Bali called on to protect ancestral lands and religious sites<\/p>\n
By Putu Wirata<\/p>\n
DENPASAR, Bali (JP ): Balinese people will be cursed if they
\nsell plots of lands belonging to traditional villages and
\nreligious temples because they are part of the valuable assets of
\nthe local Hindu people, said a leading religious leader.<\/p>\n
Ibu Gedong Bagoes Oka, chairperson of Ashram Gandhi Vidyapith,
\ngave a strong warning to the Balinese people to be aware of the
\npossibility of losing their ancestral lands to various
\ndevelopment projects.<\/p>\n
Ibu Gedong, who is also a member of People's Consultative
\nAssembly (MPR), is very concerned over the development of mega
\nprojects in several areas, many of them located in traditional
\nvillages and religious sites.<\/p>\n
A number of large-scale projects were developed in Nusa Dua,
\ncovering hundreds of hectares of land, by the Bali Tourism
\nDevelopment Center. Other projects include reclamation of
\nSerangan Island (around 300 to 400 hectares of land), Bali
\nNirwana Resort Tanah Lot, Bali Pecatu Graha and Garuda Wisnu
\nKencana in Jimbaran.<\/p>\n
In the pipeline are a 150-hectare Formula I racing circuit, a
\ngolf course near Ngurah Rai airport, Tulamben-Karangasem resort
\nin East Bali and heaps of other project proposals currently being
\nconsidered by the provincial government.<\/p>\n
\"Bali has been encircled by mega-projects,\" said Ibu Gedong.<\/p>\n
Made Sukerana, a youth activist commented that he objected to
\nthe development projects on tanah ayahan traditional properties.<\/p>\n
He said that tanah ayahan functions as a village asset and the
\nland provides long-term social support.<\/p>\n
Local religious and traditional organizations in Bali have
\nbeen too late to save these traditional and religious properties
\nfrom the collaboration between local authorities and investors.<\/p>\n
The family of former president Soeharto, known as the Cendana
\nclan named after their residence on Jl. Cendana in Central
\nJakarta, dominated the acquisition of traditional lands to make
\nway for their projects.<\/p>\n
Citing an example, PT Bali Pecatu Graha, owned by Soeharto's
\nfugitive son Tommy Soeharto, seized around 40 to 70 hectares of
\nland tanah laba pura Uluwatu designated as a part of religious
\nsite in Uluwatu in the mid l990s. The company possessed the
\nproperty without giving any clear compensation.<\/p>\n
\"The company's property rights have no time limit,\" said
\nlawyer Wayan Ariawan who defends local inhabitants in Pecatu.<\/p>\n
The takeover of traditional properties by investors was made
\npossible through the mediation of high-ranking government
\nofficials including former governor Ida Bagus Oka and former
\nBadung regent Gusti Bagus Alit Putra.<\/p>\n
Astoundingly, the entire land certificates of tanah laba pura
\nUluwatu were kept by unknown officials.<\/p>\n
\"The Uluwatu foundation has applied for the certificates but
\nup until now we don't know who holds them,\" said Gusti Ngurah
\nSangku, chairman of the foundation assigned to take care of the
\nproperty.<\/p>\n
While the case of Uluwatu land has not been cleared yet,
\nanother problem awaits. This time it involves PT Niaga Hutama
\nKarya (NHK) which plans to develop a 110-hectare area into a
\nminiature park in Tulamben.<\/p>\n
\"The idea of developing such a project which duplicates Taman
\nMini Indonesia in Jakarta is ridiculous,\" commented Made
\nSukerana.<\/p>\n
The loss of traditional and religious properties will weaken
\nBalinese tradition and cultural resilience, he said.<\/p>\n
Even some plots of land included in Besakih mother temple were
\nregistered as private properties, according to Muliarsana, a
\nlawyer in Gianyar who monitored the use of Besakih properties.<\/p>\n
The management of Pura Besakih properties is ambiguous. There
\nis a lack of transparency in managing revenues from the local
\ngovernment and donations from Hindu congregations.<\/p>\n
\"We don't know how much money is received by the temple's
\nmanagement and who is responsible,\" said a local community
\nleader.<\/p>\n
Despite the rapid growth of development projects, local
\nreligious organizations including Parisadha Hindu remain silent,<\/p>\n
Only Pemuda Hindu, the Hindu Youth Organization, has shown its
\nteeth. The organization has pledged to apply strong social and
\npolitical pressure to protect traditional lands and religious
\nsites from greedy investors.<\/p>\n
Hindu scholars, community leaders and academicians have voiced
\nsimilar concerns.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, Bali Corruption Watch (BCW), an anti-corruption
\norganization, has been collecting data on alleged corruption
\ncases and violations of human rights.<\/p>\n
Nyoman Sunarta, BCW's secretary, revealed that most land
\nacquisition projects were carried out using repressive tactics
\nand were against human rights.<\/p>\n
For example, Tommy Soeharto's Pecatu Graha project was
\ndeveloped on a 650-hectare plot of land, belonging partly to
\nlocal farmers, 123.14 hectares of state property and between 40
\nto 70 hectares of land which was part of Pura Uluwatu religious
\nsite, all without transparent procedures.<\/p>\n
The company, Bali Pecatu Graha, only paid Rp 5 million in
\ncompensation per family.<\/p>\n
Another example is the land reclamation project in Serangan
\nIsland by PT Bali Turtle Island Development (BTID). Allegedly
\nbacked by a strong military figure, the company intimidated local
\nresidents into giving up their land.<\/p>\n
Without consistent law enforcement, the present officials will
\nlikely follow in the steps of their predecessors from the New
\nOrder regime. And this is already obvious. The Karangasem regent
\nhad given the green light to the development of Tulamben without
\nasking approval from local community and religious leaders.<\/p>\n
\"These officials should learn from past mistakes. They should
\nknow that repressive and corrupt officials will sooner or later
\nlose their power,\" said lawyer Sunarta.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/bali-called-on-to-protect-ancestral-lands-and-religious-sites-1447893297",
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