Amungme

How do they live? The Amungme – like the other Papuan tribes – are Melanesian, very different to the Indonesian people who have occupied and governed their land since 1963. The climate of the Amungme region is cold and humid. They practice shifting cultivation, and also hunt, rear pigs and gather roots, nuts and berries. Generosity and reciprocity are extremely important in Amungme society. The mountain peaks that surround their land are their most sacred
sites.

What problems do they face? Like all Papua's tribal peoples, the Amungme have suffered greatly from oppression and violence since the Indonesian invasion in the 1960s. They also suffer particularly from the siting of a huge copper and gold mine on their land. The British and American-owned mine has destroyed their sacred mountains. Protest against the mine is violently repressed by the Indonesian military: the area surrounding it is one of the most heavily militarised zones in Indonesia.

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How does Survival help? Survival supports the rights of the Amungme to have their ownership of their land and its resources recognised, and to be recognised as a people, with all that that entails. Survival is also calling for the end to all human rights violations and for the government to enter into a peaceful dialogue with Papuan leaders.