ro!ucing "ealth an! overty in In!

onesia#s $ew %ural &conomies 3ungei 6ekan7&uala Buayan, &ecematan Meliau, &alimantan Barat "reliminary !ield .otes, July '8 2ugust +, '(*( Clau!e 'ortin $Masters -andidate% International 6e elo#ment 3tudies, 3aint Mary9s 4ni ersity, Halifa5, .3 Yogyakarta, June 25, 2010 / Informal Interview with Marcus Colchester I met Marcus by chance at Ibu Heru's Home stay in Jogja where I stayed while taking language classes at Wisma Bahasa. We had an informal, brief discussion o er breakfast about his organisation, !orest "eo#les "rogramme $!""%, of which he is the director, and the field work that I was #re#aring to undertake in West &alimantan. Q: What is the main focus of your organisation's work in Indonesia? Working with such organisations as Sawit Watch, HuMa, the World Agroforestry Centre and others, we draw attention to the impact and implications of the oil palm industry on rural communities and indigenous peoples. Our 2 ! pu"lication of Promised Land e#amined the processes "y which land was ac$uired for oil palm plantations, and looked at how smallholders were incorporated in the sector. We also outlined the main principles of %S&O and identified its strengths and weaknesses as a regulatory mechanism for the oil palm industry. In July, '((), !"" and a coalition of *+ Indonesian ci il society and indigenous organisations filed a detailed com#laint against the World Bank's #ri ate sector arm , the International !inance -or#oration $I!-% , for o erriding its own social and en ironmental standards, and des#ite warnings of ./0s, went ahead and awarded major loans to Wilmar #alm oil trading grou#. 1he -om#liance 2d isory 0mbudsman $-20% of the I!- res#onded by launching an internal audit and #roduced a critical re#ort that demonstrated how the I!- failed to assess the su##ly chains or look into the damaging im#acts of Wilmar's subsidiary #lantations that were taking o er community lands in Borneo and 3umatra. 1he World Bank announced in 2ugust '((+, that the I!- would not a##ro e any new #alm oil loans until the deficiencies listed in the -20 re#ort had been addressed. In addition, as a result of the scathing re#ort against Wilmar and the en ironmental issues raised by grou#s like /reen#eace and others, 4nile er, as a major buyer of #alm oil, has since canceled its contract with Wilmar. We all saw this as a major ictory and ha e since this time been lobbying the World Bank to e5tend the I!- social and en ironmental standards to all WB funding and not just to the I!lending #ractices. 1his battle is still being fought, thought there is some headway being made in this area. Q: How effective is the RSPO? What do you see as some of the cha enges in certifying !a m oi '

as sustaina" e? %S&O is a starting point for setting industry standards that address the en(ironmental and social impacts of oil palm plantations and their current pro)ected e#pansion. Certainly, (oluntary mem"ership presents a limitation, "ut we ha(e already seen the influence of negati(e pu"lic pressure as in the case of *nile(er and Wilmar which can help "ring a"out changes in industry practices in the long run. +here are, of course, a num"er of challenges for smallholders to o"tain certification for their plots, not the least of which is the costs which can make it prohi"iti(e. We ha(e listed some of the pro"lems for inclusion of smallholders in Promised Land, as well as other pro"lems associated with %S&O. ,t is safe to say that much more needs to "e done regarding %S&O if palm oil estates are to genuinely contri"ute to community de(elopment rather than "ecoming po(erty traps. Ha ing inter iewed a number of com#anies in ol ed in the #roduction of -rude "alm 0il $-"0%, the issue of certifying oil that has been deri ed solely from a sustainable source and in kee#ing with :3"0 standards is not as straight8forward as it may seem. 1he oil is generally combined from a ariety of sources, and there is currently little infrastructure in #lace to allow for the storage of differentiated -"0 $i.e. :3"0 and non8:3"0%. 2lso, as is the case in international commodity markets in a globali;ed economy, a tanker of -"0 may lea e Indonesia bound for 2frica, but can be traded and sold multi#le times before actually being redirected to a final destination such as -hina for e5am#le. 1he nature of these trading #ractices makes it difficult to track the source and destination of -"0, as does the host of subsidiary com#anies that are in ol ed with the buying, trading, and #rocessing of -"0 destined to be included in a wide ariety of consumable goods. Q: #his week the Indonesian government announced that it wou d esta" ish its own criteria for sustaina" e !a m oi deve o!ment$ What is your take on this? "resently, Indonesian state oil #alm #lantations like "1". *< are not members of the :3"0. 4nder #ressure from the consortium of oil #alm #roducers in Indonesia, the go ernment has indicated that the oluntary :3"0 standard is set too high, and that it will de elo# a national I3"0 $Indonesian 3ustainable "alm 0il% standards that would a##ly to its state #lantations. 1here go ernment has yet to make these standards #ublic. 1he first =uestions is, how will the I3"0 differ from the :3"0> More im#ortantly, will I3"0 sim#ly #romote a ?business as usual@ a##roach, or will there be tangible en ironmental and social gains made as a result of these national criteria> !or the moment, we don't ha e answers to these =uestions. Q: What is the FPP's most current area of research in Indonesia, apart from what you have already mentioned? Ha(ing e#plored the issue of land in great detail in Promised Land, we are now looking at gaining a "etter understanding of how li(elihoods are "eing affected "y the oil palm industry. -y this, , mean, who is working in the sector and under what terms, and who is "eing e#cluded from it and the alternati(es a(aila"le for indigenous people and rural communities. +he oil palm sector is e#pected to e#pand significantly o(er the ne#t ' years, and it is essential that we understand how and to what e#tent agrarian landscapes and li(elihoods are going to change as a result of this e#pansion. Arrival in Kuala Buayan (late afternoon) Friday, July 2 : Observation 2
nd

Met the .epala /esa 0&ak Seysukardi1, .epala /usun 0&ak Mahrani, Adam1, among others and registered with the kantor "y filling in our names in the registry. 2aleh and , waited for &ak Sutanto to arri(e to "ring us "ack to his place. He li(es in Cempaka 0%+ 341 which is a"out a ' 5'4 minute motor"ike ride upri(er along the .apuas %i(er. According to the data charts on the wall of the office, .uala -uayan has '67 kk 0pop. 4!4! 2896 male : 27!2 female1 li(ing in '' %+s. Sensus &enduduk 2 ' was recently completed 0See Appendi# A1. /aleh and I rode on se#arate motorbikes along a dirt road that was badly eroded in some s#ots and makeshift boards had been #laced to allow #assage where rain had washed out #arts of the road. 1he small bridges were in #articularly bad sha#e, so we ended u# walking o er while the bikes went on ahead. 0n a number of occasions we had to sto# and start because of our hea y loads and the bad road. We rode through arious settlements along the way with houses made either of cement or wood in arious conditions. 2 good number were dela#itated, rundown, and without #aint, while others had #aint and were in better sha#e. 1he o erall im#ression was one of #o erty inters#ersed with #ockets of wealth. 3atellite dishes of arying si;es dotted the landsca#e, and on the waterfront there was much acti ityAbathing, washing, swimming, etc. "eo#le were smiling as we rode by and there was a general feeling of e5citement and curiosity. ak (utanto an! his family &ak Sutanto has a position with the .uala -uayan office 0/esa -&/ : -adan &ermusawaran /esa started 2 9, for 4 years1, and he is the head of %+3 4 along with &ak Ha)i %uslan who is in his ! s or 7 s. He owns a concrete house that has a large sitting room in the front, a family area off the kitchen at the "ack, and two "edrooms. 2aleh and , are staying in one room together while the family sleep in the other room. +hey ha(e electricity e(eryday from !pm to ! am, e#cept on Sunday where it is a(aila"le all day, and their a(erage "ill is %p ! . per month which &ak pays in person at the central kantor where diesel generators 0S&&O fuel1 pro(ide power for the local area. %ain and wind causes regular outages. +he family has a refrigerator, +;, an electric fan, and outlets throughout house e#cept in the front sitting room. +he floor is tiled and clean, and we eat sitting on the floor, though not e(eryone eats at the same time together. Cooking is done using minyat tanah 0fuel from the ground, not "iodiesel1. +he family doesnft drink the water from the ri(er< they collect rain water and store it in the fridge. %arely does it happen where they ha(e to resort to using water from the .apuas %i(er, "ecause they ha(e = reser(oirs 0satu ku"ik ' litre1 and the rain comes regularly, e(en in the dry season. +he family also owns two motor "ikes 0in a(erage condition family mem"ers, neigh"ours "orrow throughout the day1 and a regular 2 wheeler children fs "ike. +hey ha(e '8 cats, ! "irds 0one that says Selamat &agi>1, and a num"er of chickens, roosters, and chicks which are not allowed in the house, though this re$uires some chasing a"out periodically to get them out of the house. +hey ha(e access to two latrines 0with roof1 and "athing decks on the .apuas, "oth of which are in pretty good shape. "ak 3utanto and his wife Ibu 2riani ha e two children of their ownA a daughter 1ania $*B yrs old% who is li ing with relati es in 3intang $C hours away by motorbike% while attending a #ri ate school, and a son Ikhsan $*( yrs old% who is =uite li ely, bright, and friendly though =uite small for his age. 1hey also ha e an ado#ted girl $anak aso% li ing with them, 6ewi $*< yrs old , <( cm taller than Ikhsan% who has been li ing with them since June of this year. 3he is from "ontianak, has no siblings, and has no #arents $6ewi doesn9t ha e any information about her #arents, nor does "ak 1anto , ado#tion> "assed away>%. 6ewi hel#s with the kitchen work, is =

friendly, and wants to learn some Dnglish while I am staying here. We ha e already started some instruction using has my Eonely "lanet book. 6ewi, Ikhsan, and I #lay ariations on a marble game that in ol es colours, numbers, and guessing. +heir neigh"our on the one side is ,"u Arianifs eldest sister, ,"u Wardia, who li(es with her hus"and 0?ayadi1 and two children 0daughter @ea, '9 yrs old, and a son Wahyudin, '4 yrs old1< on the other side is her youngest sister, ,"u Sumiati, who li(es with her hus"and *snen, and 6 children 0three "oys and a daughter all li(ing at home. +he summer holidays ha(e "egun and school will resume ?uly '9 025= weeks holiday1. Background / cono!ics / Oil "al! #ource KB$% Informant was born in Bojonegoro, Ja a 1imur and mo ed to -em#aka by himself in *++C when he was *F. He worked as a bulldo;er dri er $su#ir% for < years. Married istri $from "ontianak% and they were gi en land to build a house in -em#aka $yang sudah kawing , no cost 7 ado%. 1he house lot is B(m 5 '(m. He cleared the land in ' months with the hel# of gaji workers $local%, then built house in *++C. He owns *F cats, + birds, G cattle, ' goats, and a number of chickens and chicks, as well as roosters that start crowing at Cam. ,nformant has 2 kaplings that are a"out a 2 min walk from his house. He "ought ' kapling as plasma 0lot '2"1 from &ak Mahmudin 0tokay who li(es in Meliau1 for %p 6 )uta, and he "ought a second kapling as pri(ate land 0lot ==1 from Ha)i ?amhir for %p 64 )uta in '997 0See Appendi# -1. ,nformant is a mem"er of .*/ S&2 0in -akti ?aya1. &ak Wi)ianto is the sekreter of S&2 0note &ak Mahumadin is the Sekreter of ..&A for &+&A '=1. ,nformant has paid off one kapling 03'2"1 in 2 9 0ie. no more = B monthly payment to .*/1,and he will ha(e paid off the other kapling 03==1 "y late 2 ''. He has yet to recei(e the sertificat for the first kapling. Aot sure why he doesnft ha(e it yet. +here are '9 farmers in his ampuran 0hamparan1 and to his knowledge, they ha(e all paid off their credit. He hires 8 workers 02 family mem"ers, ! luar de keluarga not family1 to har(est +-S 0+andan -uah Sekar oil palm fruit1 2 times a month. He "ought seedlings from -H/ and he also "orrowed CC from -H/ to de(elop kaplings. On a(erage he har(ests = tons : kapling, and he recei(es "etween %& '.2 : kg to '.7 :kg for +-S. His trees are o(er ' years old, and he has 268 trees on each kapling. +he return on +-S is low for trees 54yrs, good for 45' , and "est for ' 524yrs. On a(erage, he earns %p. 8 )uta from his two kaplings. :oute taken by har ested fruit $1B3%A 3te# * 1B3 from ka#ling hauled by mobil $hiline , * ton% to &a#uas :i er. -ost H :# )B 7 kg, #aid to ehicle owner, "ak 1ugiyo. 3te# ' 1B3 trans#orted to BH6 shore ia ka#al. -ost H :# *(( 7 kg, #aid to ehicle owner. 3te# < 1B3 trans#orted to BH6 factory ia B ton truck. 1B3 is weighed, graded for =uality, and #rocessed into -"0. -ost H :# G) 7 kg. 3te# C "etani recei es a sli# from BH6 and from &46. 3how deductions, weights, etc. "etani recei es #ayment from &46, then #ays em#loyees. 6

