Key Points
- Phillip Mehrtens has been freed after more than one-and-a-half years in the captivity of Papuan armed separatists.
- The separatist group had previously threatened to shoot the New Zealand pilot if their demands weren’t met.
- New Zealand’s foreign minister has said he is “pleased and relieved” that Mehrtens is “safe and well”.
New Zealand pilot Phillip Mehrtens has been freed more than one-and-a-half years after being kidnapped by armed separatists in the Indonesian province of Highland Papua.
Mehrtens was picked up by a joint team in the Nduga area and was undergoing health check-ups and a psychological examination in Timika regency, the Indonesian police said in a statement.
Mehrtens was handed over to the Cartenz Peace Taskforce, a joint security force set up by the Indonesian government to deal with separatist groups in Papua.
“We managed to pick him up in good health,” taskforce spokesman Bayu Suseno said, adding that he would be flown to Jakarta in an air force plane and is expected to arrive there at around 8pm local time (11pm AEST).
New Zealand pilot Phillip Mehrtens talks to the media during a news conference after his release, in Timika, Papua province, Indonesia, on Saturday. Source: AAP / Endy Langobelen
Indonesia’s Metro TV earlier showed Mehrtens speaking tearfully to his family by phone. He then made an appearance at a press conference and seemed to be in good spirits.
Mehrtens did not appear to suffer any post-traumatic stress although he had lost a lot of weight, Bambang Trisnohadi, a lieutenant general with the Indonesian military, told the press conference.
“Through the long process of negotiation, with patience not to do it repressively, our priority has been the safety of the pilot through this long process,” Indonesian President Joko Widodo said in televised remarks.
Rebels had threatened to kill Mehrtens if demands not met
A faction of the West Papua National Liberation Army, led by Egianus Kogoya, kidnapped Mehrtens in February 2023 after he landed a small commercial plane in the remote, mountainous area of Nduga.
An armed wing of the Free Papua Movement stormed his single-engine plane shortly after it landed on a small runway in Paro. The plane, carrying five passengers, was scheduled to pick up 15 construction workers who had been building a healthcare centre in Paro.
The rebels released all five passengers because they are indigenous Papuans, rebel spokesperson Sebby Sambom said at the time.
The separatist group if countries did not comply with their demands within two months.
A low-level but increasingly deadly battle for independence has been waged in resource-rich Papua ever since it was brought under Indonesian control in a vote overseen by the United Nations in 1969.
The conflict has escalated significantly since 2018, with pro-independence fighters mounting deadlier and more frequent attacks, largely because they have managed to procure more sophisticated weapons.
New Zealand ministers express appreciation, relief
NZ Prime Minister Christopher Luxon said on social media platform X he was grateful Mehrtens had been released.
“My appreciation to all those in Indonesia and New Zealand who have supported this positive outcome for Phillip and his family,” Luxon said.
“His family will be absolutely over the moon,” the nation’s foreign minister, Winston Peters, told reporters in Auckland.
A range of New Zealand government agencies had been working with Indonesian authorities and others towards securing Mehrtens’ release, Peters said earlier in a statement
“We are pleased and relieved to confirm that Phillip Mehrtens is safe and well and has been able to talk with his family. This news must be an enormous relief for his friends and loved ones,” the statement read.
Another New Zealand pilot, Glen Malcolm Conning, after landing his helicopter in a remote area, authorities said at the time.
