Farmers occupy taxiway at Hasanuddin airport

Farmers occupy taxiway at Hasanuddin airport

MAKASSAR, South Sulawesi (JP): More than 200 farmers of Maros
regency occupied the taxiway II area at Hasanuddin International
Airport on Sunday in a demonstration against what they termed
unfair land acquisition over their plots of land to be used for
the airport project.

The protest did not affect the flight schedules, but aeroplane
parking was disturbed during the occupation which started at 10
a.m. local time.

Eye-witnesses said that the protesters, consisting of infants
and elderly people, broke the fence at the rear of the airport as
the main gate was heavily guarded.

"Most of the people brought sharp weapons with them. The
protesters continued their action by erecting wooden poles and
put up plastic string separating the runway from the parking
area," said a local who wanted to be anonymous.

"They also erected tents and burned used tires around the
tents," the local said.

The airport security staff, accompanied by 30 police troops,
failed to quell the protesters, who all brandished their
machetes, sickles and other sharp weapons upon seeing policemen
approaching them. A fire engine which had been instructed to back
up the police also withdrew.

Minutes later officials of the airport management, PT Angkasa
Pura I, met with the disgruntled landowners. Violence almost
broke out when a police officer spoke roughly to the protesters.

Spokesman for the landowners, Supriansyah, who chairs Makassar
Intellectual Law (a local organization providing legal advice),
said that the problem began in 1991 when the then communications
ministry bought a total of 564 hectares of land belonging to
Mandai villagers in the regency of Maros for the extension of the
airport.

"The landowners got only between Rp 3,000 and Rp 4,000 for
each square meter of their land, while the government, according
to the project document, agreed to buy the land for Rp 7,000 per
square meter," Supriansyah said.

"The government had allocated Rp 600 billion to acquire the
farmers' land," he said.

According to Supriansyah, the farmers of five villages
finally learned that they had been outwitted.

"The farmers feel they have been cheated. They are just
seeking justice. They have tried to protest before but always
failed. The latest protest was in 1999 when they occupied the
Provincial Prosecutors' Office."

The protesters vowed to stay at the airport unless the
director general of air transportation came to meet them.
However, they finally departed after they agreed to send
Supriansyah to meet Minister of Communications Agum Gumelar in
Jakarta.

Supriansyah told The Jakarta Post that the trip was at his own
expense, adding that he decided to go after he got confirmation
from the ministry that he could meet the minister. (27)