Kedoya, Cakung residents complain over demolition
Kedoya, Cakung residents complain over demolition
JAKARTA (JP): Fifty residents of Kedoya, West Jakarta, and another 12 from Cakung, East Jakarta, lodged complaints with the National Commission on Human Rights yesterday, saying that the city administration has yet to compensate them for the appropriation of their land for development projects.
The 50 Kedoya residents consisted of 40 from the northern part of the district, whose houses have recently been demolished, and 10 from the southern section of the district, who fear that their houses will also be demolished.
Those from the district's north are among about 4,000 people whose houses, which were located along the Angke River, have been flattened since the beginning of this month. The demolitions are part of the city administration's river-cleaning program.
The sudden bulldozing of their homes has forced the residents to erect tents within the grounds of the Green Garden estate on the other side of the wall which separates their former neighborhood from the housing complex.
The displaced residents say they have not yet received any compensation.
"We know this is the administration's land, but we have lived here for more than 10 years," said Soekamto, one of the residents.
Soekamto said that, like other people in the area, he purchased his plot of land about 10 years ago from the subdistrict chief for approximately Rp 20,000 (US$9) per square meter.
In the north of Kedoya, The Jakarta Post found the residents still discussing their request to the government after security officers told them that they would convey their demands.
After an hour of talks, the residents agreed that they would demand Rp 350,000 ($157) per sq. meter for each permanent house and Rp 250,000 for each non-permanent one.
"We are trying to be realistic, not to make a high demand. But we need a place to live and money to build another house," said Nirwan.
The 10 protesters from the southern part of Kedoya, who represented 350,000 fellow-residents, said in a letter to the Commission that they needed what they called "legal protection of land ownership". They said they had heard rumors that their houses would also be demolished in the near future.
Meanwhile, another group of people from the same area met with members of the City Council in relation to a similar matter. The councilors told them that the city administration is not consistent in its land policy.
The Councilors said that, unlike dispossessed residents of Pejambon, Central Jakarta, who have already received between Rp 300,000 and Rp 500,000 in compensation for land cleared as part of the same program, the Kedoya residents have received nothing.
Twelve residents of Cakung, West Jakarta, representing some 92 families, also lodged a complaint with the Commission over the government's impending appropriation of their land in order to make way for a freeway linking Cilincing and Cakung.
The residents said the Cakung subdistrict had asked them to vacate the area within 14 days from Nov. 1.
"They never warned us beforehand that we would have to leave the area" one of the residents said.
The residents said that they needed more time to prepare for the move and demanded Rp 4 million in compensation for each family dispossessed. (03/05/yns)