Civil Coalition in East Kalimantan Rejects Land Grabs for IKN Project

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Sixteen organizations members of the East Kalimantan Civil Society Coalition reject the government’s land grab efforts for the Nusantara Capital City or IKN project.

"[The Coalition] rejects efforts to forcibly evict local communities and indigenous peoples from their land under any pretext," said a representative of the Coalition, Mareta Sari, in a written statement on Wednesday, March 13.

According to Mareta, local communities and indigenous peoples are part of vulnerable groups the state is obliged to protect, not have their homes forcibly demolished and displaced on behalf of IKN.

The coalition claims that spatial planning drafted without the true participation of local communities and indigenous peoples are legally flawed documents. Therefore, he said, East Kalimantan civil society rejects the development of IKN. "Calling on all the people to build solidarity together. Only by uniting, can we fight the decisions of the authorities that oppress and do not favor the people!" Mareta Sari went on.

The government, she said, forgot that the state is essentially obliged to act on behalf of the interests of the people, not the interests of investors, let alone just an obsession with transferring the capital city to IKN.

Mareta cited the Constitutional Court decision No. 3/PUU-VIII/2010 where the court emphasized four aspects used as benchmarks in examining the meaning of state control and the greatest prosperity of the people. First, the natural resources benefit for the people. Second, the level of equal distribution of the natural resources benefits. Third, the level of citizen participation in determining the benefits of natural resources. Fourth, respect for people's hereditary rights in utilizing natural resources. 

Mareta said that the IKN Authority's threat to evict Pemaluan residents under the pretext of capital development was clearly a form of abuse by the government.

"It reminds us of the authoritarian regime of the New Order, which was repressive. The IKN Authority gave a 7-day deadline for Pemaluan residents to immediately leave the land where they have resided for decades," said Mareta Sari.

This kind of pattern, according to her, is a form of intimidation that spreads terror and fear to residents. The same thing was done to Wadas, Rempang, Poco Leok, Air Bangis, and other local communities.

The sixteen East Kalimantan Civil Society Coalitions (KMS) consist of: 

1. Jatam East Kalimantan 
2. KIKA East Kalimantan 
3. AJI Samarinda 
4. LBH Samarinda 
5. Kamisan Action East Kalimantan 
6. SAKSI of Law Faculty of Unmul 
7. PEMA Paser 
8. WORKING GROUP 30 
9. PuSHPA of Law Faculty of Unmul 
10. Pus-HAMMT UNMUL 
11. TKPT
12. AMAN East Kalimantan 
13. PUSDIKSI Law Faculty of Unmul 
14. Nomaden Institute 
15. Sambaliung Corber 
16. Perempuan Mahardhika

DIANANTA P. SUMEDI

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