Mayoralty sued in land dispute

Mayoralty sued in land dispute

JAKARTA (JP): A 57-year-old woman is suing the South Jakarta
mayoralty for the return of a piece of land she says was
unlawfully confiscated from her, together with Rp 1.3 billion
(US$590,909) in compensation.

The woman, Aminah Ismail Goyo, told the South Jakarta District
Court yesterday that the 4,300-square-meter plot of land, now
being occupied by the mayoralty, is part of her property.

She said she inherited the land from her parents and that the
land, located on Jl. Pahlawan, South Jakarta, had belonged to her
family for decades.

"Aminah has legal documents regarding the land," commented
Aminah's lawyer, Harry Ibrahim, adding that his client was born
on the land in 1938 and her late father had been buried on the
land.

Harry told Presiding Judge Syamsuddin that in 1986 the South
Jakarta mayoralty suddenly demolished the buildings by force and
then occupied the land.

On Dec. 31, 1993, without prior notice, the South Jakarta
mayor issued a letter, No. 570/1.711.3, prohibiting Aminah from
using the land. The letter said that Aminah's land was in the
possession of the South Jakarta mayoralty. The mayoralty
subsequently erected a fence around the land. (29)