In 0ctober, '((+, he attended a week8long course for kela#a sawit farmers. 2 total of F farmers attended, and there was no charge for the course. 1he course was held in "arindu where a local branch of ?"usat "enelitian &ela#a 3awit@ is located. He learned how to care for his #lantation and how to make use of in#uts. $See Appendi# C for course info and details1. )a*our an! wages in oil +alm ,+rivate lan!-. *% "e!anen 0har(esters1D ! laki5laki : 2 perempuan, ga)i E %p ' : kg < task is to cut fruit from tree, cut the lea(es out of the way, and "ring +-S to scale "y the trail:road. On a(erage, they earn %p 74. : day.F Har(est takes ' day for "oth kaplings. '% "e!uat 0+-S handlers1D transport fruit (ia wheel"arrow 0ankong1 to the main road where the truck will come to transport to -H/ (ia .*/.F <% #u&ir 0truck dri(er1D deli(er +-S to .*/ : -H/. Garns net %p. '4. per load. On a(erage makes 7 loads a day E %p. ' 4. per day. C% "e!bersi' 0cleaners1D cut grass around trees, ga)i E %p 6 . : hari. Working hours 75 ''am. B% "e!buat (obang 0pupuk fertiliHer1D Opsi ' 0lo"ang1 5 dig 6 holes '.4 m from tree 04 cm # 4 m # = cm deep1 and fill with fertiliHer and water< Opsi 2 0ta"ur1 spread pupuk "y hand around tree in =56 rows mo(ing away from tree. Holes are dug e(ery three months. F /aily wages for &e!anen and &e!buat workers are calculated on a rate of %p. '24 : kg # total har(est di(ided "y the num"er of workers in the two groups. K)*: currently paying on a(erage for good $uality +-S %p '.=6! : kg to farmer mem"ers. &ro"lem with road $uality petani and .*/ own road. &oor $uality E +-S arri(es late, re)ected "y -H/. &etani pay %p 6 : kg for roads, "ut .*/ doesn ft fi# ade$uately. 0See Appendi# / .*/ Slip reproduced1. Q: Why is the road not getting fi%ed? 6ifficult and e5#ensi e to get machinery into ka#ling area. 2lso, koru#si #roblem at &46. $.ew leaders oted in, yet #roblem ne er sol ed. Meeting once a year to discuss issues, elect new leaders for &46.% In+uts. /er*ici!es / estici!es an! 'ertili0er +oundu&: used 2 times per year 0dua rotasi1. 2 kaplings needs 26 litres 0' "ottle E 6 litres, %p 26 . 1. *sed to kill grass 0gulma1 around trees once pem"ersih ha(e cleared:cut the grass. +otal cost for year E %p 72 . . *sed in ?uni and Ao(em"er, more or less. 0Samprot spray : Monsanto product purchased in Meliau. Mi# ratioD '4 litre I 9 cc good for 2ha. Fertili,erD applied e(ery = months using "oth methods, opsi ' and 2. Satu "ag 4 kg E %p 9 . . Satu kapling pakai 4 kg e(ery = months. +otal for ' year on "oth kaplings is 6 kg 08 "ags1 E %p 72. . . 1ri# to Meliau , 3aturday, July <, '(*( ia boat $* I hrs% 1eker2a on *oat / (ource. 31C4 4

Working for the last C years as a worker on ka#lings owned by *( local farmers. Works from Monday until !riday from )am to <#m '5 month at har est. !rom "ontianak. 6oes not own ka#ling. /aji H :# *((.((( 7#er ton. In "ontianak worked in lumber industry $mill% for G years in ol ed in the e5#ort of lumber. He owns a house that sits on a J ha lot where there is no #lace for a garden. 0n a erage he makes :# <.C juta #er month Kseems highL. He is #leased with earnings from oil #alm and the only #roblem he sees is that BH6 doesn9t are about the roads in the #lasma areas. He li es in -em#aka with his wife and daughter $B years old%. (enior from Cem+aka / owner of ka+lings / (ource. 31C5 Born in *+<' in -em#aka. !ather from 3anggau, and his mother was from -erbon, Jawa. 1hey met in 3anggau. In *+B', they bought 'F ha from a -hinese owner and #roduced rubber. Informant started kela#a sawit in *++F. .oteA 3ee /aleh's note on this indi idual. /aleh isited him on a number of occasions. 3ela+a (awit $ursery , emeliharan- / %esi!ent in Cem+aka / (ource. 31C2 He is originally from Sumatera *tara and is 6= years old. He has two children, a son who has completed SMA 0high school1 and is waiting to see if he has "een accepted at a uni(ersity in &ontianak to study computer technology, and two daughters who are still in S/ 0elementary1. He has li(ed 2= years in Cempaka and worked for &+&A '= from Aug '984 to mid5'996 clearing forest 0utang rim"a1 for tim"er. ,n '996, he left &+&A '= and purchased 4 ha of farmland in %+34 0Cempaka1 0cost %p '7 )uta1 from &ak Mahamudin 0tokay in Meliau1 who inherited land from his father. ,t took him ! months to clear the land. He has ' ha of land for the house and (egeta"le garden. ,n 2 7, he dedicated .4 ha to growing seedlings of oil palm which he sells on his own or through &ak Mahamudin where either method yields 4 B for the latter. +he reason for this is that &. Mah. pays for the seeds 0"i"it1 which he orders (ia regular mail from Sumatra, and he also pays for all the costs in(ol(ed in planting 0inputs, diesel for irrigation, etc.1. &rice of seedlingsD ' m E %p. '2. , 2 cm E %p. '4. , and 'm E %p = . . -etween 2 7 and 2 ' he sold appro#. 24, trees. He is currently not selling (ery many seedlings 0local kaplings are in production and don ft re$uire new seedlings as of yet. &ak Mahamudin is also not re$uesting seedlings to sell. ,nformant "elie(es that demand is simply low. Jhow to reconcile low demand with "oomKL ,nformant also owns ' kapling which he "ought from &ak Mahamudin in '987 for %p. 9 )uta. He har(ests only '# : month "ecause his land is far 0o(er 2km away1 from his farm. On a(erage he har(ests = tonnes a month, which nets him appro# ''= : kg (ia the .*/. He also is a co5owner 0with &ak Mahumadin1 of '8 cattle which is sold for meat 0danging sapi1. 1ackgroun! on ak Mahamu!in 5 (ame source ,31C2"ak Mahamudin9s wife $Ibu 2ni% and "ak 3utanto9s wife $Ibu 2rianai% are cousins. 0nce a month farmers come to his house to recei e #ayment for their 1B3. He is res#onsible for the rekening 61B from &46 and works as an accountant $slash tokay which informant whis#ers under his breath%. His office is at kantor "E. in Meliau, though he recei es farmers at his home. 2ccording to informant, ". M. owns B( ha of land in -em#aka. 6iscussions and #hone calls are in Melayu. K0bser ation *A !armers start arri ing around **am, ha e lunch, and sit with "ak Mahamudin one at a time to resol e #ayment. !armers' wi es hel# out with the cooking. 1he #ayment #rocess is a slow one, as ".Mah fre=uently has to call #eo#le to discuss #rices etc. It is unclear if there <#m $we lea e at that time , accom#anied by Ibu 2riani, 6ewi, and Ikhsan%, there are only !

two farmers left out of a grou# of about *B.L K0bser ation 'A .either /aleh, nor I had to #ay for the tri#. Meliau town infrastructure was in ery #oor condition , the main roads are full of #otholes, water, mud, and there are no sidewalks. 2lso the dock are in two #laces where we got on7off ka#al, /aleh broke through the wood and got stuck briefly. 2 number of sho#s are run by -hinese owners. 6ifficult to reconcile wealth that oil #alm is generating with #oor infrastructureL. (unnet Cele*ration in %6 4 5 (un!ay, July 4, 2010 Around !pm, we left Cempaka (ia small "oat along with '4 or so other (illagers. G(eryone was well dressed and e#cited a"out the e(ent. +here was lots of laughter and "anter in "ahasa ,ndonesia. ,t was pitch "lack and we na(igated with the help of a small flashlight. When a log was in our path, there was lots of yelling which seemed to signal to the supir to steer away from the o"struction. When we arri(ed at the cele"ration, walking from the dock to dry land was a slightly unner(ing e#perience. ,t was dark, the "oards were rotten in many places, narrow, and the last section was along a 2#6 that was mostly su"merged. , rolled up my pants and laughed my way across. ,nside the house, e(erything was decorated ela"orately and we were greeted "y 4 or ! men who seemed to "e part of the (illage elders : people of importance. Our family was rushed o(er to the food which was setup in two streamsD choose either sapi or ayam. ,t seemed that most went for the sapi. , chose sapi and sat down with my plate "eside 2aleh. One of the (illage edignitariesf came o(er and put a few sate chicken sticks on my plate. +he ta"les were co(ered with newspaper, and the rain had started to come down harder now, with the o(erhead tarp starting to spring leaks in a num"er of places. 0nce e eryone had eaten, we joined a #rocession to congratulate the two boys and their family. 1he tradition was to #lace an en elo#e with :#. '(.((( $or more 7 less%, shake hands with the boys and tell them M3emoga ce#at simbu.9 I felt a bit like a celebrity with all the #hoto8taking etc. 1he ne5t #art of the celebration in ol e members of the audience going u# to sing traditional dangut songs. 1here was also a strong chorus for #eo#le to come u# and dance while others sang, but nobody came u# to dance. It seemed to be more of a s#ectator e ent, than #artici#atory. It was as if #eo#le were too shy to come u# and dance, yet wanted me to go dance. I danced to a few tunes with one or two other men who bra ed the dance floor. It felt a bit odd to be a #art of the entertainment. 1he #ower went out a few times which added fun to the celebration. I managed to meet two indi iduals whom I wanted to ha e a diskusi with $"ak 3eringoringo and "ak Bro% which was great. 1he return tri# back home was more e entful than the arri al. 1he motor conked out #art way, and we drifted on the &a#uas for =uite a while in the #ouring rain. 2fter a while the motor started and we made our way back home. D eryone on the boat was jubilant and talkati e. I understood that the celebration was an im#ortant one, and the illagers were accustomed to misha#s and took it all in good strides. Cem+aka 5 Mon!ay, July 5, 2010 5 (ource. 31C1 O"ser(ation 55 &ak 0nameK1 arri(ed to discuss a pro)ect with informant. , was recording names of kk in %+34, so was not engaged in the discussion. On a num"er of occasions the words monopoli, protest, and A.& 0K1 were mentioned "y guest. He then produced a document which was a su")ect of discussion for a"out M hour. , then took part in the con(ersation. Informant told me that a building #roject was starting this month and would in ol e re#lacing < 7

