shooting incidents last week between the town of Timika and the Grasberg mine left three people dead including an Australian employee of multi-national mining giant Freeport McMoran.
Indonesia’s military has joined the large scale investigation into the attacks launched by police, despite elements of the security forces being widely suspected of having a hand in the killings.
At a joint media conference in Jakarta with his Indonesian counterpart, Hassan Wirajuda, Mr Smith was asked if he had concerns about human rights abuses in Papua in response to the killings.
In his reply, the Minister refused to speculate on the police investigation.
Mr Smith said that Canberra respects the territorial sovereignty and integrity of Indonesia over Papua.
He has commended the commitment of Indonesia’s government to supporting autonomy and human rights in Papua.
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