Bekasi residents complain about expulsion threat
Bekasi residents complain about expulsion threat
JAKARTA (JP): Seven people representing 35 families from the Segara Makmur village, Bekasi, went to the House of Representatives yesterday to seek help after being threatened with expulsion from their land, which is the proposed site of a mall development.
Supirto, spokesman for the group, said that they had decided to seek help because village officials and the local district military office had told them to move out as soon as possible.
"The developer has agreed to provide compensation amounting to Rp 300,000 (US$136.36) per family, and another plot of land to resettle us, but we turned down the offer because the land provided by the developer is a pond with a depth of 2 meters," he said.
"The compensation does not include 150 hectare of our farm land, on which our livelihood relies," he said.
Vast funds are needed to reclaim the land and, moreover, its status is unclear, Supirto said, adding that they are afraid they will be evicted again once they move there.
He reiterated that the 35 families currently living in the area insist on not moving away.
In response to the complaint, Popo Harun of the Indonesian Democratic Faction, hailed the residents' decision not to abide by the eviction order from the developer.
He urged them not to accept the compensation and, if forced to, they should ask for a better land, which is ready for resettlement. "Don't accept the pond for relocation. Tell officers from both the village and district military offices that members of the House of Representatives will check the area," he said.
Through the villagers, members of the faction sent letters to the village heads and district military officers that they will go there tomorrow to inspect the disputed lands.
The faction also asked representatives of the developer to be present at the site during the visit to help settle the problem.
Farmers
Farmers at Teluk Pucung, also in Bekasi, filed a complaint with the National Commission on Human Rights on Wednesday over what they claim is unfair compensation for their land.
Five farmers, representing about 300 farmers, told member of the commission Djoko Soegianto that the Bekasi regency has set the compensation rate at Rp 15 (US$0.006) per square-meter for their land.
"In 1983 head of the socio-political office from Bekasi prohibited us from working on that land again and told us that the regency will give Rp 150,000 per hectare in compensation," A. Mutohir, leader of the farmers, told the commission.
Mutohir said the land was then sold by certain officials to real estate companies, as well as government officials, with a higher price and that currently the price of land in the area is Rp 100,000 per square-meter.
"Now our paddy fields have turned into a housing complex," he said.
The farmer explained that all the farmers have been working since 1930 on one hundred hectares of land, which was, then, owned by a Dutch landlord.
He said in 1930 a Dutch landlord gave an opportunity to farmers to work about 250 hectares of paddy fields and in 1954 the Indonesian government, after acquiring it, decided to let farmers work on the land.
"In 1954 a letter from the central government stated that the Bekasi regent should supervise the use of the land to make sure that it will only be used for the benefit of the people," Mutohir said.
However, the problem began in 1983, when certain officials from the Bekasi regency announced that all farmers must leave the paddy fields, and paid them compensation without any negotiations.
It is not clear, Mutohir said, whether or not those officials sold the land and gave the money to the Bekasi revenue office.
"We don't want to see those people selling government-owned land and take the money for themselves because in Bekasi there are thousands hectares of land which were owned by Dutch landlords," he said.
Mutohir also asked the commission to help the farmers hold a meeting with Bekasi authorities to settle this problem.
"We have tried to arrange a meeting with the Bekasi regent, but always fail, therefore I ask the commission to help us," he said.
He added that he visited the commission on Jan. 23 and asked the same thing but up until now there has been no positive answer from the regency.
Djoko told the farmers that this time the commission would try harder to ask the regent to hold a meeting with the farmers. (imn/yns/29/hhr)