Soeharto's Tapos ranch still tightly guarded

By Joko Sarwono

BOGOR (JP): The chilly weather at the Tri-S Tapos ranch run by Soeharto's children in the hills around Ciawi south of here could not lift the tension that descended after last week's invasion by dozens of local residents.

This week, everyone -- including local villagers -- wanting to use a road passing through the 751-hectare site were stopped and questioned by uniformed military officers.

"We can no longer cross the road to get to Pancawati village freely," Rosadi of Citapen village, which is located at the entrance gate of the ranch, told The Jakarta Post.

"The security personnel always stop and inspect everyone, particularly ojek (motorcycle taxi) drivers and passengers, who is trying to pass through.

"But we're determined to get through (by ignoring the military inspection)," he said.

When the Post tried to obtain military permission to meet executives of the ranch management, PT Rejo Sari Bumi, one of the officers replied harshly: "None of them are here today. We're assigned here only to safeguard this area."

He then left immediately.

A civilian guard, Herman, then came and suggested getting permits from the Bogor military district commander.

"He's in power here," said Herman, a local resident who has been hired as a security guard.

Rejo Sari Bumi, whose shares are owned by children of the country's former president, started to develop the area in 1974.

Soeharto stated in his autobiography that he is only doing agricultural and husbandry research at the ranch, where he often used to spend weekends with families, friends, officials, businesspeople and visiting foreign officials.

The ranch's main mission is to produce high-quality livestock, which could be distributed across the country, he wrote.

But his resignation on May 21 led dozens of poor neighbors to rush to the ranch and plant poles to claim plots of their own.

Residents' version

According to the residents, the land -- between 700 meters and 1,200 meters above sea level -- was owned and farmed by them until 1972.

"Until then, we planted this area with a variety of crops, such as bananas and cassava," recalled Aan of Cibedug.

The people's production was rudely interrupted one day when bulldozers moved in and flattened the crops, he said.

"We were not even informed about the condemnation, let alone any compensation."

The people could do nothing at the time.

"We just felt that we were simple country folk," Aan said.

The villagers' return last week was ignited by the news of Soeharto's resignation, Aan explained.

"I don't know exactly whose idea it was. Suddenly, many people flocked to the site and set up their respective borders," he recalled.

According to Adul, another civilian hired to stay at the area with his wife, four villagers came to him the day after Soeharto's resignation, asking for the land.

"I just told them that I'm just a worker here who was hired to stay at the site and take care of the corn," the 64 year old recalled.

Adul also explained to the people that the land was leased for 35 years from 1972 to Rejo Sari Bumi from the state, which had used it to grow quinine trees.

On the next day, dozens of villagers packed the site and divided the area into plots with sticks and plastic ropes.

The crowd were only willing to disperse peacefully the day after that when a company executive, accompanied by security forces, briefed the villagers about the ownership of the land.

"The people finally left and never came back again," Adul said.

According to one of the military officers assigned to safeguard the ranch, a platoon of soldiers has been dispatched to the site to face any possible invasion by the villagers.

The officer, who refused to be named, believed that his superiors still thought that villagers might return and try to occupy the ranch again.

"If not, why do we have to stay here?" he said.

The ranch is not the only property owned by Soeharto's children in Bogor, 60 kilometers south of Jakarta.

Their other assets in the town included the 500-hectare Mekar Sari fruit park, the 400-hectare Sentul motor racing circuit and the 2,465-hectare Royal Bukit Sentul residential area.