bridgesA one at 3ei -em#aka $*Bm 5 C m%, one at 3ei -em#ambawang $*Gm 5 Cm%, and one at 3ei "E. $Fm 5 Cm%. 1he bridges are to be built at a cost of :# '.B* juta by the construction firm "usan ""I". 1he #roject is e5#ected to be com#leted in 2ugust. -ost is co ered by Jakarta. 7isit to enelim*au 5 (occer match / 8*servations &ak Sutanto and , took a ride to &enelim"au to watch the tail end of a soccer match. +he road was slippery and pretty muddy in places. , walked a good portion of the way as &ak S. spun his way along. We rode through the /S& "arracks and saw a familiar gradation of wealth and po(erty with the latter predominating. +he game was )ust a"out o(er when we got there. +here was also a (olley"all going on where ,the women played. We made out way to a series of tents where a kind of ;egas casino type game was "eing played. +hey called it )udi or kolok5kolok, though ,fm not sure how it was played. ,t didn ft seem appropriate to take pictures 0illegalK1. +here was also a good contingent of arak drinkers, and a good deal of rowdy "anter. , sat and had some )et fuel arak while &ak S. stood around )ust letting e(ents unfold. After a solid arak, we got "ack on the "ike and rode to a near"y group of tents where more arak was ser(ed. +here was also an a"undance of se#ual references, getting laid, meeting chicks etc. "y some of the men who were there. , was introduced to a few women. At one point, someone singled out a young man who was sitting somewhat outside the group watching and seeming to en)oy what was going one, and screamed out how the man was a deaf mute 0lots of gesturing so , could understand e(entually1. +he young man turned away, and , felt "ad for him. , ha(e witnessed what seems to "e "raHen insensiti(ity towards others on a num"er of occasions. , am trying to take it in as o")ecti(ely as possi"le, though the empathetic side of me feels the affront nonetheless. We then left the area and rode "ack home with a group of a"out ! or 7 other "ikes. &artway we stopped at a a little warung and "ought a "ag of arak, 24 ml for %p '=k. We made it to our res#ecti e homes, and later a grou# of men7boys came to "ak 3utanto9s house with a mi5ture of coke and arak. I had already had my fill for the e ening, and I could see that Ibu 2riani was not #leased with the drinking of arak in her house. 3he came into the recei ing room and said something in a shar# tone to a few in the grou#. I mentioned to John who was sitting ne5t to me, that it would be best to carry8on their #arty back at his #lace. We made tentati e #lans to M#arty9 later on during the week. 3o far, the rain has ke#t the follow8u# #arty at bay. 3uala 1uayan / 1/9 : 6ues!ay, July ;, 2010 / 1/9 worker an! <uru (9 (ource. 3C1= ersonal 1ackgroun! He has been working as a security guard at the BH6 factory for *( years. Mo ed here from Jakarta and is originally from 3umatera 4tara. His wife, Ibu .ursani, is also from 3umatera 4tara, and she has been li ing at the BH6 housing area for B years. 1hey are both "atak and were married in '((C in "ontianak. 1hey ha e a little boy, 2driano, who is C months old, and they also ha e a daughter who is B years old. 1hey both ha e family li ing in "ontianak. Informant also works as an elementary school teacher #art8time at the 36 school in &uala Buayan. He is not fully certified to teach, therefore he is not able to get a full8time #osition at the school. !or this reason, he continues to hold two jobs. -urrently, he is working on a distance education #rogram in order to become certified as a teacher. He e5#ects it will take him between B and *( years to com#lete the #rogram at which time he will seek a full8time #osition at the school. Informant and his family li e in a C room housing su##lied by BH6, and B years ago he added on a #ro#er kitchen with his own money and labour in order to be able to a ailable ) days a week. 8

1/9 information Q: How is the re ationshi! "etween &H' inti and the ! asma farmers? 3ometimes good, sometimes bad. In the rainy season, there are serious #roblems with trans#ortation. 1he roads in the #lasma area are im#assable at times, while those in the inti are well8maintained at all times. "lasma farmers are unable to get their har ested fruit to the BH6 in time $there is a 'C8CF hour window #ost8har est 7 fruit rots =uickly%, much of the fruit is rejected $u# to B(N at times%. When the roads are really bad in the #lasma areas, fruit arri es *8' weeks late. !armers get angry and tensions builds. 1hey don9t understand understand grading system for 1B3 and why their fruit gets rejected. D ery month go ernment #ublishes #rice of -"0 that is directly linked to going #rice for 1B3. Q: Why are the roads not maintained !ro!er y on ! asma area? Who is res!onsi" e? BH6 is only concerned with inti roads. 1he com#any doesn9t #ut out enough ca#ital for the #lasma roads. 2lso, BH6 is #oorly managedA managers lack skills , wrong guy in the wrong #lace. Managers rotate to another site e ery two years. -urrent manager is from 3umatra. In general, they are mostly from Ja a. Q: #e me a"out the owner of &H' and a"out the history of &H'$ -hinese owner, "ak Jamili, li es in Jakarta. 1he BH6 head office is in Jakarta, and they ha e a branch office in "ontianak. 1here is no website info a ailable on com#any, nor is there any information made #ublic. 1here are no regulations in Indonesia about making com#any information #ublic. Before the con ersion to kela#a sawit, land was used for kebun karet. In *++', BH6 began #rocess to ac=uire land. In *++B, factory started #roduction of -"0 $1B3 #rocessing%. 1here was no Msocialisasi9 and the local #eo#le did not want to gi e u# the land. 1he go ernment issued a H/4, though did not follow #ro#er #rocedure regarding Msocialisasi9. Initially, go ernment #aid BH6 to house7feed migrants in a state #rogram called "I:8B4.81:2.3. Eand was gi en to transmigrants. 1he original inhabitants were a majority of Melayu, with some 6ayak, Ja anese, and -hinese. 1he transmigration #rogram had a number of #roblems, issue of ne#otism. 0riginal land designated for #lasma was sold to outsiders who were not entitled to land. 1he BH6 also owns subsidiary com#anies 63", 2--, and "&3A the former two com#anies $BH6 O 63"% em#loy a #lasma8inti scheme, while the latter two $2-- and "&3% ha e all the land in inti with '(N of the #rofit going to the original land owners who ga e u# the land for the #lantation. 1he BH6 #lant has about '(( workers, and it em#loys both its own truck dri ers, as well as #ri ate truck owners to haul the 1B3 from the collection sites to the #lant for #rocessing. Q: #e me a"out the initia efforts to unioni(e workers at the &H' factory$ S&S, 0Serikat &eker)a Seluru ,ndonesia1 was started in 2 4 under the initiati(es of -H/ factory worker Su Herman. -H/ was under the management of ?am ?uri who responded fa(oura"ly to the worker re$uest for "etter wages and "etter working conditions. ,n 2 8, &ak ?aya ,rianto 9

0from Sumatera *tara1 "ecame the new manager and he dis"anded the union. Su Herman was fired and union acti(ity stopped altogether. Nactory workers were scared to raise issues after Su Herman got fired. +he main issue was low wages. -H/ pays the minimum wage 0*M. *pa Minimum .a"upaten1 as determined "y the district which is currently %p. 774. : month. +his amount is insufficient to maintain an ade$uate standard of li(ing. +he security guards were ne(er allowed to )oin the S&S,. Q: What are the main outstanding issues with the workers at the &H' ! ant? +he first issue is healthD e#posure to the processing of +-S into C&O is detrimental to worker health o(er time no "enefits. +he second issue hour rotations, !am 5 !pm and !pm !am. +here are no signed documents for workers regarding their contract with -H/. 3antor 3uala 1uayan 5 "ealth %anking with 3e+ala 9usun 5 6ues!ay, July >, 2010 1he &e#ala 6usun, "ak Mahrani, has held #osition since March *, '((+. He was born in 3ekadau and has been li ing in &uala Buayan for <( years. He was born June 'G, *+G'. He is li ing with his wife and four children. He owns one ka#ling. We #roceeded to do the wealth ranking e5ercise. .oteA /aleh and I decided later to rely on "ak 1anto9s wealth ranking, as it seemed more accurate. "ak Mahrani was unsure about a number of the families in our :1, some of which were new arri als that he had met only once. Construction "orker / 3ela+a (awit owner / (ource. 31C 1? 1he worker happened to "e in the .antor .-, so we discussed the upcoming "ridge construction pro)ect which he will "e in(ol(ed with. Ni(e workers from .uala -uayan will pro(ide la"our for "uilding three "ridges 0cem"atan1 and the pro)ect will take ! months. +here are no current plans to e#tend "uilding pro)ect to impro(e the roads in .-. +he pro)ect is entitled &&,& 0&em"ang)unan ,nfrastruktur &edersahaan, and a firm from Australia has "een contracted to "uild "ridges 0see earlier notes on "ridge pro)ect1. ,nformant mo(ed here in '997 from Sunkuan /ao. He has a wife, ' daughter 09 yrs old1 and a son 0= yrs old1. +he kantor &&,& is in Sanggau. Cem+aka 5 "e!nes!ay, July ;, 2010 3ela+a (awit farmer, owner of warung/toko in town / (ource. 31C> He was born in -em#aka, C 2gustus, *+)C. His #arents are from Ja a -am#ur, and they came to &alimantan Barat in *+G( to work on rubber #lantantion where "1". is now located. Informant has ' ka#lings and also owns a local toko7warung for + years now. Before buying the warung, he worked as stand8by hel#. "re ious owner of toko now li es in Meliau. Informant has three children, a daughter $0ki , age *(%, a son $2ri# , age F%, and a new baby boy $.urman 8 age C months%. His #arents li e in -em#aka, and he has fi e siblingsA two brothers and three sisters who all li e in -em#aka. His father was a fisherman and his mother has now #assed away. Informant #urchased ' ka#lings from #eo#le who li e in 3in &uang 6aok. His land is near "ak 1anto9s ka#lings. He #aid :#. *+ juta #er ka#ling fi e years ago. 2ccording to informant, before kela#a sawit started here, #eo#le were #oorP now, there is greater wealth and #ros#erity. His siblings don9t own any ka#lings. He har ests his 1B3 once a month only because he only uses one form of fertili;er $tabur , not lobang% which means the fruit takes longer to grow and '

ri#en. He hires two workers to hel# with the har est and he #ays them :# *<(( 7 kg. In general he har ests * I tons #er month. He nets about :#. * juta #er month on 1B3. He #ays about :#. '.FB(.((( for fertili;er #er year. He s#ends about :#. <B(.((( on :oundu# #er year. He said it is #ossible to buy ka#lings right now for about :#. B( juta. 3ela+a (awit worker / (ource. 31C; He mo(ed from to Cempaka two years ago from &ontianak where he worked as a dri(er 0supir1. He is originally from Cilapa, ?a(a where he owns .4 ha of padi. He does not own any land or kapling in .uala -uayan. He came to .alimantan -arat for e"eker)a drus.f He li(es with his wife ,"u Aurul 0"orn '98!1, his daughter 0%aya ' year old1, and grandmother 0Aene ,"u Watum1 who looks after his daughter during the day. He li(es in Afdeling ' in housing pro(ided "y &+&A '= "ecause his mother and wife work on the inti plantation as grass cutters. +he rent, electricity, and water are co(ered "y the company. ,nformant crosses the .apuas %i(er to come to work in Cempaka 0' 5'4 minutes (ia atakatak1. He dri(es a truck 0hiline ' to ' M ton1 which is owned "y &ak +ugiyo and is kept in Cempaka right "eside the mos$ue. 2enerally, he works ! days per week and is kept "usy with the staggered har(esting of +-S. He nets %p. '4. per load and makes appro#imately 7 loads per day 0total ga)i for the day E %p. ' 4. 1. His wife works 24 days per month at &+&A '= inti as a grass cutter 0gulmas pem"ersih1 where she earns %p. 2 . : day. His motto isD Ao money, no honey> 3ela+a (awit +etani @ ka+ling owner / (ource. 31C11 0riginally from Ja a, mo ed to -em#aka from &am#ung Baru, and has li ed in "E. , :1QC $beside -em#aka% for o er <( years. 0wns F ka#ling, has *( children and ') cucu. Bought land in *++C8+B from #eo#le li ing in &am#ung Baru. He owns C houses. 1wo of his children are still at home and works as guru for 3M". Cem+aka 5 6hurs!ay, July :, 2010 etani / 3a+ling owner / /arvest 5 8*servations ,31C120wner is Ibu 2riani9s eldest sister who li es right beside Ibu 2riani. Her and her husband own C ka#lings. 1his morning, they were har esting from ka#ling Q *B. 1here are F workers, mostly family, with < hired workers. 1he atmos#here is casual and friendly. 2fter < hours, the har est was finished, and the 1B3 was ready for trans#ort ia hiline $*8ton truck% to ka#al, and then off to BH6. 2fter a break, the grou# mo ed o er to the ne5t ka#ling nearby $*( minute walk%. Cem+aka 5 'ri!ay, July =, 2010 5 3ela+a (awit 61( /arvest ,+anen- / 8*servations &ak +anto owns two kaplings which he har(ests 2 # per month. He uses "oth options for fertiliHer 0lo"ang and ta"ur1, and for this reason he is a"le to har(est twice in a month. 0Selamet only uses the ti"ur method and as a result only har(ests once a month1. After checking the fields and consulting with other farmers, he decided to har(est on Nriday. ,"u Ariani fs sister, ,"u Wardia har(ested her kaplings 0owns 6 kaplings har(ested all of themK1 on +hursday, and gi(en that they employ many of the same workers 0some family, some hired outside of family1, the har(est needs to "e staggered. ,"u Ariani was up at 2am this morning, preparing food for the workers. We got up at !am and "y 7am were we off to the first kapling, lot 3==. ,t is a"out a '4 minute walk from the house. ,"u Ariani and her sister were a part of the la"our force, and along with &ak +anto, there were an additional ! workers. We were )oined later "y Surip who came ''

