Squatters occupy a disputed Ancol plot
Squatters occupy a disputed Ancol plot
JAKARTA (JP): A group of 100 people occupied a 1.4-hectare
plot of land inside the Ancol dreamland park in North Jakarta on
Wednesday.
Claiming to be representatives of the land's heirs, the
squatters pitched bamboo and canvas tents and pledged to remain
on the site until the park's management, PT Pembangunan Jaya
Ancol, fulfilled its promise to provide Rp 2.2 billion
(US$252,000) compensation to the heirs.
"We'll fight for our rights," the group's spokesman, Bulganon
Amir, said.
According to Bulganon, the land near Jl. Pasir Putih Raya in
the eastern edge of the park was legally owned by H.M. Said, who
died in 1985.
Two years before his death, Said was evicted from the land
which he had occupied since 1952. He then began a continuous
campaign to get compensation from Pembangunan Jaya Ancol,
Bulganon said.
The company is jointly owned by the city administration and
Ciputra's PT Pembangunan Jaya.
Said was forced to yield the land based on a 1962 city
regulation which stipulated that all land located in the area
specially designed for the dreamland park would be used by the
administration for the project, Bulganon said.
"At the time, the administration promised to exchange the land
with another plot of land in another area. But the promise has
never been realized," he explained.
Following his death, Said's 16 heirs took over the battle. The
then governor Surjadi Soedirdja instructed the park's management
to pay the compensation of Rp 2.2 billion to the heirs in May
1993 and May 1997 respectively.
"But the management's never been willing to obey the
governor's instruction," Bulganon said, adding that the land had
not been touched.
The heirs were stunned last month when they received a letter
signed by Governor Sutiyoso which stated that the documents owned
by the late Said for the land were illegal, he added.
It appears that the receipt of the letter provoked the heirs
to ask their friends to take over the site.
Commenting on the case, the head of the marketing division of
Pembangunan Jaya Ancol, Waluyo, insisted that the company would
refer to Sutiyoso's letter.
"If they aren't satisfied, they can take the case to court,"
Waluyo said after meeting three representatives of the squatters.
He said it was the people's right to stage such demonstrations
on the site as long as they did not create disorders.
Waluyo admitted that his company did once agree to pay the
compensation but revoked its decision following the
administration's discovery of the illegal nature of Said's land
documents.
"But, we still have no plans for the land," he said.
Bulganon charged that Sutiyoso's letter was a maneuver to hide
the collusion between the park's management and city officials.
(ind)