Land developer refuses to talk to protesting Dairi villagers
Land developer refuses to talk to protesting Dairi villagers
JAKARTA (JP): A group of villagers from Dairi regency in North
Sumatra yesterday marched to the Jakarta office of PT Agro Citra
Wahanamas Gemilang, the land developer and plantation company
that plans to acquire their land.
The delegation of four villagers, who have been in town for
the past week to try to draw the government's attention to their
predicament, failed to get a meeting with the owner of the
company.
Agro Citra has been locked in a dispute with farmers in the
Parbuluan village in Dairi. The conflict reared its ugly head a
few weeks ago when the developer moved in to evict the farmers,
demolish their houses and take control of their land.
"I have neither the intention nor the time to talk to you,"
A.P. Batubara, the company's president, told his visitors. "I
have an immediate meeting to attend," he said as he rushed out
through the emergency stairs of his office to avoid the farmers.
Batubara had earlier threatened to call the police to have the
farmers and their supporters -- activists from a number of non-
governmental organizations -- evicted from the premises.
Not content with the response, the villagers and their
supporters staged a peaceful demonstration in the car park.
The dispute is over a 1,300 hectare plot of communal land,
which the private developer plans to turn into a ginger
plantation. The land has been owned by the Bius Lottung Sinaga
Situmorang clan for generations.
Most of the clan members oppose the sale of their land but a
small group apparently sold the entire tract behind their backs.
The Dairi regency office has declared the sale to be legal.
Earlier yesterday, the delegation from Dairi managed to meet
with the Armed Forces (ABRI) faction at the House of
Representatives to address their grievances and allegations that
the military had supported the forceful eviction.
Nuzirwan, an ABRI member, assured the farmers that he would
pass their concern on to the military in North Sumatra and that
their case would be investigated thoroughly.
Representatives of the evicted farmers have spent their time
in Jakarta taking their cause to the government, the military,
the House of Representatives and the National Commission on Human
Rights.
They say they have been terrorized and were intimidated into
leaving their land. In addition, some of the men from their
village have also been arrested.
Besides demanding their land back, the farmers have also
sought assurances from the authorities for their safety. (imn)