with his truck to cart away the fruit to a loading dock. +his e(ening, the +-S will "e loaded onto a kapal and "rought to -H/ directly. 4#on reaching the site, we had makan #agi, smoked cigarettes, and shared jokes etc. 1he grou# is ery close, and non8family workers seemed to be treated as just one of the family. 1he har est of 1B3 is labour intensi e and entirely a manual #rocess. 1he first ste# is to identify the fruit that is ready for har est across an undulating terrain. 4sing the egrek $for tall trees% or the dodus $for shorter ones%, the surrounding branches are cut down and the 1B3 bunch is yanked down from the tree. Workers use a hook8like de ice $>>>% to haul the fruit either to the area where it will be weighed, or for further fruit, a wheelbarrow is used to trans#ort fruit u# stee# slo#es with one worker #ushing and another #ulling with the hel# of a ro#e. In #laces where the wheelbarrow cannot get through, indi idual workers carry the 1B3 on their shoulders using a #olyester rice bag for #rotection from the s#ines on the fruit. When all the fruit has been har ested and carted to the weigh scale $timbagnan%, "ak 1anto calls 3uri# to come with his truck. 1he 1B3 is weighed in a##ro5 *B(8'(( kg #ortions and the weight is recorded on a &ela#a 3awit branch using a branch needle to scratch the res#ecti e weights. 3uri# arri es and the 1B3 is loaded onto the truck. He needs to make two loads for the har est of a single ka#ling. Ibu 2riani and Wardi collect all the indi idual fruit that falls from the bunches, and their weight is added to the total at the end. Har esting one ka#ling took about < hours. 1he work team mo ed on to the ne5t ka#ling lot Q*' B. 1hroughout the #rocess, "ak 1anto was on the #hone a number of times talking with other farmers and 3uri# the dri er. "ak 1anto said both ka#lings yielded about the same olume. Nor har(ested +-S, the pemanen recei(ed a wage per kgD %p '24 : kg di(ided "y the 7 workers. ,"u Ariani and ,"u Wardia did not recei(e a ga)i, per se. Gach works on each othersf kapling as a form of royong 0shared la"our1. 0See Appendi# G &hotos of +-S Har(est1. 3ela+a (awit "orker / (ource. 31C14 Informant is *B years old, he was born in -em#aka, and his mother #assed away o er B years ago. He has fi e siblingsA 2doni $*+ yrs old%, 2ugust $'B yrs old%, Malah $'G yrs old%, 2yang $'F yrs old%, and 4jang $<( yrs old%. Informant has only com#leted 36C and does not intend to carry on with school because he is getting too old for 36 $he needs two more years to com#lete #rimary%. He found school difficult, though his commute to school was relati ely easy ia atakatak across the &a#uas :i er. !or the time being, he is content working C8B times a month hel#ing with the &3 har est. He works for farmers linked with Ibu 2riani's family. .oteA His father was also inter iewed at a later date. 3ee &B-*). 1/9 "orker / 6oko owner / (ource. 31C: He was born in -em#aka $:1QB%. He doesn9t own any ka#ling, nor karet. He has owned the toko7warung $on the edge of the :1 border with ne5t desa on the Dast% for F years now. He has been working in logistics o#erations at BH6 since *++'. He starts in the morning at )am and ends at *#m. He tra els ia se#eda motor which is about CBmin one way. 1he kantor BH6 is about *B minutes from the BH6 fabrik. Cem+aka 5 (atur!ay, July 10, 2010 "ealth %anking (ummary / (ource. ak 6anto :1 Q B has GC kk H #o#ulation of 'C( jiwa. '2

<rou+ 1. *G families own ' or more ka#lings. $ * 5 G ka#lings 7 * 5 B ka#lings 7 * 5 C ka#lings 7 C 5 < ka#lings 7 B 5 ' ka#lings%. 3ome families own karet $bidang% and bawas. <rou+ 2. *< families own * ka#ling. B families also own * bidang, and ' families own bawas. <rou+ ?. *< families do not own a ka#ling, but own either bidang and 7 or bawas. C families own ' bidang, and *( families own either one or two bawas. <rou+ 4. '* families do not own land. Many fall into a category called #as #asan, meaning they earn just enough to sur i e but ha e no sa ings, no means of accumulation. .oteA It may also be #ossible that there are #as #asan in grou# < as well. $3ee 2##endi5 ! , Wealth :anking by land ownershi# 7 :1 Q B%. Cem+aka 5 (un!ay, July 11, 2010 !ield tri# to &uala :osan. &un called /aleh last night around +#m, said Mas "ujo had called a meeting for today. Bring field notes and :#. )B.(((. Maybe o ernight stay. I had already made arrangements to s#end the night at 3uri#9s #lace in "1". *<. Had to cancel #lans. I ho#e he wasn9t offended. !ield tri# was in fact not a meeting, but an e5cursion by sam#an $F hours total%. Mas "ujo stayed in 3eng &uak 6aok, though accom#anied us from &uala Buayan to his home stay. /aleh ended u# getting a sun stroke as a result of the tri#, in #art due to his lack of rehydration o er the course of the journey. 1he following week, he de elo#ed diarrhea and blistered li#s which took about a week to reco er from. Cem+aka 5 Mon!ay, July 12, 2010 7illage 9ukun / (ource. 31C1> Brief isit to informant9s #lace. He is B' years, and since he was a child has been aware of a talent for healing. He was born in &eta#ang, &alimantan Barat. He offers his ser ice to the community and the #ayment is oluntary. 3aid he had the ability to kill someone just be staring at them, adding that he used this #ower only to kee# his enemies from harming him. KI added that with such great #ower , kekuasaan besar , came great res#onsibility , tanggung jawabL. While we were ha ing tea and discussing his #rofession, a farmer came to his house and had a swollen left hand which he injured while har esting 1B3 $the needles can =uickly cause swelling, as I e5#erienced firsthand last !riday%. 1he informant asked his son to bring him a glass of water. When it came, he whis#ered some words into the glass, then asked the farmer to drink the water. 1he farmer stayed for a few minutes, then went off to the soccer match in "enelimau. K I saw the farmer on 3aturday, July *G, at a soccer game in "enelimau. His hand was still swollen, and he said the dukun9s treatment didn9t work. It looked as though the needle was still stuck in his handL. '=

1he rest of the inter iew was conducted by /aleh $see his notes%. 3ela+a (awit 3a+ling 8wner / (ource. 31C15 He was born in -em#aka, has a wife $Rani% and four children and + cucu. He owns G ka#lings. He #urchased rimba land in *+)F8)+, cleared the land, and now has kela#a sawit trees that are about *B years old. He #urchased his seedlings from "ak Mahumadin. Informant has three sonsA John $'(%, 2#in $'G%, and 2ndi $'F%. He also has a daughter, 2nna $age>%. 2ndi li es in Ma#ai $' hours away ia atakatak% and owns ' ka#lings. "aling besar masalah H koru#si, sekarang di bawa. 3BR tidak bagus. He earns on a erage e ery month :# *' juta from his 1B3. He is not sure how much he #ays in ta5es, but it is not much. He asked me what can he do a"out his son ?ohn who doesn ft want to work and doesnft want to go to schoolK , suggested cutting his funding. #anggau -uesday, July %. / /ednesday, July %0 1he &e#ala 6usun in &uala Buayan, "ak Mahrani, informed me that I could find an economic #rofile of the families in &uala Buayan at the &antor B"3 $Badan "usat 3tatistik% in 3anggau. He #ro ided me with the name "ak Jukaini $office manager for statistical data% along with his tele#hone number. I left -em#aka ia s#eedboat to 3anggau $:#. <(.((( 7 < hours%. I had ho#ed to meet u# with two contacts that had been #ro ided by 1ania just before she left for -anadaA 3ekundus, coordinator of /:"& $/erakan :akyat "emberdayan &am#ung%P and -ion 2leksander, general secretary of 3"&3 $3erikat "etani &ela#a 3awit , "alm 0il "easant !armers 4nion% who a##arently li ed in Bodok. In addition, I was ho#ing to collect some information about land ownershi# in :1 BP Mas 1anto suggested I isit the &antor 2graria for mimilik tanah information. While in 3anggau, I was interested, as well, in getting data on #lantation areas under the control of the "1". *<, BH6, 63", 36&, and 22-. 3antor 1 ( -y chance, , met Mas -enH in my hotel lo""y 0Hotel Mutiara1, and he was kind enough to take me "y sepeda motor to (arious go(ernment offices. He is originally from ?a(a, has li(ed in Sanggau for o(er = years, and now makes his li(ing pro(iding musical enterntainment at weddings and sunnat ceremonies. I was introduced to "ak 3uriya when I entered the B"3 office, and he called "ak Jukaini from his h#. "ak Jukaini arri ed within *( minutes, and we had a * hour meeting in his office with Mas Ben; sitting in to hel# with com#rehension $he knew some Dnglish%. "ak Jukainin #ro ided me with a one #age kela#a sawit #roduction data sheet for '(*( $6aftar Euas 2real 6an "roduksi &ela#a 3awit 1ahun '(*(% and -"07Inti 3awit $kernel% #roduction data for "1". *< for '(*( to date $3ur ei Industri Besar 6an 3edang Bulanah%. He told me that he only had economic data on 3anggau district $kabu#aten , global information% and on Meliau sub8district $kecamatan , global information%, and he did not ha e &uala Buayan :1 QB s#ecific data. 1his information could be found at the &antor -amat Meliau with "ak Joko, and he #ro ided me with his h# tel Q. KI wasn9t sure if Mas "ujo maybe already had this info, so I will check with him before #lanning a tri# to MeliauL. "ak Jakaini offered to gi e me the '((+ #ublications , &abu#aten 3anggau 6alam 2ngka and the &ecamatan Meliau 6alam 2ngka , though it would cost me :#. *B(.((( for the first one and :#. *((.((( for the second one. K1here seemed to be a lot of discussion '6

between Mas Ben; and "ak Jukaini regarding the cost of the books. I felt that I was being swindled, so informed "ak Jukaini that I would need to ha e a consultasi with Mas "ujo before deciding to buy the books.L "ak Jukaini informed me that #lantation economic data could be a ailable at &antor 6isbun $6inas "erkebunan%. He added that the /:"& $3ekundus% has not been acti e for o er 'F months and that it has been re#laced by the !"B of which he was the coordinator. When I in=uired about -ion 2leksander $his tel Q came u# as inacti e%, he was unable to hel#, nor did he know of an 3"&3 office in 3anggau. 3antor 9inas erke*unan ,9is*unMas -enH and , arri(ed at the kantor a"out = minutes "efore closing 0=pm1, so our meeting wsa short. , met with &ak Gko who let me make a copy of a document Statistik &erke"upaten Sanggau Menurut .ecamatan +ahun 2 !52 9 088 pages copy was made in town with &ak Gko accompanying us with the original document1. +he document has agricultural production data for the '4 .ecamatan of Sanggau, of which Meliau is 3!. 0See Appendi# 2 55 Summary of data1. &ak Gko suggested , (isit the .antor -A&&G/A for other economic data and for maps of the area. He pro(ided me with the name of &ak Awal *dinur. Mas -enH returned me to my hotel and we parted ways. , would continue my (isits on Wednesday. 3antor 1A &9A I met "ak :oni !au;an, sekretari of the kantor. He was able to #ro ide me for free with a soft co#y of the '((+ &abu#aten 3anggau 6alam 2ngka $recall :#. *B(.((( cost from B"3SS% and a free hard co#y of the '((+ &ecamatan Meliau 6alam 2ngka. He suggested I isit the &antor "erkebunan for ma#s and #ro ided me with the name of "ak. &acuk. 1he sekretri dro e me to the kantor in his brand new 34T which took about * minute. While dri ing he told me that he worked #re iously with the World Bank office in Jakarta for a number of years. Meeting lasted about <( minutes. 3antor erke*unan I met "ak &acuk who showed me to his office , &asi :ehabilitasi Hutan dan Eahan. He has been li ing in 3anggau for F years. He is res#onsible for the rehabilitation of degraded forest and land areas $rusak , marginal land due to illegal logging% through arious community resource management #rograms in ol ing mining, cash cro#s $karet, coca etc.%. He said that for the district of 3anggau, kela#a sawit was the Q * cro#, followed by karet, then coca. "ak &acuk was using a /I3 ma##ing data base and he #ro ided me with the hectares allocated to kela#a sawitA BH6 63" 36& 22"1". *< , 88 88 88 88 *).B(( ha O B((( ha H **.((( ha O +((( ha H .o data a ailable $Dnsunak% $Melaboh% 'C.((( ha '(.((( ha ''.B(( ha '(.((( ha

