SEMINAR - Corporate Security Practices and Human Rights in West Papua

This paper explores the intersections between large extractive companies, security governance and human rights in Papua/West Papua. It contributes to understandings of how extractive companies can influence human rights protection in their areas of operation. Drawing on a comparison of Freeport's Grasberg mine and BP's Tangguh Liquefied Natural Gas project, the paper argues that extractive companies have important opportunities to promote human rights through their security practices. The power of extractive companies to determine human rights outcomes however, is limited by a variety of factors. Examples include: state narratives of nation building, the financial interests of security personnel and the history of the company's involvement in the area.