JAKARTA — The governments of Indonesia and New Zealand denied Monday a claim by rebels in Papua that a New Zealand pilot was freed from captivity over the weekend after they received payment from a local leader.
Phillip Mehrtens, 38, was released on Saturday by the West Papua National Liberation Army insurgent group after 19 months in captivity.Sebby Sambom, a spokesman for the group, said the Indonesian government gave money to the acting chief of the Papuan district where Mehrtens was freed, accusing him of then paying the rebels, without providing evidence.
'I think this is a disgrace, frankly, that it's even suggested that a bribe was paid — we don't pay ransoms, we don't pay bribes,' Peters told Radio New Zealand on Monday.'All the work that's done by these people of all sorts, including officials, working as hard as they can and as cautiously as they can — not to make a mistake or be offensive and for things to fail — has now been trammeled by the allegation of a bribe.
Bribe Paid For New Zealand Pilot's Release
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