Thousands of farmers protest new land decree

Thousands of farmers protest new land decree

Thousands of farmers protest in the streets,
carrying a large banner reading, "Land reform or SBY (President
Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono) resign", during a rally in Jakarta.
During the protest, President Susilo's convoy drove past the
police cordon guarding the protesters.

They protested on Wednesday against controversial new land
regulations that allow the government to acquire land for public
development projects at a price determined by the taxable value
of the land instead of the market price.

The protesters, mostly farmers from West Java, started their
rally outside the Merdeka Palace and continued on to the nearby
Supreme Court and Constitutional Court.

They later marched to the House of Representatives before
dispersing peacefully.

"We demand that Presidential Regulation No. 36/2005 on land be
revoked and the land ownership system be reformed so as to give
justice for the people," said protest organizer Saiful Bahri from
the Pasundan Farmers' Association (SPP).

He said the land regulation could create a new source of
problems that would undermine the interests of farmers.

The protesters also questioned the definition of "public
interest" as stated in the regulation, which they said could be
easily manipulated in the interests of private developers.

Another protest coordinator Muhammad Nurdin, who is the
Indonesian Farmers' Alliance (API) secretary general, was quoted
by Antara as saying the new land regulation was an "extension of
the hand of economic capitalists" to control the life of the
people.

Earlier, human rights and environmental activists voiced their
objections to the new regulations, saying it was liable to abuse
due to the obscure definition of public interest.

Similar protests also took place in South Sulawesi and
Southeast Sulawesi on Wednesday.

However, the government has insisted that it will not revoke
the regulation.

Presidential spokesman Andi Mallarangeng said the mounting
demonstrations against the new land decree flared up because
people had been traumatized by past experience, where authorities
evicted landowners on the pretext of the public interest, but in
the end the land was used for commercial buildings, such as
malls.

"I see it as a trauma from the past authoritarian rule," he
said, responding to the protests. -- JP