Agus Maryono, Kebumen – Authorities have been urged to involve local figures and ulema in the search for solutions to the prolonged dispute between local farmers and the Indonesian Military (TNI) in Urut Sewu region, Kebumen regency, Central Java.
"We know for sure that people in the region are religious and easy to talk with. An informal dialog will really help solve the conflict," said Muhammad Sujangi, 48.
Sujangi, a manager of the Nahdlatul Ulama's (NU) environment and forestry national movement, said he had been following the case intently. He said the deadlock could be attributed to the fact that the methods had been too formal and the two sides had been too stubborn in claiming that the land was theirs.
He called for initiative to work together from the regency administration, legislature council, the military, local ulema and community figures. "Involving only formal figures will make it difficult to find a solution because each has strong, legally-based claims," he said.
Hundreds of Setrojenar subdistrict residents in the Bulus Pesantren district were involved in a clash with TNI personnel on Saturday. The TNI allegedly injured four by shooting them with rubber bullets and six others by blunt trauma.
The clash was rooted in a land dispute between the two sides. The farmers claimed they had certificates of ownership for the land, and the TNI insisted that they had strong legal grounds to use the land as a training site for heavy weapons.
The farmers blame the exercises for damage to their plantation due to explosions on the disputed land. In the past, explosions from the training have claimed lives.
Paryono, another local figure, said that in 1997, five children were killed instantly by a live mortar round they found. In 2008, two farmers were badly injured in a similar incident.
Paryono said the disputed land covered over 1,000 hectares throughout nine subdistricts, expanding for some 22 kilometers from Bocor beach at the western tip of the Luk Ulo River to the eastern tip of the Wawar River.
Central Java Police Chief Insp. Gen. Edward Aritonang said the police were investigating the Setrojenar incident.
"We are professional and proportional. No matter their reason, the residents cannot be justified for destroying the military office in Setrojenar. So, we summoned them for questioning," he said on Tuesday.
The police reported that they had named five suspects from the 11 residents they questioned. "For the military personnel involved in the brawl, we leave it to the military police. We're only coordinating with them," he said.
He also said that mediation involving a number of parties had been attempted to solve the dispute.