Wise settlement in land conflict needed

Wise settlement in land conflict needed

By T. Sima Gunawan

JAKARTA (JP): For farmers, land is everything. Land gives them
life and they will do anything to defend their rights to
cultivate the land and reap the harvest.

Angry farmers recently burned down 80 warehouses of the state
tobacco plantation PTP XXVII in Jenggawah district of Jember
regency, East Java, following a conflict over some 3,000 hectares
of land, which is the source of life of 11,000 families.

Hundreds of farmers marched to the Jember office of the
National Land Agency on Aug. 2 and attacked the office head. They
later moved to the office of the state tobacco plantation and
burned the documents kept in the building. On the same day they
set fire to a shop owned by the company, to the house of the
company's administrator, and to a number of warehouses and
several motorcycles owned by company employees.

The arson, which started on July 30 and did not end until Aug.
4, caused more than Rp 1 billion (US$440,000) in losses.

George Barnie

The Jenggawah plantation dates back to the end of the 19th
century when Dutchman George Barnie applied for the right to open
a tobacco plantation in the area. The Dutch colonial government
granted him the right to use the land for 75 years.

Barnie then recruited many people from Central Java and Madura
to cut the forest, cultivate the land and grow the tobacco. The
farmers were allowed to grow their own crops when the tobacco
planting season was over.

The management of the tobacco plantation was later taken over
by a Dutch-owned firm. There was never a problem between the land
tillers and the Dutch government.

During the Japanese occupation between 1942 and 1945, and in
the first years after Indonesia gained independence, there was a
void in the status of the land. The farmers were still there,
growing crops, but they had to pay taxes to the Indonesian
government.

In accordance to the policy of nationalizing ex-Dutch
companies, the minister of home affairs issued two decrees in
1969 and 1970. The government gave the state plantation company
PTP XXVII the right to use the 3,274 hectares of land for 25
years. The first decree expired on May 22, 1994, and the second
in June 1995.

At first there was no problem between PTP XXVII and the
farmers. The latter agreed to grow tobacco for the company for
five months of every two years. They received a part of the
harvest and had the right to till the land during the other 19
months. But later the farmers complained as they earned less and
less. They asked for an improvement in their welfare, which the
company ignored. In 1978, a riot broke out. The farmers burned
down a number of the company's offices, tobacco storehouses and
the houses of the plantation bosses.

Several farmers were sent to court and convicted of vandalism.

Life went on. The farmers continued to work hard but earned
little. As the fertility of the land diminished, a new system was
introduced in 1981 to maintain the quality of the tobacco. Under
the system, the tobacco was harvested after seven months, instead
of five months. As a result, there was only 17 months left for
the farmers to till the land.

In 1990 the restless farmers started to seek legal means to
settle the problem by applying for land titles with the hope that
they could gain full liberty to cultivate the land.

Their hope, however, was dashed last year when Minister of
Agrarian Affairs/Chairman of the National Land Agency Soni
Harsono issued a decree giving PTP XXVII the right to use 2,815
hectares of land for another 25 years.

Arson

The situation started heating up. The heightening conflicts
resulted in the recent arson. About 1,200 military officers were
deployed to placate the situation. There were no casualties and
no arrests.

The farmers claim they inherited the land from their
ancestors, who had played a significant role in the opening of
the tobacco plantation. They demand ownership to the land.

Minister of Agriculture Sjarifudin Baharsjah said last week
the government fully supported PTP XXVII, insisting that the
company benefits the locals.

He argues that the farmers reap benefits from the arrangement
because they have complete liberty on their plots for 17 months.

On a separate occasion, Soni Harsono defended the extension of
the plantation's lease, saying what he did was in accordance with
the law.

"The right to use the land was in the hands of PTP XXVII.
Therefore, when they applied for the extension to use the land, I
granted their request," he said.

The case is not that simple.

The government's decision to grant PTP XXVII the right to use
the land was a big mistake, according to director of the Surabaya
chapter of the Legal Aid Institute Indro Sugianto.

"The government could have given the right to use the land to
the state plantation company if the land was neglected. But at
that time the land was being cultivated by the farmers.
Therefore, the government should have given the right to use the
land to the farmers," he told The Jakarta Post early this week.

Indro referred to the land reform principles recognized in the
1960 Basic Agrarian Law.

"Under the land reform principles, the government should give
the right to use the land to those who had the greatest interest
in the land, in this case the farmers," he said.

He called on the government to review the 1994 decree on the
extension of the leasehold of the land and respect the farmers'
socio-political, economic and civil rights.

Situation

This situation in Jenggawah cooled after Brawijaya Military
Commander Maj. Gen. Imam Utomo announced that the land will
remain under the plantation company.

The security forces learned the hard way in the Nipah incident
that the security approach does no good. In October 1993, four
people died in a clash with the military as a result of a land
conflict related to the government's plan to build a dam in
Nipah, Madura.

On the night of Aug. 4, the Brawijaya Military Command
organized a large prayer meeting and invited Moslem leaders in
Jember. Hundreds of farmers attended the event. Military officers
were also sent to do community work in the Jenggawah area.

The case is far from over. The farmers have pledged that they
would rather die than give up their land.

But Soni Harsono firmly stated on Aug. 4, that he could not
meet the farmers' demand. Agriculture Minister Baharsjah has also
expressed his full support to PTP XXVII.

Settlement

In accordance with Article 33 (3) of the 1945 Constitution,
which says that the land, water and all natural resources are in
the care of the state and are used for the people's welfare, the
government must take into consideration the farmers' welfare in
the settlement of the Jenggawah case.

The people deserve a fair share, which can only be procured if
the patron-client relationship between the state plantation
company and the farmers is changed. Both parties must work in
cooperation under the basis of mutual benefit.

A "reconciliation" is required to restore the good
relationship between the state tobacco plantation and the
farmers. If they could get along well in the past, why can't they
live in harmony now?