Residents demand rise in land compensation
JAKARTA (JP): Bidaracina subdistrict residents in East Jakarta complained to the City Council yesterday over the size of compensation given them for their land, which the government wants for an apartment project.
The residents, represented by 13 people, told members of the City Council's commission A on agrarian affairs that the East Jakarta authorities had not discussed the compensation with them.
"They only invited us to a meeting where they told us the amount we would receive," said Yun Bustomi, spokesman of the delegates.
He added that the residents inherited the land from their parents, who had lived their for generations, and that the current residents "are the fourth generation."
According to Yun, the amount offered for the 12,000 square meters of land they occupy is based on a government-set value and not the fair market value.
The government has set three scales of value for the land. In the first, owners of land with a sales value of not more than Rp 243,000 (US$112.65) per square meter will receive Rp 350,000 ($162.26) per square meter. In the second, those whose land sales value is not more than Rp 285,000 ($132.12) per square meter will receive Rp 350,000 ($162.26) per square meter in compensation, while under the third category people whose land sales value is not more than Rp 614,000 ($284.65) per square meter will also receive Rp614,000 per square meter.
Yun said that the land is undervalued and the compensation is unacceptable as the residents own girik traditional land documents.
"We demand Rp 1.5 million ($695.41) per square meter in compensation," he said.
However, Yun stressed that they will ask for a different, higher amount of compensation if the apartment project belongs to a private company.
He said that neither he nor the other residents are interested in living in apartments, adding that apartment living is costly and unsuitable for indigenous "Betawi" people like them.
Dispute
Yun explained that the dispute over the compensation began when a number of officials from the East Jakarta mayoralty office came on April 18 to brief the residents about the apartment plan.
"At the end of the briefing we asked the officials to show us the gubernatorial decree on the land use in our area. Since they could not show the document, we refused to allow the mayoralty's officers to measure our land," Yun said.
Two days after the briefing, the deputy of the district head told the residents that the land prices would not be based on the government's standard for sales value. He also said the amount was still negotiable.
However, on May 2, Andi Mappaganti, assistant to the East Jakarta mayor, announced that the compensation would be based on the government sales value. Andi's announcement led the residents to the City Council.
Councilor H.M. Banang of the United Development Party faction who led the meeting said that the commission would consult the parties involved to solve the matter immediately.(03)