Immediate land reform is a must: NGOs

Immediate land reform is a must: NGOs

Moch. N. Kurniawan, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

NGO activists have called on the government to address the
increasing inequity between rich and poor farmers before the
issue explodes into a social conflict.

Henry Saragih, secretary-general of the Indonesian Farmers
Federation (FSPI) and Usep Setiawan, Coordinator of the Working
Group on Agrarian Reform and Natural Resources, said on Thursday
that the minority rich farmers controlled 69 percent of farmlands
in the country.

The call came only a week after a bloody land dispute in
Bulukumba, South Sulawesi, claimed six lives.

The violence broke out when villagers ran amok during a
protest of the alleged illegal occupation of their land in Bonto
Mangiring, Bulukumba, by rubber plantation company PT London
Sumatra.

The police apparently shot the protesters in what they claimed
was self-defense against farmers who tried to attack them with
sharp tools.

"Land reform is inevitable, but the government is not serious
about it," Henry said.

A 1993 survey by the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) showed
that a total of 22.8 million farmers, or 84 percent of all
farmers, controlled a plot of less than one hectare, and that 70
percent owned less than 0.5 hectares of land.

In comparison, only 4.4 million farmers have more than one
hectare of land, which accounts for 69 percent of the country's
farmlands.

In 2000, however, 80 percent of the country's farmers owned
less than 0.5 hectares of land, said the Ministry of Agriculture.

Henry said while most farmers were working very hard to own
just 0.5 hectares of land, the government had allowed plantation,
forestry and mining firms to hold concession areas of thousands
to millions of hectares.

Data from the Consortium for Agrarian Reform showed that
as of 2000, 2,178 plantation firms controlled a total of 3.52
million hectares in concession areas.

Usep said that without fair distribution of land, land
disputes would be constant, and crime and environmental
destruction would continue unchecked.

President Megawati Soekarnoputri is set to present the
performance of her administration today at the People's
Consultative Assembly (MPR) Annual Session, including their land
reform measures.

In 2001, the MPR issued Decree No. IX/2001 on agrarian reform
and natural resources management, which included reorganizing
land ownership in the country.

So far, the government has only issued Presidential Decree No.
34/2003 in May, instructing the National Land Agency (BPN) to
speed up the review of the 1960 Agrarian Law.

But Henry said a review of the Agrarian Law was not necessary,
as it was good enough to ensure fair distribution of land.

He said the Agrarian Law covered basic principles that
respected indigenous land ownership, social functions, the
protection of farmers' rights and conservation.

"We need a decree that orders state institutions to review
laws for specific sectors, like the Mining Law and the Forestry
Law, which conflict with the Agrarian Law," he said.

In order to realize land reform, the government should thus
start purchasing land controlled by corporate firms and rich
farmers, and not extend concession areas held by plantation,
forestry and mining firms, Henry said.

The government could then distribute the land fairly to poor
farmers, he added.

Usep said the House of Representatives and the government
should establish a comprehensive land reform concept to ensure
fair land distribution.