S. Sulawesi farmers to quit growing rice

SIDRAP, South Sulawesi (JP): Thousands of farmers in Sidrap regency, some 230 kilometers north of the South Sulawesi capital of Makassar, have threatened to stop growing rice if the price of unhusked rice does not improve before the next harvest in October.

Frustrated by the fact that they had not benefited from planting rice this harvest, the farmers claimed they would prefer to plant cacao.

H. Langke, head of a farmers group in Mariatangae district in Sidrap, said if the price of unhusked rice did not increase from Rp 700 per kilogram before October, thousands of farmers in 364 groups in the regency would convert their rice fields to cacao groves.

"The government should take responsibility in this," Langke said.

Farmers across the country are upset at the drop in rice prices.

Some of them have blamed the government for allowing imported rice to be marketed. Other farmers consider the drop in prices normal due to harvest time falling almost simultaneously throughout the archipelago.

That logistics agencies lack adequate funds to buy rice from the farmers is one of the key factors aggravating the problem.

Aware of the situation, the government allocated Rp 2.8 trillion for the purchase of farmers' rice nationwide this month.

The government also promised to set aside Rp 300 billion for village cooperatives, which buys farmers' products for logistics agencies.

In Sidrap, the price of unhusked rice was set at between Rp 1,100 and Rp 1,200 by the government. However, because the local logistics agency did not buy the rice, the farmers sold it to traders for Rp between Rp 650 and Rp 700 per kilogram.

Sidrap, which has a total of 46,000 hectares of rice fields, is one of the province's rice bowls, with annual production reaching 511,000 tons. Records at the local logistics agency show that over supply of rice in the regency is some 125,000 tons per annum.

Sidrap Regent HS Parawangsa said farmers were apparently upset that rice was being imported into the country, saying: "We would be very happy if the government stopped the imports, or if the import duty was raised."

Asked what the local administration had done to relieve the people's burden, Parawangsa said the province had exported good quality Celebes rice. "We started exporting rice to Saudi Arabia last month. We've also urged the logistics agency to buy the farmers' rice."

Parawangsa acknowledged that the local logistics agency had bought the farmers' rice, but due to bumper harvests in February, March and April the rice surplus reached 200,000 tons in the area. "The logistics agency is overwhelmed."

The regent said he had heard about the farmers' threat. "But I doubt the threat will come true. It's just a threat. Please don't exaggerate the issue," he told The Jakarta Post, describing the farmers' frustration as a calamity.

"We have been giving guidance to the farmers and enhancing communication with them to alleviate their frustration." (27/sur)