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Indonesian farmers fight land theft
Rettet den Regenwald, Hamburg - 16.07.2007 13:47
Farmers from the village Karang Mendapo on the Indonesian island Sumatra are trying to retrieve 600 hectares of communal land a company tricked them out of to use the land for oil palm plantations. After heavy protests by the farmers and supported by WALHI, Friends of the Earth Indonesia, the regional government weeks ago urged PT Smart, part of the Sinar Mas Group, to give the land back to the former owners.
Walhi Jambi, or Forum for Environment, is the largest forum of non-government and community-based organisations in Indonesia.
The land theft happened seven years ago. One result was local farmers losing parts of their incomes. They used to collect kautshuk in the forest and grow vegetables.
At the time, a representative of the Tiga Serumpun cooperative turned up in the village and suggested to the farmers that they sign up and jointly starty an oil palm plantation.
Over night more than 600 hectares of the village forest – beautiful old peat rain forest – was cut down by the subsidiary of Sinar Mas, the remnants burned and oil palms planted.
The farmers got nothing from the palm oil harvest. PT Smart had itself registered as owner of altogether 1,500 hectares of plantations, set up on the 600 acres and other former village forests.
Only by tricking farmers can PT Smart start new oil palm plantations because only farmers are allowed to permit the clearanmce of their village forests on Sumatra.
But now the farmers are fighting back. The government order to return the land is a key victory for Walhi Jambi, which supports the farmers and provides legal advice.
But PT Smart is trying to strike back. It’s demanding the equivalent of five million US dollars it claims to have borrowed on behalf of the farmers from the Permata Bank.
The farmers now intend to travel to Jakarta to publicly burn the loan contracts and put an end to forest destruction by PT Smart.
Walhi Jambi is fightinng with the farmers for immediate cancellation of the debt and an end to forest theft by companies like Sinar Mas and its subsidiaries. If this fight is won, it would set a precedent.
You can help the farmers by writing your protest to
Mr. Ismu Zulfikar
Head of Environment Dept PT Smart
Email:  ismu_zulfikar@yahoo.co.id
Association of oilpalm-producers in Indonesia
Email: gapki@indosat.net.id
Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil
Email: rspo@sustainable-palmoil.org
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