Tension over sand smoldering at Mt Merapi<\/p>\n
By M. Achadi<\/p>\n
MAGELANG, Central Java (JP): Just like any other morning, the
\nwestern foothills of Mount Merapi were enveloped in fog early
\nlast Dec. 13. In the chilly morning, locals were quarrying the
\nsand on which their livelihoods depended. Beside them worked the
\nheavy duty machines owned by a sand-quarrying company which also
\ndepends on the sand quarrying industry.<\/p>\n
A few hours later, approximately 9 a.m. local time, the
\nmachine operators had a surprise visit from hundreds of people,
\nsome of whom were traditional manual sand quarriers. They wielded
\nsharp weapons, including quarrying instruments such as crowbars
\nand iron hammers.<\/p>\n
Furious, these invaders ran amok. They destroyed anything they
\nidentified as their \"adversaries'.\" Thirteen excavators were set
\nablaze. Corporate offices and a power generating unit were razed.
\nThe chaos lasted through the late afternoon, inflicting losses
\ntotaling approximately Rp 13 billion.<\/p>\n
The violent mob was apparently mobilized to protest the way
\nthe Central Java provincial administration and the Magelang
\nregency administration have managed the local sand quarrying
\nindustry.<\/p>\n
The local government is perceived to have discriminated
\nagainst locals while lavishly favoring sand-quarrying companies
\nand their heavy-duty machinery. Even so, the stated function of
\nthese regional administrations in regulating the sand quarrying
\nindustry is not clear. Beyond being issuing permits and
\nexercising certain controls, officials of the regional
\nadministration have taken part in sand quarrying themselves, a
\nruse typical of New Order administration.<\/p>\n
This article will trace the root causes of Dec. 13's violent
\nmob, the cauldron created by abusive local governments,
\nopportunistic corporate enterprises and disenfranchised manual
\nlaborers.<\/p>\n
Natural treasure<\/p>\n
Mount Merapi, approximately 30 kilometers north of Yogyakarta
\nand 2911 meters above sea level, has been known as the world's
\nmost active volcano. It is difficult to predict when Mount Merapi
\nwill erupt. However, it seems that the activities of this volcano
\nare a blessing for the local people who enjoy fertile soil, clean
\nwater springs and a natural treasure trove of inexhaustible sand
\nand rock quarries.<\/p>\n
The sand and rock forming the lava which stream down this
\nvolcano accumulate in the upper reaches of its rivers and in
\nparts of the forest west and southeast of Merapi. On the
\nsoutheastern side of the volcano, River Boyong, River Kuning,
\nRiver Gendol and River Woro, all flow to Yogyakarta.<\/p>\n
On the western side there are River Blongkeng, River Lamat,
\nRiver Sat, River Bebeng, River Krasak, River Batang, River Putih
\nand River Senowo, among others, all located in Magelang regency,
\nCentral Java.<\/p>\n
The locals living around the foot of Merapi have been
\nquarrying sand in the riverbeds for generations, especially since
\nMerapi's eruption in 1969.<\/p>\n
However, when in the early 1990s a number of dams and dikes
\n(locally known as sabo dam) were built as part of the Merapi
\nProject (Promer), the sand-quarrying activities by the locals
\nmoved toward the foot of the mountain. They quarried the sand
\ncollected in the dams, the construction of which was financed by
\nthe Japanese government.<\/p>\n
However, these sand-quarrying enterprises did not last long.
