Controlling land use<\/p>\n
President Soeharto's call for stricter control of the use and
\nownership of land is nothing new. Officials, from the President
\ndown to local administrators, have made such calls on many
\noccasions in the past.<\/p>\n
However, the President's strong comments, reported yesterday,
\nseem to indicate that things must have gone too far, or that
\nperhaps the problem has become a serious threat to our national
\ndevelopment efforts. Why else would the President issue such
\nstern warnings?<\/p>\n
That the situation is serious and that it warrants our
\ngreatest attention can be understood by anyone who has been
\nreading the newspapers. For the last several years practically no
\nday has passed without one report or another appearing in our
\nnewspapers on land disputes. Those cases range from the public's
\nreactions to appropriation plans to villagers demonstrating
\nagainst forcible eviction from their land.<\/p>\n
Nobody has the right to own or control excessive amounts of
\nland, the President said just the other day. True enough. But the
\nreality is, as one can easily see or read in news reports, that
\ncertain people own hundreds of hectares of land, seemingly
\nwithout any fear of being reprimanded by the authorities.<\/p>\n
The President said further that the government must plan
\nthings in such a way that all land is used for the welfare of the
\nentire populace.<\/p>\n
There is probably not a soul who would refuse to fully support
\nPresident Soeharto's stance. In fact, our Constitution and the
\nBasic Agrarian Law stipulate these principles clearly.<\/p>\n
The problem, however, is that our capability to enforce such
\nmoral and legal principles is often quite poor. And to judge by
\nthe worsening land use and ownership situation in this country,
\nit is apparent that for some time now we have been suffering from
\na lack of genuine will to tackle this problem seriously and with
\nsincerity.<\/p>\n
In the last two decades, since the market economy has become
\nso dominant in our lives, an apparently unrestrained market-
\noriented way of thinking seems to have gradually taken hold of
\nmany of us. Greed and profit making have turned many of us into
\neconomic animals, whose sole purpose is to accumulate wealth with
\ntotal disregard for existing laws and moral values.<\/p>\n
The result of the gradual, almost unnoticed changes, which our
\nvalue system has undergone is easily seen in society. Officials
\nwho stay poor because they prefer to be led by moral principles
\nand remain incorruptible are considered stupid. In fact, their
\nbehavior is regarded as downright aberrant. Petty corruption is
\nconsidered a matter of course.<\/p>\n
Thus, if President Soeharto's call for stricter control of
\nland use can be interpreted as a renewed political will -- and as
\nan official instruction -- to clean up the mess, the only
\nsensible thing one can do is to welcome it.<\/p>\n
Still, considering the experience gained in past years, one
\ncould surely be excused for taking a wait-and-see attitude. It
\njust seems natural to want to see how things are going to be
\nhandled.<\/p>\n
In any case we do believe that President Soeharto's call is
\ntimely. We believe it is not exaggerating to say that without
\nproper correction, the greed and the decline in ethics that has
\ncome to pollute the minds of many of us could lead our nation to
\nthe brink of collapse.<\/p>\n
It is the duty of all of us to safeguard not only our national
\ndevelopment efforts, but also of our national self respect from
\nthe danger of such moral bankruptcy.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/controlling-land-use-1447893297",
"image": ""
},
"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
}