Omongan Kosong Hari-Hari Gua

* Catatan Save Our Borneo

Letter from Vilage, Langkai and Musimas Palm Oil
Bagikan
22 Mei 2010 jam 9:57
No. : na
Attachment : na
Type : important and urgent
Subject : Information and complaint regarding actions committed by PT Sukajadi Sawit Mekar [Musim Mas Group] against villagers of Kenyala and Tanah Putih villages, Talawang sub-district, Kotawaringin Timur district, Central Kalimantan



Attn:
1. Jan Kees Vis, President of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO)
2. Dr. Vengeta Rao, Secretary General of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO)
At- Singapore


Dear sirs,

First, we would like to express cordial wishes and hopes for your goodness and success in carrying duties and activities in daily life.

Hereby we would like to provide information and our complaint against actions and practices committed by a member of the RSPO, PT Musim Mas subsidiary oil palm plantation PT Sukajadi Sawit Mekar operations in Kanyala, Tanah Putih, Sebabi and other affected villages of Talawang sub-district, Kotawaringin Timur district, Central Kalimantan.

Issues that we want to inform you are about actions of PT Sukajadi Sawit Mekar (PT SSM) against villagers and their lands in areas of Kanyala village that the company, in acquiring land, the company intentionally used village officers and police personnel make villagers surrendered their lands. At that time, village officers including its temporal village head (newly established as definitive village administration), customary leader (call Damang), and influential individual local leaders of Kanyala village involved to prevent resistance from villagers.

In 2007, PT SSM applied for compliance certificate of the RSPO as a way to get clean credential as stipulated in the all RSPO principles and criteria. Unfortunately, many legitimate facts on the grounds are showing that the company’s practices far below the internationally recognised RSPO standards where there are many unresolved conflicts and other irregularities which are unacceptable practices to a company in acquiring lands from local people including condemnation of grave yards. Opposing individuals who could hamper company’s operations are forced to keep silence through inhumane practices including intimidations and detained in jails (criminalisation).

Conflicts between local people and PT SSM began coming out of hand when land clearing the company used intimidation and manipulation without proper socialisation in community levels. Many villagers’ lands including traditional gardens such as rubber, rattans, commercial wood (jelutung), and tree fruits are bulldozed to the grounds.

Such actions provoked tension and resistance from local people in vicinity of the cleared land areas including Sebabi, Tanah Putih and Kenyala villages.

On 24 April 2005, in expressing their protests against land clearing activities in their villages’ territories, the local people established portals to blockade roads of PT SSM yet got unfavourable responses with ensuing local police ceased away and intimidated villagers.

On 4 June 2005, around 500 people of Kanyala village gathered to make pressures to and called on the local district government and parliament of Kotawaringin Timur (DPRD) to withdraw permits of PT SSM considered to worse off and expropriated local people’s lands.

The villagers were received for a dialog by the chair of district parliament and head of district estate crops authority (Kadisbun). In the meeting, some legitimate facts were revealed that there has been expropriation over majority of local people’s lands by the company.

Moreover, the output of the meeting decided that company should stop its operations before all issues were properly handled but the company declined to implement the decision, which had respectively resulted another complaint to provincial parliament (DPRD) of Central Kalimantan and received by Commission B of DPRD and attended by RYM Subandi, HM Asera, Ir. Borak Milton and Ir. Artaban.

All efforts done by the concerned local people have resulted nothing and never been properly handled, which has led to enduring unresolved conflicts.

The raised land conflict is the grabbing of Mr. Langkai TN’s ancestral lands, who was detained when he defended his ancestral lands that has had been cultivated many generations of his family since 1943.

Not only in Kanyala village people were suffered from land grabbing but also in Tanah Putih, PT SSM also bulldozed villagers’ graves without their families’ presence. Moreover, the company also bulldozed lands even though the lands already under letter of land information (Surat Keterangan Tanah) status from village administration including customary stamps recognised under the Dutch.

On 29 November 2008, villagers of Bukit Limas hamlet of Tanah Putih village did blockade land as a protest against demolishing of the lands by PT SSM. They built tend grounds in the disputed lands, however, instead of persuasively addressed the protests, villagers were controlled repressively by local police by breaking up the group and confiscated tends and cooking stoves belong to the villagers.

