Residents protest intimidation

Residents protest intimidation

JAKARTA (JP): Around 50 residents of Plumpang, North Jakarta,
went to the National Commission of Human Rights yesterday
reporting "intimidation" by a private company.

Representatives said the firm, PT Pangsetuluhur, had allegedly
started constructing a building and fence on a plot that is in
legal dispute with them, and had hired at least 160 people to
"back up" the construction.

"They often intimidate the residents," spokesperson Masta
Tarigan said without elaborating.

"We ask the commission to check it out," he said.

Residents of subdistricts Rawa Badak, Tugu Selatan and Kelapa
Gading Barat, asked for protection from the company's actions.

A legal dispute between residents and state-owned oil company
PT Pertamina over a 160-hectare plot reached the Supreme Court
after the High Court ruled in 1993 that only 132 of 1,132
plaintiffs had a right to the land.

Representatives said 150 families in Tugu Selatan, 100 in
Kelapa Gading Barat and 300 in Rawa Badak were still living in
temporary shelters.

The commission's secretary-general Baharuddin Lopa said he
would seek confirmation from the company's management. (anr/05)