Locals demand land compensation

JAYAPURA, Irian Jaya: Some 50 residents of the villages of Yahim, Ifale and Yobe in Sentani district held a rally at Sentani Airport, demanding compensation for use of their ancestral land.

The rally caused some flight delays.

Fredrik Fele, the community leader of Yahim, told reporters that the government had used 1,200 square meters of their ancestral land for years without paying rent.

"We have demanded compensation several times, but there has been no satisfying response," Fele said. "The rally was meant to urge the Ministry of Transportation to quickly answer to our demand."

Head of the airport, Luther Woppy, told The Jakarta Post that his office had told the ministry about the demand and was now waiting for a reply.

Woppy said the Indonesian government took over the area from the Dutch government shortly after Irian Jaya became an Indonesian province in 1963. The government built the airport on the disputed land, he added. (eba/01)