Displaced people need more attention

Displaced people need more attention

JAKARTA (JP): The government should get rid of bureaucratic
red tape in the issuance of land permits for the construction of
modest homes for displaced people, participants of a one-day
workshop on poverty alleviation programs said.

The call was made yesterday after participants shared
experiences as volunteers in poverty alleviation programs which
helped displaced people get modest homes.

They said land acquisition was still a major problem hampering
efforts to set up residential areas for displaced people.

Fire often razes crowded lower-income residential areas
leaving many without the financial power to rebuild their homes.

Groups, including contractors, intending to build low-cost
housing frequently encounter difficulties in getting necessary
land permits prior to building houses.

"We're still waiting for a land permit two years after we
bought the land," said A.C. Hardja, chairman of the Karya
Sejahtera cooperative in Tangerang.

The cooperative planned to build a housing complex on a four-
hectare plot of land, but has only acquired 1.3 hectares, the
chairman said. The workshop was organized by the Urban And
Regional Development Institute (URDI), a non-governmental
organization including five ministers.

Hardja also deplored the local administration's lack of
transparency on information of affordable vacant land available
in the region.

Another participant, Sri Probo Sudarmo, from the State
Ministry of Public Housing, was also disappointed with the
public's poor access to such information.

"It's always big developers who get firsthand information, not
the public," said Sudarmo, who is also a member of an NGO closely
affiliated with the United Nations Development Program.

He suggested that the local administration give a chance to
NGOs to propose plans for the establishment of residential areas
for displaced people.

"The local administration should not only grant permits to big
developers but also to those wishing to build homes for displaced
people," he said.

B.S.Kusbiantoro, chairman of URDI, said the workshop was
intended to evaluate volunteers' performance and improve
networking among members. (03).