The roots of the conflict are derived from violations involved PT SSM since its first presence in areas within Kanyala and other vicinity areas whereas any escalated conflicts with local people were always handled by sending police to intimidate without serious intention to properly dealt with local people.

Hereby some alleged violations committed by PT SSM:

1. The company came in Kanyala village and surrounding areas without prior consultation regarding its palm plantation plans. If exist such only limited to elite persons namely village administration officers.
2. The company always make use of police personnel and village officers in handling disputes without intention directly dealing with concerned villagers.
3. Bulldozed local villagers’ lands without proper entitled compensations, and those who rejected to surrender their lands were manipulated and forced to give up their lands as happened to Mr. Langkai TN.
4. The company bulldozed lands incumbent with letter of land information of local people’s ownerships, among others:
a. Langkai TN (letter of information on evidence of rights based on customary law year 1997 cover 150 hectares (ha) in Kanyala village signed by village head, hamlet head of Luwuk Rengas, Damang customary chief, and bordered witnesses) is now under occupation of PT SSM;
b. Jantan bin Leger (lands located in Tanah Putih village and Sungai Rasak Dukuh Sati) occupied and cultivated by PT Maju Anak Sawit
c. Leger Judi (statement letter of land recognition issues in 2003 of 400,000 square meters in Dukuh Sati area of Tanah Putih village approved by head of Tanah Putih, head of Dukuh Sati hamlet and witnesses of bordered with persons) cultivated by PT Maju Aneka Sawit
d. Siker Judi (statement letter of land recognition in areas of Seranau river of Dukuh Sati hamlet issued in 2003 covered 400,000 square meters issued and approved by head of Tanah Putih village and head of Dukuh Sati, and witnesses of persons of bordered with persons) cultivated by PT Maju Aneka Sawit.
e. Menggo Nuhan (statement letter on right over customary land of customary law) the Tanah Putih area in 2006 for 119,072 square metre (11.90 ha) which is signed by secretary of Tanah Putih village, Head of Tanah Putih Village and customary leader (Damang) of Kota besi sub-district and witnesses of persons of bordered with persons) cultivated by PT. Maju Aneka Sawit.
f. Akir Bin Saun (statement letter of land 65,550 square metre in 2006 which been signed by head of RT 02 Tanah Putih and Head of Tanah Putih village) cultivated by PT. Maju Aneka Sawit.
g. Akir Bin Saun (statement letter over land 9.450 square metres 2006 signed by head of household (RT 02) Tanah Putih and head of Tanah Putih village) cultivated PT. Maju Aneka Sawit

5. Bulldozed 2 of community graves, Apin Family at Tanah Putih Village by PT. Maju Aneka Sawit –Group of Musim Mas (location based on GPS on coordinate S 02º 31’07 E 112º 35’30)
6. Criminalize community (Mr. Langkai TN and Jon Senturi) with the accusation of inconvenience action.

Besides have problems with people where PT SSM cultivated community’s land without any consultation, grave’s and land farming destruction owned by community, PT.SSM also proven cultivate the project area of Gerakan Nasional Rehabilitasi Hutan dan Lahan (National Movement of Forest and Land Rehabilitation) at Kanyala Village.

It is like already remarked in some mass media, based on audited document of Badan Pemeriksa Keuangan (Indonesian Supreme Audit Board) or BPK, where BPK carried out a document test on GNHRL program, conclusion is obtained that 840 ha project located in Kanyala Village, Kota Besi sub district [now is Talawang sub district] Kotawaringin Timur District, there are 704.08 has been cleared for oil palm plantation area by PT. Sukajadi Sawit Mekar.

