Moch. N. Kurniawan, Jakarta – NGO activists have called on the government to address the increasing inequity between rich and poor farmers before the issue explodes into a social conflict.
Henry Saragih, secretary-general of the Indonesian Farmers Federation (FSPI) and Usep Setiawan, Coordinator of the Working Group on Agrarian Reform and Natural Resources, said on Thursday that the minority rich farmers controlled 69 percent of farmlands in the country.
The call came only a week after a bloody land dispute in Bulukumba, South Sulawesi, claimed six lives. The violence broke out when villagers ran amok during a protest of the alleged illegal occupation of their land in Bonto Mangiring, Bulukumba, by rubber plantation company PT London Sumatra.
The police apparently shot the protesters in what they claimed was self-defense against farmers who tried to attack them with sharp tools. "Land reform is inevitable, but the government is not serious about it," Henry said.
A 1993 survey by the Central Statistics Agency (BPS) showed that a total of 22.8 million farmers, or 84 percent of all farmers, controlled a plot of less than one hectare, and that 70 percent owned less than 0.5 hectares of land. In comparison, only 4.4 million farmers have more than one hectare of land, which accounts for 69 percent of the country's farmlands. In 2000, however, 80 percent of the country's farmers owned less than 0.5 hectares of land, said the Ministry of Agriculture.
Henry said while most farmers were working very hard to own just 0.5 hectares of land, the government had allowed plantation, forestry and mining firms to hold concession areas of thousands to millions of hectares. Data from the Consortium for Agrarian Reform showed that as of 2000, 2,178 plantation firms controlled a total of 3.52 million hectares in concession areas.
Usep said that without fair distribution of land, land disputes would be constant, and crime and environmental destruction would continue unchecked.
President Megawati Soekarnoputri is set to present the performance of her administration today at the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR) Annual Session, including their land reform measures.
In 2001, the MPR issued Decree No. IX/2001 on agrarian reform and natural resources management, which included reorganizing land ownership in the country. So far, the government has only issued Presidential Decree No. 34/2003 in May, instructing the National Land Agency (BPN) to speed up the review of the 1960 Agrarian Law.
But Henry said a review of the Agrarian Law was not necessary, as it was good enough to ensure fair distribution of land. He said the Agrarian Law covered basic principles that respected indigenous land ownership, social functions, the protection of farmers' rights and conservation.
"We need a decree that orders state institutions to review laws for specific sectors, like the Mining Law and the Forestry Law, which conflict with the Agrarian Law," he said.
In order to realize land reform, the government should thus start purchasing land controlled by corporate firms and rich farmers, and not extend concession areas held by plantation, forestry and mining firms, Henry said. The government could then distribute the land fairly to poor farmers, he added.
Usep said the House of Representatives and the government should establish a comprehensive land reform concept to ensure fair land distribution.