Ezra Sihite – Hundreds of members of the Anak Dalam tribe have rallied outside the House of Representatives in a second day of protests to demand ownership rights to their ancestral lands.

"We demand the return of the land that rightfully belongs to the Anak Dalam tribe," Ahmad Muslimin, the coordinator of the rally, said on Tuesday.

Ahmad said that 344 people were taking part in the protest, including 200 tribespeople from Jambi and 90 from Lampung, as well as a number of Jakarta-based activists.

At issue is 3,614 hectares of land claimed by the Anak Dalam and 8,000 hectares claimed by people from the village of Bungku, in Jambi's Batang Hari district.

According to Ahmad, the lands claimed by the Anak Dalam have been taken over, including by Asiatic Persada, a subsidiary of palm oil company Wilmar International.

Besides the contested lands in Jambi, there is also a conflict over 4,031 hectares in Lampung. The protesters say that those lands should be seized from another company, Sahang Bandar Lampung, because its right to use the lands was said to have already expired.

After having camped outside the House on Monday night, the protesters said on Tuesday that they were planning to spend another night in Senayan.

Ahmad also said that there would be additional protests held this weekend. Farmers' unions from Riau and Central Java will be arriving on Saturday, he said, with about 250 people.

The demonstrators have already met with the chairman of House Commission IV, which oversees agriculture and forestry affairs. And on Tuesday, they were slated to meet the chairman of Commission II, which deals with domestic issues. But so far, Ahmad said, the lawmakers had not promised them anything.