Jakarta \u2014 The National Commission on Human Rights has highlighted the\nrisk of criminalising communities in handling agrarian disputes, which\ncontinue to occur frequently in various regions, particularly when land\nconflicts are directly brought into criminal proceedings.<\/p>\n
Uli Parulian Sihombing, commissioner for assessment and research at\nthe National Commission on Human Rights (Komnas HAM), stated that the\nuse of criminal legal instruments in agrarian disputes should be\npositioned as ultimum remedium\u2014a last resort\u2014after resolution through\ncivil and administrative channels.<\/p>\n
\u201cCriminal law enforcement must be ultimum remedium or a last resort,\nnot the entry point for resolving agrarian disputes,\u201d Uli said during a\npublic discussion and launch of the National Police\u2019s study on handling\nagrarian and natural resource conflicts held online in Jakarta on\nMonday.<\/p>\n
According to the study, Komnas HAM recorded 3,264 agrarian dispute\ncomplaints from 2020 to 2025. Of these, some concerned the conduct of\nofficials in the field, including approximately 160 complaints about\nagrarian or natural resource conflicts involving police during the\n2020\u20132024 period.<\/p>\n
Uli stated that the practice of bringing land disputes into criminal\nproceedings risked triggering the criminalisation of communities that\nare essentially protecting their living spaces.<\/p>\n
\u201cCriminalisation has shifted into becoming a repressive tool against\ncommunities defending their living spaces,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
According to Uli, the problem often emerges because agrarian disputes\nthat are substantively within the civil or administrative sphere are\ninstead processed through criminal instruments.<\/p>\n
\u201cThese disputes that are substantively within the civil and\nadministrative sphere are often forced into the criminal sphere,\u201d he\nsaid.<\/p>\n
He explained that agrarian conflicts affect not only the civil and\npolitical rights of communities but also the fulfilment of their\neconomic, social and cultural rights.<\/p>\n
\u201cLand degradation or expropriation can result in lost access to food,\nwater and employment, and marginalise indigenous communities, women and\nchildren,\u201d Uli said.<\/p>\n
In its study, Komnas HAM also noted that an overly formalistic\nsecurity approach in land disputes often creates public perception that\nauthorities side with corporations, even though authorities are actually\ncarrying out security functions.<\/p>\n
Komnas HAM recommended that criminal law enforcement be suspended\nwhile disputes over ownership are still proceeding through courts or\nadministrative mechanisms, such as the National Land Agency, and\nencouraged resolution through dialogue, mediation and human rights-based\napproaches.<\/p>", "url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/national-commission-on-human-rights-warns-of-criminalisation-risks-in-agrarian-disputes-1773042817", "image": "" }, "sponsor": "Okusi Associates", "sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com" }