Squatters try to hold Batam to ransom

Squatters try to hold Batam to ransom

Fadli, Batam

Squatters in Tanah Longsor, Batam, who had earlier rejected the
compensation offered by the local government in return for their
vacating a site owned by the state, continued to press their
demands on Friday for more money before they would agree to go
quietly.

Meanwhile, Fredy, 28, who was hit by a police rubber bullet in
the right leg, and Safredi, 20, who was hit by a rubber bullet in
the abdomen during a riot by the squatters on Thursday are still
being treated by the outpatient unit of a local hospital.

According to Afrizon, a community leader and the neighborhood
chief in the area, the injuries suffered by the two men were
quite serious.

He complained that the government had ignored the demands by
the squatters for what they considered reasonable compensation,
and that it was this that had led to Thursday's disturbances. He
said that low compensation on offer from the government was the
main cause of long-standing problems regarding the eviction of
illegal squatters in Batam.

"The government paid no notice to the people's demands for
adequate compensation. They directly brought in the bulldozers to
destroy our homes. We had to stop them. As they wouldn't back
down, we had to defend ourselves," said Afrizon to The Jakarta
Post.

According to Afrizon, who said he had been abused by the
police, the government team, which consisted of officials from
the Batam Authority, Batam municipality, the police and the
prosecutors' office, had offered compensation of Rp 300,000
(US$35) and a plot of land measuring 6 X 10 meters to each
household head.

"We rejected this and unanimously agreed to demand Rp 2.5
million per family. If they pay us this, we will vacate the
area," he said.

According to Emi, 45, who has lived at the site illegally for
11 years, the money on offer was not enough even to move her few
sticks of furniture to new accommodation.

As no agreement had been reached between the squatters and
government negotiators, Emi said, they had decided to remain on
the site, which has an area of 10 hectares and is located in
Tanah Longsor, Lubuk Baja subdistrict.

The site, which is inhabited by various ethnic groups,
including Batak, Palembang and Minangkabau people, was still
tense after the riot on Thursday. A group of men were seen
loitering at the entrance to the area.

The squatters began to build their shanties when the island
was declared an industrial zone by the Soeharto government.

Meanwhile, Batam Authority spokesman Dwi Djoko Wiwoho said
that the government would press ahead with the evictions.

He said that the demand for Rp 2.5 per household head was
untenable.

"In the light of the disturbances, we are now discussing the
matter with the Batam legislature, but the eviction plan will
still go ahead. The area in question is not zoned for residential
purposes, but rather for the service sector," said Djoko. He did
not say when the next attempt to evict the squatters would be
made.

In the meantime, the local legislature's deputy speaker,
Soeryo Respationo, said that an official letter had been sent to
the government team to delay Thursday's eviction attempt. But the
letter had been ignored. "Basically, the actions of the
administration have not been approved by the legislature," Soeryo
said.