By Adhityani Arga

JAKARTA, July 4 (Reuters) - Indonesian security forces are still killing, torturing and raping civilians in their efforts to curb separatism in Papua, Human Rights Watch said on Wednesday.

Independence activists in Papua -- which is made up of two provinces on the western half of New Guinea island -- have waged a campaign for more than 30 years to break away from Indonesia, while a low-level armed rebellion has also simmered for decades.

The rights group said in a report that many serious rights violations occurred during police raids on communities believed to be harbouring separatist leaders or when security used force to break up gatherings.

National Police spokesman Sisno Adiwinoto denied any rights violations by police in Papua.

"Anyone found to have violated human rights will face the law. No one in the police is immune to the law, " Adiwinoto said. "The Indonesian police ensures human rights are upheld in each of its operations; we don't violate them."

The report alleged that in 2005 many civilians were missing or dead and tens of thousands were displaced from their homes after paramilitary forces burnt down houses in at least 13 villages in their search for members of a separatist group.

Women and children in displaced shelters and close to military posts were most vulnerable to sexual assault, it said.

One woman alleged that she and a group of other women displaced by a crackdown on separatist groups were assaulted and later raped at gunpoint near a temporary shelter.

"While Indonesian security forces have improved their practices in some important respects in the provinces of Papua and West Papua, the situation remains of serious concern, particularly in the highlands," the report said.

"We found that both army troops and police units ... continue to engage in indiscriminate village 'sweeping' operations in pursuit of suspected militants, using excessive, often brutal, and at times lethal force against civilians."

The report said a "culture of impunity" was part of the problem in Papua where it said in the 14 incidents it documented, only one member of the security forces had faced prosecution.

Jakarta took over Papua from Dutch colonial rule in 1963. In 1969 its rule was formalised in a vote by community leaders which was widely criticised as political theatre.

Jakarta places restrictions on access to Papua for journalists, diplomats and human rights organisations.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono has said he wants to end conflict in Papua and speed up development in the area which has rich mineral and natural resources.

Last month U.N. envoy Hina Jilani said concerns persisted over the actions of security services despite assurances from the military commander and the chief of police in Papua.

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