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).