A New Zealand pilot held captive for 19 months by separatist rebels in Indonesia’s restive Papua region was freed on Saturday, police said, ending a tense stand-off that underscored the ongoing conflict in the resource-rich but troubled area. Philip Mark Mehrtens was kidnapped in February last year by the West Papua National Liberation Army (TPNPB), the armed wing of the Free Papua Movement, which has been waging an insurgency against Indonesian rule for decades. The rebels had initially demanded Papua’s independence in exchange for Mehrtens’ release, raising concerns about his safety and the …