He added that the &+&A '= used a state model called -*MA 0-adan *saha Milik Aegara1. &ak .acuk pro(ided me with a detailed map of the land area allocated to kelapa sawit. 0See Appendi# H for .uala -uayan area Map for .elapa Sawit1. &ak said that in areas where there was o(erlap of H2* allocation and e#isting masyarakat, tanah pertanian etc., ,A.@A& allowed for the e#clusion of these areas from the area under pri(ate:state control. Nor e#ample, the map '4

shows -H/ holding a H2* for ma)ority of .uala -uayan area, yet much land is held under pri(adi ownership. He suggested , check with the .epala /usun of .uala -uayan for a detailed listing of land ownership in %+34. He also suggested , go to the kantor ,*& 0,Hin *saha &erke"unan1 for details on kelapa sawit licensing and ownership, and to contact &ak @asito in Sanggau Jdid not pursue this lead at this timeL. 9emogra+hic 9ata for 3uala 1uayan / (ource. 3ecamatan Meliau 9alam Angka ,200="ublisherA B"3 &abu#aten 3anggau. &atalog B"3A *C(<.G*(B. p. 6 #. F Area E 8=. 2 km : 8,= 2 ha C dusun 7 B :W $:unkun Warga% 7 '( :1 $:unkun 1etangga% *<<) && $&e#ala &eluarga%
2 2

p. ' &enduduk E 6,=72 0?iwa1 : .epadatan 0density1 E 2 : km #. *' Eaki8laki H ','CG 7 "erem#uan H ',*'G 7 :atio H *(G #. *< :ata8rata 7 rumah $a ge members #er household% H < %eturn tri+ from (anggau / Cem+aka @ 6hurs!ay, July 15

6ransmigrant from $66 living in 9( 5 %eturn tri+ from (anggau / (ource. 31C 1: ,nformant is from A++, is 6 years old and came to /S& as a transmigrant in '996. +his particular program "egan in '996 and ended in '997. Aearly ! B of the farmers from A++ returned to +imor "ecause li(ing conditions were too difficult. +he kaplings were not ready and food had to come in from outside 0makan ke luar1. He estimated that a"out the same num"er returned to ?awa. ,nformant has three childrenD %iki 0"oy '7 yrs old : SMA1, ,ren 0girl '= yrs old : SM&1, and &rista 0girl ' yrs old : S/1. His wife fs name is Margerita. %iki goes to a pri(ate &rotestant school in Sanggau 0cost %p. 6 . : month1 and he stays in student housing 0tinggal di asalama1. ,ren goes to a pri(ate Catholic school in +ayan 0cost %p. '2. : month1, and she also is "oarding in student housing. +he youngest, &rista, goes to S/ negri 0national pu"lic school1 which has no cost, and the school is located in +rans 2. He was born in .11, was a sawa $#adi% farmer with ' ha of land, and he has not returned to .11 since his arri al in &alimantan Barat. He has two siblings li ing in 63", one brother who owns a ka#ling, and a sister who doesn9t own any land. When his son :iki has finished school, he wants to go back to .11 to study at the uni ersity in 1imor. He is not sure what he wants to study, but he is certain he wants to stay in .11. He might o#t to work on his father9s rice #adi. -urrently, informant9s #arents are working his rice field. He bought the land from his #arents. Informant owns * ka#ling, (.B ha of kebun sayur, and a house that has electricity and air summur $well8water%. He har ests his 1B3 twice a month $a##ro5. ' tons total 7 month%, and he only uses the tabur system for #u#uk. 1here are <( farmers in his am#uran, and they all ha e the title $sertifikat% for their ka#lings. He was gi en a ka#ling at no cost back in *++C. 0n a erage, he nets :#. ' juta 7 month. Both him and his wife are ha##y li ing in 63". 63" has B &46, and each &46 has a##ro5imately B(( farmers $total of 'B(( #etani ha e ka#lings of ' ha%. 1here are a##ro5imately <(N from .11, <(N from Ja a, <FN from &alBar, and 'N from Bali li ing7working at 63". 1he road is often a #roblem on the #lasma area, and he belie es that the &46 lacks the resources to kee# the roads in better condition. 1he relations with 63" are not great $kurang%. !armers ha e to #ay too much for #u#uk and they don9t get '!

enough for their fruit $kurang #arawatang%. Cem+aka 5 'ri!ay, July 1>, 2010 %umah ak 6anto. 8*servations I had a short discussion with "ak 1ugiyo regarding the tra el arrangements for Dntikong on July 'G that would in ol e three #eo#le $2dam, 2nnie, and I% and include the boat tri# across from -em#aka to "1". *<. East week we had agreed on :#. <((.(((. 1his morning he informed me that the #rice was now :#. C((.(((, though I wasn9t clear as to why the cost went u#. He said he thought I was the only #erson tra eling. I told him that there were always three #eo#le tra eling. I added that maybe by ne5t week the #rice would be :#. B((.(((S He talked a bit with Mas 1anto, and the #rice went back to :#. <((.(((. I9m unsure of how this issue got resol ed. At the same time in the morning, a group of 25= women arri(ed and they had a heated discussion with ,"u Ariani for a"out 64 minutes then left. ,"u Ariani came into the li(ing room and was (isi"ly upset a"out something. , came to understand that /ewi fs step5mother Annie 0li(es in /S&1 came to the house to get /ewi and ha(e her li(e in /S&. /ewi saw her coming and ran off in the woods near"y. According to what /ewi told 2aleh, she doesn ft like li(ing with her step5mother who makes her sell cakes in the morning "efore school and after school as well. Step5mother owns = kaplings. /ewi doesnft want to go to /S&, and ,"u Ariani said she go to the kepala desa to formaliHe her re$uest to ha(e /ewi stay with them permanently. +his is the 2 time the step5mother came to (isit. Gach time has in(ol(ed a heated e#change. , learned that /ewi had "een li(ing with her grand5parents in &ontianak until they passed away recently. 1ote: On ?uly 22 , Mas +anto was called to /ewiOs school 0SM&1 "ecause there were some pro"lems that needed sorting out. , accompanied Mas +anto and upon arri(ing at school, we were greeted "y /ewiOs grand5father who is 72 years old. He came from &ontianak area to take /ewi "ack with him. She preferred li(ing closer to the city and she had asked to go "ack. /ewi was well taken care of "y Mas +anto and his family, "ut she missed her friends etc. +he grand5 father told me that her parents died = years ago, and that /ewi had stayed in /S& for one year with her step5mother. He added that /ewi has a si"ling, a sister who is 6 years old. /ewi will li(e with her grand5father for the time "eing and attend school in &ontianak. She left the following day "y atakatak and it was a (ery sad for e(eryone in the family to see her go. /ewi was not unhappy with Mas +anto, "ut there was always a risk she could "e sent "ack to /S& which she didnOt like at all. 3ela+a (awit owner / (ource. 31C20 Informant was born in -em#aka and married Ibu 3umiati $Ibu 2riani's younger sister%. He has four childrenA &anardi $son, '(yrs old , 3M& Meliau, studying to be a mechanic%, 3ugiharto $son, *) yrs old , 3M2'%, 6edisusanto $son, *' yrs old , 3M"*%, and &hosneni $daughter, Byrs old%. He was gi en a #arcel of land from Ibu 3umiati's father in order to build his house. 1he three sisters li e right beside each other in -em#aka, right across from the mos=ue. Informant started growing &3 in *+F+P he owns * ka#ling that is about a '( minute walk from his house. He har ests his 1B3 once a month, yielding on a erage C tons, and he makes use of only the tabur system of fertili;er. When he har ests, he hires < workers from -em#aka $gaji H :# *<C(,B) 7 kg%. He also has (.B ha of karet $*B( trees% which yields a##ro5imately *( kg of karet 7 day which he sells for :#. *<.((( 7 kg to the local rubber tokay, 2can, twice a month. '7
nd nd

Kuala Buayan / +- 0 #aturday, July %2, 23%3 / Journalist "etani / #ource: KB$4 $Inter iew was recorded *F see &B-G wa file% 1ackgroun! Information He was "orn in -ogor on August = , '972 and has 9 si"lings who all still li(e in -ogor. His father worked in a tea factory and has since passed away. ,n 2 , informant mo(ed to ?akarta to study accounting at the *ni(ersity S+,G 0=.4 yr program1. At the time, he did not work in ?akarta, and he was li(ing in a rented house. ,n 2 6, he finished his program and mo(ed to &ontianak where he help three different )o"sD '1 financial consultant for fishing:shrimp industry< 21 radio "roadcaster for 7!! NM< and =1 pri(ate Gnglish tutoring for S/ and SM& students which paid %p. = . : month. He tutored students 2# week, for 2 hours per session. Nrom 2 45 2 !, he mo(ed to Meliau to take a legal course offered in Gnglish "y a company called eColling.f ,n 2 7, he mo(ed to .uala -uayan to work as an Gnglish teacher fs assistant 0SM&1 working on Mondays, Wednesdays, and Nridays. Since 2 9, he has no longer "een working in the schools "ecause a num"er of properly certified teachers mo(ed to .uala -uayan from &ontianak, and "ecause he lacked sufficient $ualifications he was dismissed. !or three months in '((+, he worked in the lumber industry $o#erating a chainsaw%, but ended getting swindled by his business #artner, "ar 3unarto, who took off with :#. G juta of his money and mo ed to "ontianak. 1he informant said that he was engaged in illegal logging, though had little #roblems with the #olice because he was able to #ay off the #olice to let his lumber through. He has decided not to #ursue his former business #artner in court and has absorbed the loss. -urrently, he is working three jobsA *% !ree lance journalist for the "ontianak #ublication , &2EB2: , which #ays him u# to :#. '((.((( #er storyP '% consultant for a steel com#any in Malaysia, contact "ak 2lwi Binturki, who is doing business in Bunti, &ecamatan, 3anggau $not regular work%P and kebun karet , he owns <(( trees, har ests about *B( kg 7 month, and earns about :#. *(.((( #er kg $:# *.B juta 7 month%. Informant has three children and has been married to his wife /ierti since '((G, whom he met in &uala Buayan. 1heir childrenA &alista $daughter , ) years old%, 2nger $son , < years old%, and 6e o $ son , * year old%. In '(() he built his house on land $* ha% gi en to him and his wife by his father8in8law. He dedicates some of it to a kebun sayur, and he doesn9t own any ka#lings. He did not use credit from the bank to build his house and de elo# his karet, but rather relied on money from his family and relati es. His wife sells snacks in &uala Buayan, and she also teaches the &oran to children ages G8*' yrs old in their homes for free. K/aleh mentioned later how informant was married only four years ago, but his eldest daughter was already se enSL. 3ela+a (awit Issues. Q: How has the arriva of ke a!a sawit in )ua a &uayan changed iving standards? 1he standard of li ing for farmers is higher in '(*( than it was in *++C. 1here are more jobs, farmers and workers ha e more income than in the #ast. 1he main sources of income in the #ast were karet and #adi, though now there is no land for #adi and residents need to buy rice from Meliau or elsewhere. !armers are ha##y if they ha e ' or more ka#lings. I would like to buy a ka#ling, but they cost anywhere from :#. <(8G( juta. '8
rd

