Irian needs more resettlers to maximize resource potential
JAKARTA (JP): Irian Jaya, one of Indonesia's largest provinces and the least developed, welcomes more settlers and investors to come and exploit its vast and untapped resources, Governor Jacob Pattipi says.
Settlers from outside the province, with the help of investors, could turn Irian Jaya into one of Indonesia's major food producers, Pattipi told reporters yesterday.
"I'm inviting my brothers and sisters from all over Indonesia to come to Irian Jaya and build this region together," he said after meeting with President Soeharto at the Merdeka Palace.
He proposed a mix of settlers, from Java, Nusa Tenggara and northern Sumatra be sent to the province to maintain the spirit of national unity.
"We need more people to develop our region," he said, stressing that the potential is there for anyone bold enough to come.
He said the Merauke Regency in the south has 11 million hectares suitable for rice cultivation but only 268,000 people including 63,000 settlers.
Irian's 1.8 million population, including 150,000 settlers, is too small for the huge province, he said.
Bringing in new settlers could maximize the economic potential of Irian Jaya, he added.
Irian Jaya has been designated as one of the main destinations of the government's transmigration program for resettling people from the crowded islands of Java and Bali.
The transmigration program in Irian Jaya has been criticized by anthropologists concerned that the hundreds of Irianese tribes will be further marginalized by the new, culturally distinct, settlers.
They are particularly concerned about the impact of such programs on the local cultures, given that the majority of Irianese people are still hunter gatherers, which requires a nomadic life and lots of land.
Sugar plant
The governor said that there was a research to build a sugar plant in Merauke, and there are 40,000 hectares prepared for the plant. "I asked the president to invite investors to come to Irian Jaya," he said.
President Soeharto also supported the plan to build a rubber dam in Merauke, now popularly used in China, to help farmers raise yields and reap harvests more than once a year.
The president has also suggested the use of fertilizer pills instead of sprays to increase yields because they are less likely to be blown away by the wind,.
Pattipi yesterday also reported to the President about preparations in Irian Jaya for a presidential visit there to witness the first grand harvest at settlers camp next month.
The President during the May 6-7 visit will also launch the opening of the 550 km trans Irian Jaya highway linking the southern city of Merauke and Waropko District.
The northern part of the road between Waropko and Jayapura has not yet been completed because it crosses Mount Jayawijaya. (01)