\nThe Central Java provincial administration issued Regional
\nRegulation No. 6\/1994, which regulated the excavation of C
\ncategory minerals, including sand. The regulation stipulates,
\namong other things, that someone quarrying sand must hold a
\nRegional Mining Permit (SIPD).<\/p>\n
The issuance of this regulation, originally intended to
\nregulate mining, has led to injustices and confusion. Holders of
\nthe SIPD reserve the right to sell sand and to levy all trucks
\nremoving sand from their land.<\/p>\n
Hundreds of hectares of quarrying terrain, generally in the
\nupper reaches of the rivers where locals used to quarry sand, are
\nnow controlled by companies from Jakarta, Yogyakarta, Magelang
\nand Semarang. These companies generally employ heavy-duty
\nmachinery and large trucks.<\/p>\n
Modern sand quarrying patterns and government policies have
\ndisplaced locals who quarry sand traditionally. These locals have
\ntwo choices: to find a new job or to work for the sand-quarrying
\ncompanies.<\/p>\n
Local workers at sand-quarrying companies, however, no longer
\nquarry sand. They flatten the surface of the sand before modern
\nmachines throw tons of it into a truck, a job in which locals
\nearn less than before.<\/p>\n
A local, manual sand quarrier traditionally earned an average
\nof Rp 15,000 a day. Working for the corporate quarrying
\ncompanies, the locals earn only Rp 10,000 per day. As the number
\nof workers is not compatible with the number of trucks, the
\nworkers are scheduled in rotations.<\/p>\n
The modern sand-quarrying company is a bitter fact that locals
\nhave to swallow. Traditional, manual quarrying methods have been
\nreplaced by expedient, mechanized methods.<\/p>\n
The locals dwelling around Merapi have set up an association
\ncalled Paguyuban Gotong Royong (Goro) (Mutual-Help\/Goro
\nAssociation). The association mobilized 1,000 of its members to
\ndemonstrate at the office of the Regent's Assistant for Salam
\nRegion, Magelang, in mid-1994.<\/p>\n
As a result of the demonstration, it was agreed that for every
\ntruck collecting sand, the locals must be employed to flatten the
\nsurface of the sand. Then it was also agreed to limit heavy-duty
\nequipment such as back hoes, excavators and loaders, and that
\nthis heavy-duty equipment must not be operated in areas
\nunreachable by locals quarrying sand traditionally.<\/p>\n
Unlimited freedom<\/p>\n
This agreement was effective for a while. Sand-quarrying
\ncompanies, which previously enjoying unlimited freedom to operate
\ntheir heavy-duty equipment, found the agreement disadvantageous
\nto them. They began to covertly weaken the solidarity among Goro
\nmembers and to collude with regional administration officials.<\/p>\n
These companies paid Goro an allotment from the illegal levies
\ncollected from sand-transporting trucks. Further, some members of
\nthe executive board of Goro, including its chairman, Sungkono,
\nwere granted their own sand-quarrying sites by the regional
\nadministration.<\/p>\n
As a result, Goro Association, then having 3,000 members,
\nsuffered a diminished bargaining power with the sand-quarrying
\ncompanies. Certain members of the Goro executive board had even
\nbeen recruited by a number of companies to take care of security
\nin the sand-quarrying sites. Some Goro executives have also acted
\nas middlemen between sand-quarrying companies and companies
\nselling and leasing heavy-duty equipment.<\/p>\n
This condition has prevailed for many years. Although the
\nregional administration has issued a regulation on sand-
\nquarrying, all sand-quarrying companies tend to violate this
\nregulation. It is not clear which party should be responsible for
\nthe damage done to the environment as a result of industrial
\nsand-quarrying activity. Nor is it clear where the industry's
\nincome tax proceeds have been distributed.<\/p>\n
Industrial sand quarrying, relying on heavy-duty equipment and
\nlarge-scale operations, has damaged the environment. Forests,
\npublic roads, dams and dikes, all of which serve as evacuation
\nroutes in the event of Merapi's eruption, have been severely
\ndamaged. At the close of 1998, most public roads in Srumbung sub-
\ndistrict, for example, have sustained serious damage.<\/p>\n
These are the conditions triggering the outbreak of a violent
\nmob at the foot of Mount Merapi last month. The possible
\nperpetrators of arson could be culled from the various and
\nconflicting interests in the sand quarrying industry. If the
\nregional administration assigned to manage the sand-quarrying
\nindustry had acted fairly towards the entire community around
\nMerapi, this violent group reaction would never have occurred.<\/p>\n
This case has little hope for settlement. Post-riot sand-
\nquarrying activities have resumed uncontrolled as has the damage
\nto the environment. The regional administration seems utterly
\nimpotent. It seems that all parties involved have abdicated
\nresponsibility. Perhaps the common people must find their own
\nresolution, even if it is a violent one.<\/p>",
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