Q: What are some of the issues with the dea ings "etween !ast ke a!a desas and the &H'? 1wo former ke#ala desas, "ak Busti Bawadi $now li ing in 3anggau% and "ak Joharan $li ing in &uala Buayan% sold '' ha of bu#aten land to the to the BH6 and they ke#t the money for themsel es. 1his land has been #lanted with kela#a sawit and is #art of the BH6 inti. &uala Buayan doesn9t get any money for the returns on this land. 1he former ke#ala desas were recei ing :#. B((.((( 7 month from the BH6 as a way to kee# the desa on the side of the com#any. 1he BH6 #ays no ta5es to &uala Buayan and any ta5es #aid $dinas #ajak% go to the 3anggau &abu#aten. Q: What are some of the issues involving farmers and farmer protest action? 1he BH6 recei ed the H/4 from Jakarta without ha ing followed the #ro#er #rocedures for socialisasi. 3ome farmers signed a document to gi e u# ).B ha of land for '.Bha in return, while other farmers did not sign any documents, nor did they agree to had o er land to the BH6. In addition, some farmers ga e less than ).B ha, some farmers only recei ed ka#lings of less than *.B ha, while others didn9t recei e any ka#lings at all. 2nother issue is the distance to the ka#lings from the illage which can be o er an hour away by ojek. 1he farmers trusted the leadershi# $ke#ala desas, dusun, and adat% yet they were mislead and e5#loited by them. 1he farmers a##roached the BH6 directly demanding a solution. 1he BH6 #ro#osed two solutionsA *% gi e them each a ka#ling of less than '.B ha $#lasma%P or '% gi e them a single cash settlement. 3ome farmers acce#t o#tions, yet other rejected to offer because whether farmers had ka#lings of either (.B ha or *.B ha, they were to recei e the same cash settlement from the BH6. 2 major #roblem is that there are no records on land ownershi#. 1he BH6 only recorded which farmers ga e ).B ha and they don9t ha e any info on the land area for indi idual #lasma farmers. 1he ke#ala desa at the time did not kee# #ro#er records. In *++C, farmers went to the ke#ala desa to com#lain that they had not agreed to gi e their land to the BH6, yet the com#any had already cleared their land. 1he res#onse from the ke#ala desa was that the land clearing issue was not his #roblem and ad ised that the farmers a##roach the BH6 directly. When they went to the com#any, they said they will check again $durbicara>%, and if farmers ga e land, they will recei e a ka#ling. In reality, the BH6 land clearing was sanctioned by the ke#ala desa. In some cases, the ke#ala desa came at night riding on the bulldo;er with the dri er, instructing him where to clear kebun karet land for sawit. 3ome farmers got money for their karet trees $no records%, though less that *(N of the farmers recei ed com#ensation for their trees. Q: What are the outstanding issues * !ro" ems invo ving farmers in +,-,? Narmers are growing tired of protesting, and many are protesting in the hearts only. Some farmers ha(e gone to the Sanggau parliament and ha(e approached the M&s for Meliau district for helpD Sri .artikan, &ak .armina, and Ha)i A"dullah. Collecti(ely, the M&s sent a letter to the -H/ asking them to resol(e the issues with the farmers 0the current kepala desa has a copy of this letter1 JCheck to see if Aiken was a"le to get a copy of the letterL. +he -H/ in(ited farmers and the kecamatan camat in Meliau 0&ak ?oko1 to meet in Meliau to discuss the issues. At the meeting, the kecamatan ordered -H/ to gi(e kaplings to the farmers who were entitled to recei(e land 0,"u -udayan the former camat has a list of farmers entitled to land1. +he -H/ said they will check the locations of the land in $uestion. +his year, some farmers recei(ed land, '9

though the ma)ority did not. One pro"lem is that no local kaplings are a(aila"le any longer. Narmers who own pri(ate land with ke"un karet don ft want to sell their land to the -H/, though they ha(e "een approached "y the company. +hese ru""er farmers are producing well with their karet, and later, many want to purchase pri(ate land for kelapa sawit without ha(ing to go through the plasma credit scheme 0pri(adi purchase1. Nor e#ample, &ak Mahumadin and &ak Wakio own many hectares of land which they are selling to indi(iduals as pri(ate land for kelapa sawit de(elopment. 0ne farmer, as an e5am#le, "ak 2leh, had <' ha of land that was taken by the BH6, and to date he has not recei ed any ka#lings. His land was used for karet, and the ke#ala desa came at night with the bulldo;er dri er and cleared his land without his #ermission. He recei ed no com#ensation for the rubber trees. 1o date, the land is barren and not de elo#ed into kela#a sawit with the e5ce#tion of ' ka#lings, on of which was gi en to "ak Wijanto and I am not sure who got the other one. 3o far, the 1B3 has not been har ested from "ak Wijanto9s ka#ling, because "ak 2leh told him that until his land issued is resol ed with BH6, "ak Wijanto is not to har est the fruit. 2##arently, "ak Wijanto did not resist this re=uest and agreed not to har est the 1B3. Q: How did Pak Wi.anto get a ka! ing whi e Pak / eh did not? +he former kepala dusun 0&ak A"dul Mulok1 registered &ak Wi)anto fs name with the -H/. &ak Wi)anto is a transmigrant li(ing in +rans 2. He is waiting for permission from &ak Aleh to har(est his fruit. &ak Aleh has a map of the area in $uestion. JSee if students in +rans 2 area ha(e any info on this issueL. Q: /re there any other issues re ating to the &H'? 1he BH6 uses the rule of way $melangar>% and #lant along the ri er edge contrary to go t regulations that say there is to be no kela#a sawit in a <B m ;one from the ri er9s edge. 1his regulation has to do with forestry regulations and issues about erosion and water contamination $intensi e #esticide7herbicide use makes it necessary to ha e a #ro#er distance from water sources for health reasons%. 1he BH6 has been #lanting right u# to the ri er9s edge since the beginning, the !orestry office knows about it, yet the go ernment remains silent $koru#si%. AoteD , met the informant "riefly on ?uly 24, and he told me that on /ecem"er ' , 2 9 he attended a meeting in Meliau that included a representati(e from the -H/, the national parliament 0/&%1, a farmer from .uala -uayan, and a lawyer representing hak masyarakat. +he purpose of the meeting was to resol(e the 22 ha desa land issue and to address compensation for 77kk who are still waiting for compensation for the land lost to the -H/. +he /&% rep pointed out that the former kepala desas did not ha(e the authority to sell the 22ha to -H/ "ecause it was considered to "e national land under national )urisdiction. +he -H/ said they had only followed the instructions of the kepala desa, and that on the 2 compensated the families %p. '.4 )uta each for the land.
th nd

point, they had already

J, was informed "y 2aleh that on the week of ?uly '9 , a meeting was held in .uala -uaya that included reps from the -H/, the current kepala desa and kepala dusun regarding outstanding issues. Aiken and %etsky attended the meeting and recorded the session.L

enelimau 21 (atur!ay, July 1;, 2010 / (occer match / 8*servations 1his is a fa orite #ass8time for the youth of -em#akaA go to the daily soccer match in "enelimau ia se#eda motor or ia s#eed boat. 1his town is #rimarily 6ayak and has workers from 63" and elsewhere take #art in the e ent. 1here is gambling $kolok kolok% and alcohol $arak% is a ailable for :# *<k for 'B( ml. 1here is a friendly and festi e atmos#here at the match. 1here is a 6ayak community longhouse at the one end of the field that has many traditional car ings on either side of the C entrances to the building. 6uring the game, a number of the young men from -em#aka drink arak mi5ed with fruit juice, so that by the end of the game, some are #retty loo#ed. 1hough they are all Muslim in -em#aka, there are a number of youth and young adults who come here to drink and ha e fun. I noticed that children from 36 klas B8G were gambling with :# *k notes, and the owner of the kolok kolok table asked me not to take #hotos because it was illegal. 1here was also an o##ortunity to meet u# with women for se5 after the game, and I was told that the #rice was :# 'Bk, though I'm not sure how long a time one would ha e with these women. !or young men like Muga or John, "enelimau was a #lace they fre=uented regularlyP the former worked about C8B days #er month by choice, as he didn't want to work too much, #referring instead santai, santai, while the latter didn't work at all and li ed off a weekly allowance gi en to him by his father. I'm not sure how much money he was gi en, but he seemed =uite disinterested in working, nor did he ha e #lans to further his education. Cem+aka 5 (un!ay, July 1:, 2010 %etire! mother living with her !aughter / (ource. 31C1= 2 second inter iew with 2minah was recorded on July 'C , $3ee &B-*+ wa file% 3he is )( years old, was born in -em#aka, has C children $all li ing in -em#aka% and *< grand8 children, some of whom are li ing in 3anggau, 6ekan "utih, and Bhakti Jaya, as well as -em#aka. Her husband died < years ago. Her husband own a kebun karet $* ha% about * hour away on foot, though this land was sold o er '( years ago. 1he informant has her own house across from her daughter's house, and she s#ends most of her time in the latter, though slee#s in her own house at night. Her children are Busni $son, B( yrs old%, Masri $son, CB yrs old%, 3aril $son, <' yrs old%, and Ida $daughter, '+ yrs old%. Ida has two childrenA Meri $daughter, *< yrs old , 3M"*% and "ani $son, F yrs old , 36<%. Ida's husband, Mas &amdani, li es in 3ung 6ai about a B hour dri e from -em#aka, and he works as a dri er on a truck hauling 1B3 from #lasma farmers in his area. He comes home e ery weekend. 1he informant's ne#hew, Den $'( yrs old% was also in the house at the time of the inter iew. He li es with his father, "ak :obli, who has had a #roblem with his leg for o er < years and cannot work. He recei es no #ension income, though he does own * &3 ka#ling which he bought *( years ago and was #urchased as #ri ate land. Den's mother #assed away a few years ago. He works as a labourer on ka#lings owned by C different farmers, including his father, and this amounts to about <8C days of work #er month. He has com#leted 3M2', but sto##ed going to school because of the cost $:# ' juta for books, uniform, tuition , :# *B(.((( 7 month etc.%, and also because it was o er an hour on foot one8way to go to school. He doesn't own a se#eda motor. Den is not #lanning on going to uni ersity for the time beingP the nearest ones would be in 3anggau and "ontianak 2'

AoteD On ?uly 26 , )ust prior to going out to record an inter(iew with informant, ,"u Ariani shared some information a"out her 0informant1. She said that at one time, she owned 4 kaplings, "ut was forced to sell "ecause of her childrenOs gam"ling pro"lems. ,"u Ariani also said that her daughter, ,da, also worked in the (illage as a prostitute, which her hus"and disappro(es of "ut seemed powerless to stop gi(en that he li(es out of town during the week. ,daOs children get teased in school a"out their mother working as a prostitute, and the hus"and has threatened to slice her )ohns up with a knife 0cingcang1. 'armer, owner of 3ela+a (awit ka+ling living is 9( ,6ransmigrasi- / (ource. 31C21 He is <( years old and mo ed out to 1rans B $1am#ang 6ulang>% *( years ago from 3umatera 3elatan along with members of his family. His #arents li e in 1rans B, as well as his B siblings who all work in the &3 sector with the e5ce#tion of the youngest brother, Rati, who is in 3M"<. 1he informant is married to Ibu Rayu 3ulastri, and he has a two8year old child, his son 2gun. 3ince li ing in this area, he has returned to 3umatera 3elatan a total of C times to isit family. Initially, when he arri ed, he was not gi en any &3 ka#ling. He worked as a labourer on the 63" inti, as well as on #lasma ka#lings. In 2ugust, '((', he bought his first &3 ka#ling for :#. ).B juta from orang #ribumi. 0 er the course of the following F years, he #urchased < other &3 ka#lings from the same #eo#le. 1hough these #arcels are a##ro5imately *F kms from the 63" site. He hires workers from within his e5tended family and also from outside his family too. D ery month, he har ests about *<8*C tons which translates to about :# *C juta 7 month, net. He would like to buy additional ka#lingsP some are a ailable across the &a#uas :i er, near the "1". *< site. 1he informant added that he can get credit through the ko#erasi $-redit 4nion Eantang 1i#u in Meliau%, and that he currently holds the land title certificates for each of his ka#lings. Informant said the relationshi# between the 63" and #lasma farmers was #retty good, with the road conditions being a #oint of tension. !armers #ay the &46 :# 'B7kg for road maintenance, and once a month farmers su##ly labour for road re#airs , blok kotong royong. If a ka#ling owner is not able to take #art in the monthly road work, he must #ay :# B(k to co er the cost of hiring a worker to re#lace him. Why is the road from Pene imau to 'SP in such good condition0 when the road from 'SP to 1em!aka is so neg ected? He said both desas $"enelimau and &uala Buayan% recei ed the same amount of money for roads from the &abu#aten in 3anggau, though the "enelimau desa used the money for building a new road, while the &uala Buayan desa did not use the money for roads and the money was used u# elsewhere $he didn't know where the money went%. 3ela+a (awit worker living is Cem+aka / (ource. 31C1; Informant is B( years old, was born in -em#aka, and his wife #assed away B years ago. He has G children $see inter iew with &B-*C%. He does not own any ka#lings and < months ago he sold his kebun karet $a##ro5. ' hectares% because he needed the money. He sold it to #eo#le in &uala Buayan. He works as a har ester of &3 for C farmers G8) days #er week for :# *(( 7 kg. He com#leted 36 only and owns a motorcycle and house. He li es with his children in a wooden house. 22

