Lonsum asked to talk with locals

Lonsum asked to talk with locals

SAMARINDA, East Kalimantan: A senior military official has
urged the residents of Tanjung Isuy in Kutai regency, the
authorities, and the plantation firm PT London Sumatra (Lonsum)
to meet together soon to solve a prolonged dispute of hundreds of
hectares of land in the area.

Commander of the 091/Aji Suryanata Kusuma resort military
command, Col. Rudy Landung, said here on Monday that such a
tripartite meeting would be substantial to stop the continuous
clashes between local people and the company.

"At the moment, all parties purported as if they're the most
truthful. Thus, the problem has become difficult to solve without
efforts to meet and discuss the dispute," Landung said.

The locals' demand of asking the company to pay hundreds of
billions of rupiah for their land was improper, he said.

On the other hand, PT Lonsum has no proper documents to use
the land but already occupies and cuts trees in the area based
only on a recommendation letter issued in 1996 by then governor
M. Ardans, Landung was quoted by Antara as saying.

Late last year, locals burned a warehouse at the company's
Nayan base camp and hundreds of others took over a number of
heavy tractors at the site, leaving PT Lonsum unable to operate
for months.

Earlier this month, the company -- under the help of the
security authorities -- was able to take back their "abducted"
assets from the locals.

During the raid, troops also seized dozens of handmade guns
and weapons from the residents, who showed no resistance.

Locals retaliated a few days ago by burning at least two of
Lonsum's heavy tractors in an expression of anger directed at the
company.

No fatalities occurred as the operators of the giant vehicles
managed to escape from the mob.

"The case has nothing to do with politics. The burning of the
two heavy vehicles was just an effect of the locals' demand for
land compensation," Landung said.