Conversion of fertile land prohibited, Ginandjar says

Conversion of fertile land prohibited, Ginandjar says

JAKARTA (JP): State Minister of National Development Planning
Ginandjar Kartasasmita said the government would no longer allow
conversion of fertile land into industrial projects fearing they
may threaten the country's rice self-sufficiency.

Speaking to reporters after meeting with President Soeharto
yesterday, Ginandjar also described the chaotic land use policies
at local levels which could lead to other problems, including
rife land speculation and conflicts.

"The president has ordered that this policy on the prohibition
of conversion of rice fields go into effect. Permits for land
which is already under development for industrial projects will
not be affected," Ginandjar said.

"But no new permits for industry projects will be issued for
this type of land," he added.

Ginandjar cited the President as saying that new industrial
projects on Java should be housed in industrial estates spread
across the island which are under-utilized.

"It is not that we do not need factories and industrial
projects but that fertile land to feed our people is by far much
more important," he said. "In addition, by the year 2000 we will
have 210 million people. They need to eat."

President Soeharto last month ordered his ministers to
safeguard fertile agriculture land from being used for housing or
industry to protect Indonesia's self-sufficiency in rice
production.

Officials said last month that Indonesia's rice output would
fall by four percent this year because of a severe dry spell that
has devastated part of the main rice-growing belt of Java.

"We can always import rice, but remember that it's not as easy
as people imagine," Ginandjar said, adding that some of the
irrigations on the converted land were actually built with
foreign loans which have yet to be paid back.

Ginandjar pointed out yesterday that the inter-institution
coordinating board for spatial zoning, which includes the
ministers of agrarian affairs, environment and public works, has
discovered a number of other problems.

Among these problems is the overlapping use of forested land
and protected forests with mining areas, as well as overlap of
land use in the provincial administrations' city plans.

"This is a very serious matter, because rapid development
effort also means more intense competition to obtain land," he
said.

Ginandjar said many businessmen have been eying plots of
fertile land in Sidoarjo, East Java, for their industrial
projects while the surrounding areas like Tuban, with its dry
soil, are more suitable for such purposes.

He spoke about the deplorable land speculation by businessmen,
who try to appropriate land while the plots they have already
bought have not been optimally used.

Before the coordinating board for spatial zoning was
established, the provinces and regencies already had zoning laws
which were not always in accordance with the laws and the
national interests, he said.

He also warned against the concentration of industrial
projects in the overly-crowded Java as it would hamper the
government's intention to spread development efforts to the less-
crowded regions such as eastern Indonesia's provinces.

"Besides, we'd find it difficult to stop urbanization," he
said.

Ginandjar also reported to President Soeharto the progress in
the government aid program for poor villages. "In general, the
program is proceeding well," he said. "There are some cases of
fund misappropriation, but mostly there are successful cases."

In certain regions, the misappropriated funds were replaced
with funds from the budgets of local administrations, having no
effect on the program, he said. (swe)