th

.oteA 2lso see /aleh's notes on this indi idual as he conducted two lengthy inter iews with him. 8*servations. 6ahlil 5 Muslim feast to give thanks 5 (ukuran / ak 6ri Irwansha In the afternoon, /aleh and I were in ited to take #art in tahlil to gi e thanks for the year's #ros#erity, and also as #art of a naming ceremony for "ak 1ri Irwansha's month8old baby girl. 1he men, about '( of them, sat in the li ing room where the food had been #laced in the centre of the room. 1he children and wi es were in another room off the kitchen. 2 few of the men talked about general illage e ents which was followed by a '( minute #rayer led by "ak 1ri Irwansha. 0nce the #rayer was o er, we all took #art in the meal which consisted of a #iece of beef, rice, egetables, and fried noodles. 2fter dinner, there was coffee, tea, and cigarettes offered, and shortly thereafter e eryone returned to their homes. 1he men were generally wearing a sarong, and a number of them also wore the traditional muslim ca#. It was a ery friendly atmos#here and e eryone a##reciated the sharing of a meal together. Meliau / 9ekan utih , 6 $ 1?- 5 Mon!ay, July 1=, 2010 3antor Camat Meliau 5 Info on 1/9 B economics of %6C5 / (ource. ak "ayah Dntung "ak 4ntung has been the secretary to the -amat for < years and he came to Meliau from Rogyakarta in *++'. He didn't ha e any economic information on &uala Buayan and ad ised that I check with the ke#ala desa in &B. He called the ke#ala desa to confirm that I could find such data in &B, as well as information #ertaining to land ownershi#. 2ccording to him, farmers had been com#ensated for their land by the com#any o#erating in their res#ecti e areas. He showed me the same ma# $*++C% Mas "ujo made a ailable to the researchers on our #roject and said he didn't ha e anything more current for the area. He added that he also didn't ha e any information on BH6, though he did ha e details on the subsidiary com#any 22- $"1 2gro 2badi -emerlang% 0See Appendi# , Map of area1. AAC was issued a H2* in 2 8 for 8.'k hectares and is e#pected to start production in 2 '' with a capacity to process ! tons of +-S per hour. +he plantation scheme is 8 D2 0inti:plasma1, though farmers ha(e the option to sell their plasma and can opt to work on either the inti or plasma areas. &ak *ntung that skilled la"our for AAC usually came outside the area from either Sumatera or ?a(a. He pointed out that significant portions of land were e#cluded from the H2* license and fell under the category of Oencla(eO land that could "e held pri(ately "y indi(iduals or "elonged to the desa. AoteD On Wednesday, ?uly 2' , , met &ak Mahrani, the kepala dusun in .uala -uayan, and , was shown a record of the land ta#ation for the desa. , photographed the document and will send it along with the other documents that , ha(e photographed. 0See Appendi# ? for the title page1. @ater in the afternoon, , met up with Mas Sutanto who took me to /ekan &utih "y motorcycle. We dro(e "y the processing plant in Meliau and we rode through (ast areas of &+&A'= where the replanting of .S was underway with rows upon rows of poisoned trees looming a"o(e the newly planted trees. 0See Appendi# . for some photos1. 9ekan utih / 6ues!ay, July 20, 2010 1ackgroun! Information from Ali ,D<MIn *+F(, under the 0rde Baru, the army came to enforce de elo#ment scheme of kela#a sawit. Eocal #eo#le were mo ed off adat land, they were com#ensated for their rubber and fruit trees, 2=
st

as well as for the timber taken from the land. 1he dis#laced illagers built new illages and li ed mostly off rubber and #adi. In *+++, locals formed an organisation to #rotest against the "1". *< and blockaded the road to the factory, as well as the main 2fdeling road. 1he local #eo#le saw the Ja anese as coloni;ers as was told to 2li by workers originally from Ja a li ing in 2fdeling *. 2lso, the conflict between the 6ayak and Madurese which occurred #rimarily in Bodok and Dnsunak in *++) remained fresh in the minds of the 6ayak li ing in 6ekan "utih. +he company responded "y forming the ..&A following the Ao(em"er = /eclaration which asked for plasma land for locals, employment on inti land, and compensation of money and rice to account for plantation earnings o(er the past '9 years on adat land. +he distri"ution of land process would in(ol(e families applying for a kapling and the company awarding land with each family slated to get a minimum of ' kapling. Some families were granted 2 or more kaplings, in particular those who were in a position of authority. +he kepala adat at the time recei(ed = or 6 kaplings, for e#ample. %egarding finding employment with the &+&A'=, locals who had gi(en up more land "ack in the early '98 s were entitled to more positions< a kakek who held a larger land holding would see 2 of his = sons who applied for work at the plantation get a )o" while others with less holdings would not find employment for their sons. ,n terms of compensation, families were to recei(e %p 24 . per month along with rice 0how muchK1 for an entire year, "ut they only recei(ed it for = months. +he wording in the Ao(em"er = /eclaration stipulated a ma#imum duration of one year for compensation, yet didnOt mention a minimum time frame which allowed for an interpretation that shortened compensation "y 9 months. *nder the ..&A scheme, new forest land was to "e de(eloped into plasma intended only for local people and not to outsiders as was the case in the original &,%5-*A5+%AAS scheme. *nder this new scheme, the company pro(ides the seedlings, inputs etc. and the farmer must sell his +-S to the company with the farmer in essence paying for all costs through a ..&A credit scheme. Narmers had to start repaying their de"t once the .S started to "ear fruit in the 4 year from when the seedlings were first planted. ,n 2 45!, farmers ga(e up ' B of their har(est to ser(ice their de"t with the percentage increasing incrementally o(er the years to a point where in 2 9 farmers were gi(ing = B of their har(est under the credit scheme. Narmers suspect the percentage will continue to increase to such a rate that they will not "e a"le to continue farming .S. A ma)or source of contention is the lack of transparency around the process of repayment under the ..&A scheme. Narmers ha(e re$uested a complete rendering of their in(estment in plasma, "ut they ha(e yet to recei(e this information. Some farmers ha(e communicated an ultimatum to the &+&A'= that if the information is not shared with them "y Ao(em"er, "lockades will "e used to force the issue. +he response from the company is that they are in the process of compiling the data. Once farmers ha(e clear title, they can sell to other "uyers and can lea(e the ..&A scheme. Some farmers ha(e taken to sell their har(est to a third party "uyer 0tenkola1 to a(oid deductions taken "y ..&A and .*/. +he fruit is sold at a lower price than the one offered "y the company, "ut the net result is that farmers ha(e more cash in hand after the har(est. +he company has made use of -rimop, the national police force, to patrol the area and make sure that no +-S is sold to an outside trader. A num"er of farmers ha(e reasoned that selling to third party only slows down their de"t repayment scheme which pro(ides incenti(e to keep selling to the company despite their low "argaining power o(er prices and the issue of transparency. Another outstanding issue to resol(e is that some plasma owners under the ..&A sold their land which is contrary to ..&A regulations. 1he #rocess of #roduction and #ayment is as followsA farmers recei e a sli# from the com#any 26
th rd rd

#rocessing #lant that shows weight and #ricing, as well as deductions $which ones>%P the &&"2 takes a #ercentage to ser ice debt and also makes deductions to the total, then transfers the balance to the &46P the latter makes a number of deductions and #ays the farmer his balance once a month. 1he farmers don't use outside workers to har est #lasma as they work in a royong of about C farmers to #ro ide the labour needed. When family members arri e from the outside, they work as #art of the royong on #articular #lots of land. 6 $ 1? Inti "orker an! 3( ka+ling owner 1he worker is 6ayak from 6ekan "utih and he works as a har ester on inti land from Monday to 3aturday. He works with a #artner and their daily goal is to har est G tons 7 day with their salary set at :# F+ 7 kg. 1heir record so far has been to har est *) tons in one dayS His a erage monthly wage works out to be :#. F.+ juta. 1hree years ago, he #urchased a ka#ling $#ri ate% about *B minutes from the illage by motorcycle, and he has begun har esting about <((8C((kg #er har est $once a month%. 3uala 1uayan / 1/9 5 6hurs!ay, July 22, 2010 / 6each &nglish Classes ,(9I met 3eringoringo at the 36 school in &uala Buayan where he teaches two weeks out of the month #art8time. We had made #re ious arrangements that I would teach one Dnglish class to a grou# of his grade G students, though I ended u# teaching three classes at the school. I first met the school #rinci#al and the other staff before going into the classroom. 1he students were =uite e5cited and agitated, and a number of them had to be chased out of the staff room to allow the teachers their break time. 3ome students ha e morning classes from )am to *'#m, while others ha e classes from *#m to G#m. 1he total school #o#ulation is around C(( students. In the classroom, the students were seated in #airs at wooden desks with their notebooks o#en, ready for the lesson. 1he room was =uite barrenA it didn't ha e any books or isual material on the walls, and the blackboard was in #oor condition making it difficult to write on with chalk. 3eringoringo had asked that I teach a lesson on concrete and abstract nouns as laid out in the curriculum, but I o#ted instead to focus on basic con ersation first and de oted the last #ortion of the lesson to concrete nouns only. My im#ression was that the lesson was far too difficult for the students who a##eared to ha e a ery limited working knowledge of Dnglish. 1he students were enthusiastic and #artici#ated well thanks to their teacher's translation of my lesson and #rom#tings to res#ond. 1he noise le el was #retty high in the school o erall which made it more difficult to teach at times. 1he classrooms share a common s#ace as #art of the roof structure, so noise carries easily from one room to the ne5t. 2t the end of each class I taught, I was asked to sign each student's notebook. 1hey were all ery #olite in the classroom, though did get =uite rambunctious outside of the class as they jostled in #osition for #hotos. 2lso, during the lesson, there were a number of students from other classes that sim#ly stood at the door or outside the window which made me wonder how students mo e around when classes are in session. 2lso, in the afternoon, 3eringoringo also teaches two classes at the BH6 at the re=uest of #arents and the com#any who asked if he could teach Dnglish to a mi5ed grou# of students ranging from grades *8G. He recei es some #ayment for this work, though I'm not sure how much. I taught two grou#s of students who li ed in the BH6 housing for staff at the #rocessing #lant. 1he classrooms were in a #re8school that had small desks set u# in #airs. 1here were about 'B or so students in each class and a good number needed to sit on the floor due to a lack of chairs and desks. 1he arying range of students made for a challenging lesson at first, though o erall, it went well. 1here was a small whiteboard at the front of the class which was #laced on chairs 24

