Regency mediation urged in land row

TANGERANG, West Java (JP): Thirty-two people claiming to be the legal owners of 75 hectares of land in Tangerang have asked the regency office of the National Land Agency to revoke the land certificates held by the developer of Gading Serpong housing complex and golf course.

Tan Sui Ek, claiming to be the heir of the late land owner, said over the weekend that the family's lawyer sent two letters to the regency's land agency on June 7 and July 8 requesting the revocation of any land ownership documents.

He said copies of the letter have also been sent to the National Land Agency's head office in Jakarta, the West Java office of the land agency and the Tangerang regent.

The land dispute between the people and the developer went to court and the Tangerang District Court issued an order to confiscate the land and the golf course at the behest of the heirs of the Tan Hok Tjioe, the late owner. The order, issued on June 5, was based on a decision by the chief of the Central Jakarta District Court on Jan. 6, 1996.

Confiscation of the property was postponed last month due to strong resistance from the golf course's chief security guard.

The problem extends back some time, until Tan Sui Ek asked the court that the confiscation order be reinstated in 1990 and it was agreed upon by the Jakarta District court.

The heirs' lawyer, Teguh Samudra, said the developer managed to stall the land seizure by requesting the regency's land agency issue a new land certificate.

The firm's lawyer, Herman Zakaria, told reporters earlier that his client, PT Jakarta Baru Cosmopolitan, bought the disputed land from PT Batik Keris and PT Perkebunan Citarik which held the land documents.(18/kod)