The New Zealand pilot held hostage for greater than a yr within the restive Papua area has been freed by separatist rebels, Indonesian authorities mentioned on Saturday.
Phillip Mark Mehrtens, the pilot from Christchurch who was working for Indonesian aviation firm Susi Air, was handed over to the Cartenz Peace Taskforce, the joint safety power arrange by the Indonesian authorities to take care of separatist teams in Papua, after the rebels let him stroll free early on Saturday.
“We managed to pick him up in good health,” taskforce spokesman Bayu Suseno mentioned, including that Mr Mehrtens was flown to the mining city Timika for additional well being examination.
Fighters led by Egianus Kogoya, a regional commander within the Free Papua Movement, stormed a single-engine aircraft on a small runway in Paro and kidnapped Mehrtens on 7 February in 2023.
Mr Kogoya initially declared the rebels wouldn’t launch the pilot except the Indonesian authorities allowed Papua to grow to be a sovereign nation.
Leaders of the West Papua Liberation Army, the armed wing of the Free Papua Movement often known as TPNPB, mentioned they’d let Mehrtens go after over a yr in captivity.
The rebels issued a proposal on Tuesday for liberating Mr Mehrtens that outlined phrases, together with information media involvement in his launch.
New Zealand international minister Winston Peters confirmed Mr Mehrtens’ launch after 592 days in captivity.
“We are pleased and relieved to confirm that Phillip Mehrtens is safe and well and has been able to talk with his family,” Peters mentioned in an announcement on Saturday.
“This news must be an enormous relief for his friends and loved ones.”
Mr Peters mentioned a variety of New Zealand authorities businesses had been working with Indonesian authorities and others to safe the discharge. Officials had been additionally supporting Mr Mehrtens’ household, he mentioned.
Many information shops confirmed “cooperation and restraint” in reporting the story, he added.
“The case has taken a toll on the Mehrtens family, who have asked for privacy,” Peters mentioned. “We ask media outlets to respect their wishes and therefore we have no further comment at this stage.”
New Zealand’s media reported throughout Mr Mehrtens’ captivity that he was one among a variety of expatriate pilots employed by Susi Air and lately lived in Bali along with his household.
Aged 37 when he was kidnapped, Mr Mehrtens skilled as a pilot in his house nation.
https://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/australasia/new-zealand-papua-jakarta-winston-peters-b2616588.html