Generally, the chronologist which is written in BPK report as mentioned bellow:
1. Kotawaringin Timur Head district on February 27, 2004 has published the Princilpe permit to PT.SSM with letter No. 525.26/54/II/Ekbang/2004 to carry out oil palm plantation for ±18,000 ha in Kota Besi sub district with certain stipulation that area is located on other utility area kawasan Penggunaan dan Pemanfaatan Lainnya (KPPL)
2. Based on field checks which was carried out by Land office of Kotawaringin Timur district on March 12, 2004 has published the location permit to PT.SSM with letter No. 193.460.42 for ±16,300 ha oil palm plantation development at Sebabi, Kanyala, and Tanah Putih village, Kota Besi sub district.
3. Head district of Kotawaringin Timur with letter No. 525.26/38/I/Ekbang/2005 has gave plantation use permit or in Indonesia Izin Usaha Perkebunan (IUP) to PT SSM for oil palm plantation development for + 12.386,27 at Sebabi, Kanyala, and tanah Putih village, Kota besi sub-district.
4. According to the report of team reforestation investigation of Forestry Agency Kotawaringin Timur sub-district April 2006 about the feasibility activity of second year of plants maintenance at ex area location of HPH PT. Mentaya Kalang that in that planting location, already occurred clearing activity by PT. Sukajadi Sawit Mekar to open oil palm plantation.
5. Because of the problem above the head of Forestry Agency Kotawaringin Timur district with letter No.522/4/1118/4.06/V/2006, May 8, 2006 asked head of Kotawaringin Timur district for stopping the activity in order to preserve and safeguard the forest area as well the result of GNRHL reforestation activity.
6. then, the head district of Kotawaringin Timur responded with letter no. 522.4/626/Ekbang/VIII/2006, August 24, 2006 which pointed to the leader of PT.SSM, PT.SSM was asked to stop in awhile the activity of opening land for oil palm plantation and at the moment they were waiting the further solution process. Nevertheless, PT. PSM gave no respond on that letter.
7. the result of field investigation by forestry office team Kotawaringin Timur district which was written in official report said that GNHR reforestation area/location of PT SSM plantation is overlapping with other land for 704,08 ha.

According to BPK of Indonesia Republic, this cause government lost Rp. 3,922,95,000.00 (three billion nine hundred twenty two million nine hundred fifty six thousand rupiah) on cost that expensed for activity of production forest rehabilitation and unachieved goal of that activity to increase the environment quality in that forest area, it is assumed there was a law violation action carried out by head district of Kotawaringin Timur in determined the plantation permit that beyond his authority.

Because the problem above, forestry agency of Kotawaringin Timur said in its process of giving the principle permit, location permit, land use permit to PT.SSM, definitive location measurement , even though the process of giving permit already been formed a combination team by the head district which include form many related instances in Kotawaringin Timur district.

The haed district of Kotawaringin Timur has tried in publishing a letter No. 522.4/626/Ekbang/VIII/2006, August 24, 2006 to stop opening land for a while for oil palm plantation PT SSM on reboisation location DAK-DAR and at the moment waiting the process of further resolution. According to the latest investigation of the team that assigned by the head district in his letter no. 090/815/BU, September 4, 2006, include 704.08 ha has been converted in to oil palm

There for as one of the victims, and on behalf of victim’s name of PT SSM barbarism which is subsidiary of Musim Mas Group at Kanyala village, and also part of RSPO member that you lead, so We demand that RSPO take a strict action to its members who carried out bad practices in developing its oil palm plantation and We also demand the all certification process or anything that make all the process become easy for PT SSM should be stopped.

We also call on RSPO to immediately urge Musim Mas Group solve its problems that occurs by concern on sources of life that community have include the land and the farming.

We demand all the formal institution like police department, human right commission, local-national-and international NGOs actively engaged in pushing Musim Mas Group-PT. SSM in order to solve the dispute and problems with all communities and its concession inside.

Here the letter that I convey to be concerned for this time.

Kanyala-Central Kalimantan, January 22, 2009

On behalf of affected people by PT. SSM,




[ LANGKAI TN.]

Also address to:
1. Presiden Republik Indonesia di Jakarta
2. Menteri Pertanian Republik Indonesia di Jakarta
3. Kepala Kepolisian Republik Indonesia di Jakarta
4. KOMNAS HAM Republik Indonesia di Jakarta
5. Gubernur Kalimantan Tengah di Palangkaraya
6. Ketua DPRD Kalimantan Tengah di Palangkaraya
7. WALHI Eksekutif Nasional di Jakarta
8. SAWIT WATCH INDONESIA di Bogor
9. Lembaga Sertifikasi CONTROL UNION di Belanda
10. Bupati Kotawaringin Timur di Sampit
11. Kantor Pusat MUSIM MAS GROUP di Medan
12. WALHI Kalimantan Tengah di Palangkaraya
13. Save Our Borneo di Palangkaraya
14. Pimpinan Redaksi Media Massa Lokal dan Nasional
15. Warga masyarakat korban lainnya di tempat masing-masing
16. Archive