Tapos farmers protest treatment at hands of police

Tapos farmers protest treatment at hands of police

JAKARTA (JP): Representatives of farmers from Cibedug, near
Tapos, Bogor, visited the National Commission on Human Rights on
Tuesday, complaining of torture by police officers the previous
day at former president Soeharto's Tri-S Tapos ranch.

According to the 25 representatives of the 300 farmers, the
police officers armed with guns and rattan sticks injured some of
the farmers and their supporters when trying to disperse a crowd
of people who insisted on remaining at the site to protect their
crops.

"At least two people, farmer Yakub and student Idil, suffered
serious head injuries," representative Doni, who claimed to be
the farmers' spokesman, told commission members Baharudin Lopa
and Soegiri who received the group.

Yakub, he said, was still vomiting because of the injuries.

"We don't have the money to take him to hospital for further
treatment," he added.

Dozens of others were lightly injured by the police officers
and employees of PT Rejo Sari Bumi, the company that manages the
ranch, Doni said.

"One of my friends was even threatened with a gun by a police
officer," he said.

Six people, including Yakub, Idil, two other farmers and two
students from the privately run Pakuan University, were taken for
questioning to the Bogor Police station, he said.

The rest of the farmers left after the six leaders were taken
away out of fear that they two would be arrested.

Threat

Doni quoted the six as saying that police interrogators
threatened them during the questioning that they would be jailed
if they insisted on continuing to occupy the land.

"All of them were released later in the evening," he added.

Monday's incident started in the morning when 300 farmers
packed the site following a tip-off that Rejo Sari Bumi planned
to bulldoze the farmer's crops at the site, he said.

According to Doni, the farmers had planted banana trees,
cassava and other crops on about 70 hectares of the 751-hectare
ranch.

At about 1 p.m., three trucks of police officers arrived at
the site and asked the farmers to peacefully leave the plot, he
recalled.

When the latter party refused to meet the police demand, the
two sides instantly became involved in what proved to be a one-
sided clash, Doni said, but didn't add whether the farmers
injured any of the officers.

According to the farmers, they were allowed to farm the empty
plot following a verbal agreement with the ranch manager,
identified only as Made, reached in September, he said.

In response to the farmers' request, Lopa told the farmers
that his office would soon send letters to the firm and other
related parties about the matter.

The farmers visited the commission in July to ask for support
for their effort to regain the land which they accused Soeharto
of appropriating illegally.

They also asked to be allowed to plant on the ranch's fallow
land while preparing their legal case to regain the land.

Rejo Sari Bumi first began to operate in the area in 1974 to
breed high-quality livestock. A number of Soeharto's children own
shares in the ranch management company.

After Soeharto resigned on May 21, dozens of local residents
raided the ranch and staked out land claims. (jun)