In a community meeting this morning, Wutung Villagers in Vanimo have agreed to petition the Government to look into their plight to relocate West Papuan refugees living on their land, as well as other villages along the West Coast of Vanimo.
The petition to relocate refugees is to address a number of security risks for both the refugees as well as local communities around the PNG-Indonesia border.
They will meet with the Provincial Intelligence Committee at 2pm today to find solutions to make a formal petition to the Government.
As of this morning, access by road to the border has been blocked by villagers, with the crossing of the PNG-Indonesia border temporarily closed following unconfirmed reports of a shooting that happened near the border on Tuesday.
Community leaders say as long as there are refugees along the border; they remain vulnerable to similar attacks.
Schools are also closed with villagers told not to go to their gardens or out to sea for fishing.
