POLICING IN CONFLICT ZONES

This paper undertakes a critical examination of the international literature concerning policing practices within conflict zones, with the specific aim of informing strategies for policing in Papua, Indonesia. It observes that whilst both military forces and civil police are commonly deployed in such environments globally, the functional demarcation between these entities frequently becomes indistinct, often exacerbated by resource limitations inherent to conflict settings. The inherent complexities of policing conflict zones are highlighted, including the significant reliance upon local populations and the persistent challenge of criminality, even where governance structures endure. The analysis suggests the potential applicability of established criminological approaches, namely Problem Oriented Policing (POP) and Situational Crime Prevention (SCP), for enhancing policing effectiveness in these challenging contexts. Furthermore, terrorism is identified as a distinct and critical issue requiring targeted intervention within conflict zones. Drawing upon these global insights, the paper posits that policing strategies in Papua could be substantially informed by adopting relevant practices identified in the literature. It concludes by recommending that Indonesian policing authorities could enhance their professional capacity to address terrorism manifesting as attacks, killings, and bombings thereby potentially mitigating both the occurrence and the detrimental impact of such violence.