Transmigration policy for Irian under attack

JAKARTA (JP): The transmigration minister and an environmentalist were up in arms yesterday over the government's resettlement policy in Irian Jaya.

Minister Siswono Yudohusodo insisted that the sparsely populated Irian Jaya needed more settlers from Java to speed up development there.

But Emmy Hafild, chief of the Indonesian Forum for Environment (Walhi), argued that the influx of resettlers would only threaten the less educated Irian natives.

The lively debate raged during a symposium on the government- sponsored transmigration program organized by the Irian Jaya Youth Communication Forum.

Siswono said Irian Jaya needed more technology, investment, modern management and a bigger population, to develop its rich natural resources.

"Irian Jaya has too few people. If we build schools, they will lack students. If we build markets, there will be nothing to sell. And building roads would be very costly," he said.

According to government statistics, at 421,981 square kilometers Irian Jaya is Indonesia's largest province but has a population of only 2 million.

Since 1964, a year after it became part of Indonesia, the government has made Irian Jaya a major transmigrant destination. This year it is earmarked as the second main destination after Central Kalimantan.

Critics say that although the transmigration program has brought about economic development, it threatens the indigenous culture and has sparked social envy.

"None of the indigenous villages in Irian Jaya have ever received the special treatment accorded to the new settlers' villages," said secretary of the communication forum Hengky Yoku. "The program has not improved the locals' standard of living nor their skills."

Siswono admitted that the program had negative impacts. "Honestly, the progress of the transmigration program is still far from meeting our targets. I am one of those most dissatisfied by its progress, but it has been beneficial too," Siswono said.

He said through the program Irian Jaya now had 3,000 km of new roads, 103 new bridges and other facilities. The government since 1964 had moved more than 246,000 people from Java to the island and will shift another 110,000 migrants by 1999.

Emmy Hafild, known as an ardent critic of the program, said the scheme would make Irian Jaya natives a minority in their own homeland.

She said that at present migrants already constitute 20 percent of Irian Jaya's population and the newcomers are politically and economically dominant.

"If the government really wants to improve the Irianese people's well-being, it should improve the health, status and skills of the indigenous people first.

"For the time being, we need to stop the program. If it continues, Irianese who cannot compete with the outsiders will always be left behind," she said.

Emmy said that the transmigration program in Irian Jaya was too forceful, bringing with it culture shock for locals. "If the modern way is being forced too much, it will only create a revolution in the Irianese way of life. And this will wipe them out." (36)