The "Dana Desa" village fund introduced by President Joko Widodo in 2015 and valued at $4.7 billion this year has long been criticised as prone to corruption.
"So it's reasonable if the use of the village fund is somewhat loose and anyone can do what they want with it."
ILLEGAL ARMSIt is unclear how much of the $337 million in village funds allocated for the Papua region in 2023 is being diverted into arms.
"I have never seen a project funded by the village fund, not at all," said Bernadus Kobogau, a tourism official in Intan Jaya.
In Papua's highlands, village funds are treated like a "revolutionary tax", he said, commandeered either via intimidation and coercion, or given willingly by supporters of independence.
Persons:
Dana, Joko Widodo, Phillip Mehrtens, Ignatius Benny Ady Prabowo, Dana Desa, Faizal Ramadhani, Sebby Sambom, Bernadus Kobogau, Deka Anwar, Anwar, Latifah Anum Siregar, makan tuan, Stefanno Sulaiman, Lincoln
Organizations:
Reuters, Indonesia Corruption Watch, West Papua National Liberation Army, Free Papua Movement, Institute for, Democracy Alliance for Papua, Thomson
Locations:
JAKARTA, Indonesian, Papua, New Zealand, Jakarta, Indonesia, Nduga, Intan Jaya, Nabire