Hayley Davis – Academics have called on President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to resolve agrarian conflicts and prevent indigenous land rights being compromised by upcoming elections.

An expert group of researchers, policy makers and scientists have presented a petition directly to the president in what they are calling "An Academic Movement on Agrarian Justice."

The petition included recommendations for stricter regulation of licensing, immediate action to resolve land disputes and the direct involvement of relevant ministers in the administration of land tenure and resource-use laws.

Speaking at an forum hosted by forest research group the Epistema Institute on Thursday, the group's executive director Myrna A. Safitri said indigenous communities were particularly vulnerable during election campaigns as political parties vie for support from big businesses.

"The easiest way to get money for elections is by granting licenses without control," she said. "We know that one of the bad consequences of granting these licenses is that they don't do private consultation and don't act with the consent of the communities."

The petition, signed by over 100 academics and professors from universities across Indonesia, asked the president to observe Decree No. 9, passed by the People's Consultative Assembly in 2001, that committed the government to agrarian reform.

The group also requested that the president order the justice and human rights minister to review all laws and regulations pertaining to the use of natural resources, and that the head of the National Land Agency reassess the legitimacy of land rights granted to enterprises now in conflict with local communities.

Myrna, speaking on behalf of the group, said the recent presidential decree on the handling of internal conflicts did not adequately protect land owners and fishermen and that the superior powers the decree grants the military and police in these situations could obstruct the administration of justice.

"This instruction is not focused on land disputes and there isn't a desire for corrective action addressing the roots of the conflicts," she said. "It doesn't involve the ministers related to land, energy or natural resources. We also ask the president to instruct the head of police and the head of the military to go through due process when dealing with violent incidents."

Soeryo Adiwibowo, the chair of the department of community development at the Bogor Institute of Agriculture, said the government should consider the issue in light of sustainable development.

"Investors now realize land rights are insecure in Indonesia," he said. "This isn't good news for investors who are wanting to do business here for the next 30 years if the land at the basis of their investment is insecure."

The Consortium for Agrarian Reform reported that 156 farmers had been arrested for protesting without any investigation into their disputes, while 25 farmers were shot and three killed across Indonesia as a result of agrarian violence.