Fence built despite naked protest

Fence built despite naked protest

JAKARTA (JP): A protracted land dispute between city authorities and Gelong Baru residents almost erupted into violence yesterday as authorities demolished two more houses on and erected a fence around the disputed plot of land.

Women residents threw stones and one went so far as taking off her clothes in the hope of warding off the authorities and keeping them from tearing down the last two shanties standing.

"With the utmost respect I ask all of you to leave my property," Usmar Aprianto, another resident of Gelong Baru, Slipi, West Jakarta, told the encroaching authorities.

Usmar attempted to pull out the poles supporting the zinc sheets being used by the authorities to fence in the 48,702 square meter area.

Four people, including Usmar, a lawyer and the representative of some 20 families in the area, were whisked away by the authorities for trying to prevent the authorities from building the fence.

The West Jakarta mayoralty, which claims that the land belongs to state-owed PT Telkom, demolished all 20 houses on the plot on Jan. 24. Two more, however, were built in defiance of the authorities.

Residents claim to have legitimate land rights over the land, which they say they purchased from a Gambir district chief in 1962. They have been living on the site since the early 1970s.

PT Telkom has twice attempted to reclaim the land, once in 1962 and again in 1972.

Karsidin, a West Jakarta official, said that the residents had signed a compensation agreement offered by PT Telkom last November. However, the residents now feel they were not fairly compensated.

Personnel from PT Telkom were present at the site but refused to comment on the situation.

Meanwhile, the West Jakarta security and order department also demolished a temporary shelter of construction workers near the Orchid Garden in West Jakarta.

Sources said that the action was taken following complaints from local residents that the shelter was built on an area of land designated for the city's greening project.