$not mounted on the wall%, so I had to hold onto it while writing to #re ent it from falling. 1hese students re=uired more direct classroom management inter entions, for a host of reasons, not the least of which is the fact that this class was outside of their regular school hours. 2 number of #arents stood outside the door and obser ed the lesson. 2s in the first teaching stint in the morning, I was asked to sign e eryone's notebooks. 2fter class, we went back to 3eringringo's home on the BH6 com#le5. 1here was a ery strong smell coming from the #lant which runs 'C hours a day, ) days a week. 3eringoringo #ointed our how the management $mandors etc.% were #ro ided much better housing at the to# of the rise, while the general workers had more meager accommodations, though the com#any did #ay for the electricity and well water. 1he general staff housing was still much better than the BH6'( that was more dela#itated and didn9t ha e running water. 1hakti Jaya 5 'ri!ay, July 2?, 2010 8*servations I was intending to isit the &46 office in the town, but I ended u# getting there too late and the office was already closed. It was a small, rundown building with broken down furniture in the front area, and it was surrounded by an old housing com#le5 that was #artially abandoned and #artially occu#ied. I met a &3 worker who informed me that the &46 usually has one or two #eo#le in the office from Monday to !riday, and they are closed on the weekends. Interview with $66 6ransmigrant / (ource. 31C22 2s I was walking toward the illage centre, a woman was standing in her doorway with some children and she in ited me in for tea. 3he was originally from .11 $Dast 1imor%, had mo ed here *) years ago with <B other transmigrant families, and was now li ing in 1rans ' , Blok &. Her #arents still li e in Dast 1imor and she has not been back since to isit. 3he said that in .11 she had food, but no money. In .11, they still ha e #adi and bawa land that her #arents and other family members continue to culti ate and use. -urrently, there are only *B families left li ing in 1rans 'P many ha e either sold their house and land or ha e sim#ly died. 1here are no new .11 migrants comig to the area since the *++<8+G transmigrant #eriod. 1he informant is a -hristian and has < childrenA .atalia $< yrs old%, 6olciana $*F yrs old , 3M"<%, and her son Dduardus $'( years old , only com#leted 3M2'% who works as a dri er for &3 on #lasma area. Her and her husband own * ka#ling, and they har est once a month, yielding about :# *juta7mth. 1hey also own their house and ha e an additional * hectare for gardening, but they don't grow anything $kebun air saja%. Between B and *' days a month, she works on inti land as a weeder making :# *((( 7 day to clear the grass from a##ro5imately B( trees #er day. 1here are men and women who do this job. 3he also works on her husband's ka#ling to maintain the trees and to har est the fruit. Cem+aka / Af!eling 1 5 (atur!ay, July 24, 2010 $e!&aka (ife 5istory +ecording / #ource: KB$%6 $3ee &B-*+ wa file% /aleh conducted an inter iew with informant in her daughter's house. 1he inter iew co ered < broad segmentsA *% her early history $born where, siblings, father's occu#ation, education%, '% her married life $li ed where, husband's work, children, land #urchases and sales, etc.%, and <%, her retired life $how she manages financially, what does she do during the day, etc.%. In each segment, /aleh asked about any im#ortant e ents that would shed some light on her life story. 2!

2lso in the room was her grandson, Mus, who was *B years old. He took #art in the inter iew as well. .ear the end of our inter iew with the informant and her grand8son, a neighbour $&B-<% came in and joined our inter iew. He commented at length on his own #ast e5#eriences, highlighting how he had little o##ortunity to #ursue an education which he felt was an essential ste##ing stone that led to greater #ros#erity. .oteA /aleh will be transcribing the inter iews at a later date. Af!eling 1 8*servations Eater in the afternoon, /aleh and I crossed the &a#uas :i er ia small motor boat along with 3uri# and "ak 1ugiyo. We had made #lans to meet 3uri#'s family in 2fdeling * and were to s#end the night at his #lace. 1he main #ur#ose of the tri# o er was to get an im#ression of the li ing conditions for "1". *< workers and to get a general feel for the community li ing there. 3uri#'s home had one large li ing room, ' bedrooms, and a kitchen at the back which also led to a washing area that drew water from a well with an electric #um#. 1here was also an outdoor toilet with a #ro#er s=uatting toilet. 1he li ing room had no furniture. We sat on the floor and ate tasty meal of grilled chicken, fish, rice and egetables in the com#any of 3uri#'s siblings with their s#ouses, his mother and his wife. Darlier, 3uri# went out to buy two li e chicken which he then #re#ared for the fire that was lit in the front of the house. I noted that before killing the chickens, 3uri#'s brother8in8law came to say a short Muslim #rayer to gi e thanks for the chickens they were about to sacrifice for our meal. Eater in the e ening, we were joined by a few neighbours who came to drink coffee or tea with us. In the morning, we walked around the illage. 1he roads were well8maintained and the housing com#le5es were well looked after, had flowers #lanted along the road, and homes were #ainted and clean. 1here were a number of #eo#le working on the roadside clearing long grass and #re#aring the ground for either egetable gardens or for flower arrangements. 1he road barriers and walls were also #ainted which added to the a##eal of the illage. We met u# with the school teacher from Ikhsan's 36 school, and she was off with her husband and daughter to attend morning mass as they were -hristians, not Muslims. I ke#t thinking of the BH6 Barrack '( housing which was so dismal, had not been #ainted in years, and lacked basic ser ices like well8 water. I had also seen the housing at 63" which seemed in better condition o erall than the Barracks '(. We returned to -em#aka around noon, and this was to be my last day in the illage. Cem+aka 5 (un!ay, July 25, 2010 I s#ent the early #art of the afternoon seeing the #eo#le that I had met and had gotten to know o er the course of this #ast month, and I was feeling a bit sad about lea ing. I know that the language barrier was a big one, and yet I had managed to connect with some of the #eo#le in the illage in a #ersonal and genuine way. I recogni;ed that there were a number of other families I had wanted to meet and s#end time with, but it all seemed to go by fast, and there was always something to do, it seemed. Bandung Agrarian +esources $entre (A+$) August 0 / #ource: *ianto Bac'riadi 1ackgroun! 2:- is a research and data collection centre that makes a ailable its findings to all organisations 27
t'

in ol ed with agrarian issues in Indonesia. 6ianto was one of the original founders of &"2 $&onsorsium "embaruan 2graria , -onsortium for 2grarian :eform% back in *++C, and 2:was first established as a research section of &"2 until it e entually became an inde#endent research body in '((B. It recei es funding from the !ord !oundation, as well as from the 6ayakology Institute, and a !rench -atholic ./0 Fr res des hommes! 1he office in Bandung is run by Hilma 3aftri and has two other #rinci#al researchers a#art from 6iantoA Rudi Bachriadi and Jiwo $last name>%. 1he team is currently #lanning a research field #roject for the fall to study the e5tent at which the oil #alm sector is transforming rural landsca#es and li elihoods. Q: 1an you give me an overview of the main !easant*farmer grou!s o!erating in Indonesia? -urrently, there are B main grou#s claiming to re#resent #easant farmersA 3"I, 2"I, 2/:2, 31., which are all national organisations, and "etani Mandiri, which is a self8sufficient and inde#endent organisation. 1here are numerous other localised #easant unions such as the 3"" $"asundan "easant 4nion% in West Ja a and the 31aB $Bengkulu "easant 4nion% in 3umatra. 1he &"2 does not claim to be an organisation strictly re#resenting #easant farmers and seeks to build a broad8based organisation that also includes local and international ./0s. In *++F, the 3"I decided that the main actors to be #rioriti;ed were #easants, and as a result non8#easant organisations $./0s% were e5cluded from membershi# in light of the history of some ./0s ha ing been co8o#ted by e5ternal funding sources in the #ast. 1he intent here was to #rotect farmer grou#s in Indonesia from outside influences. In '((), the national organisations ruled that only single membershi#s were to be allowed and that membershi# would only a##ly to indi iduals and not entire organisations as was the case in the #ast. 1his decision reflected di isions amongst the arious grou#s and in ariably fragmented the acti ists working on agrarian reform issues. 1here remains an undercurrent of tension amongst arious acti ists grou#s and #easant7farmer organisation, des#ite the fact that all grou#s are essentially talking about similar agrarian issues though they differ in their methods on how to reach their objecti es. K3ee Land, "ural #ocial $ovements and %emocratisation in Indonesia , by 6ianto Bachriadi, July, '((), 1.I for a detailed look at the arious #ositions and #olitics that ha e sha#ed the current dynamics of #easant7farmer mo ementsL. 1he 3"&3 $3erikat "etani &ela#a 3awit , 4nion of "alm 0il !armers% is an organisation for smallholder farmers engaged in oil #alm #roduction which focuses on < main issuesA *% land , either obtaining ka#lings for farmers or regaining control o er land altogetherP '% trans#arency related to dealing between farmers and state7#ri ate #lantation ownersP and <% #ricing of fresh fruit bunches $!!B% , increase farmer in#ut in #ricing which is currently established at the #ro incial and national le els. 1he 3"&3 is also trying to establish farmer coo#erati es in order to ha e farmers gain greater control o er the oil #alm #roduction #rocess and o er the financial transactions that are #resently handled by the &46. K 3ee Indigenous Peoples and &il Palm '(pansion in West )alimantan, Indonesia by Martua 3irait, '((+ for details of the 3"&3's attem#ts to form coo#erati esL. 1he &"2 is a national ad ocacy coalition that has chosen to focus #rimarily on issues and #olicies related to agrarian reform. 1he organisation ad ocates the use of land occu#ation as an effecti e strategy, and it is engaged in direct dialogue with the B." $.ational Eand 2gency% #ertaining to the 6ecree 1M" '((*, the .ational "rogram on 2grarian :eform. 0 er the #ast B years or more, the B". #refers to deal with the &"2, and in my o#inion, to date the dialogue has not amounted to much #ositi e change. 1here has been a case, howe er, where the 3"" was able to #ressure the B". into issuing titles in West Ja a where farmers had occu#ied land since the 28

*+F(s. 1he B". later uses this e5am#le to showcase a #ositi e mo e forward with res#ect to agrarian reform when in fact, it remains an isolated case. 0 erall, dialogue is not #roducing tangible results for #easants. Q: What are some of the cha enges regarding the !rocess of issuing H23s for the deve o!ment of oi !a m ! antations? 1he main issue centers on reconciling state land ownershi# with adat customary rights where, at #resent, general usufruct rights are granted on land that is not defined by an official state title. In the case where some *F million hectares are already held within H/4 oil #alm #lantation rights, yet only about G million hectares are acti ely in #roduction, the res#onsibility falls on the B." to resol e issues related to H/4s. 1he #roblem is that a H/4 license can be e5tended or e en traded to another cor#oration in a business transaction, and when the license e5#ires, the land re erts back to the state, not the community from which the land was taken. What com#licates the issue e en further is that though the B". issues H/4s, it cannot abolish them without a re#ort from two bodiesA *% the Ministry of 2griculture and '% the Eocal "lantation 2uthority $6inas "erkebunan%. 1he B". can't re=uest a re#ort, only the bu#ati or the local #lantation authority can re=uest that the B". in estigate a H/4. What that means is that H/4s that ha e been issued in the #ast but are not being #ut to #roducti e use for oil #alm #roduction $more likely issued to allow for the e5traction of timber and not the de elo#ment of #lantations% remain in circulation, are transacted, and kee# land in an un#roducti e state outside of the control of the local #o#ulation. 6ecentralisation has in essence shifted some of the #ower from the go ernor to the bu#ati at the local le el, though has not eliminated the #roblem of elite ca#ture of resources and wealth. Q: How does foreign ownershi! come into ! ay in oi !a m ! antation deve o!ment and how are oca !easants and workers factored into this investment? 2 *+FG national go ernment regulation stated that if a com#any was to de elo# an oil #alm #lantation, the incor#oration of workers7farmers was to take #lace ia contract farming schemes. !oreigners are not allowed ownershi# of land in Indonesia, therefore they are re=uired to gain access to state or #ri ate land through a H/4 license that e5tends a lease o er a fi5ed #eriod of time. 1hree years ago foreign in estors asked the go ernment to e5tend the lease #eriod to +B years instead of the standard 'B, howe er, following massi e #rotests by social mo ements across the country, the -onstitutional -ourt ruled that a +B year lease was in conflict with the *+G( Basic 2grarian Eaw $B2E%. 2t #resent, there are numerous outstanding land conflicts that ha e note been resol ed and which date back to the time of 3uharto's .ew 0rder. 1he current dri e to increase in in estment in oil #alm #lantations is resulting in the channeling of national go ernment funds to create new laws that #ro ide in estors with greater security on their in estments. !or e5am#le, a recent law on land transfer strengthens the #osition of in estors, though the latter remain concerned o er inconsistent go ernment decision8making with res#ect to H/4s. 1he World Bank has funded land certification #rograms since *+>>> which has made it more #roblematic for #eo#le with adat rights. In addition, many 6ayak reside in land designated as !orestry Eand which e5cludes them from the land certification #rocess. Q: What is the "iggest cha enge sma ho der !easants and rura workers face in Indonesia?

29

1he most difficult obstacle to o ercome is the lack of #olitical will to im#lement either the *+G( B2E or the 6ecree 1M" '((* that would see a better redistribution of land to smallholders. 1hough leaders #ay li# ser ice to the cause of 2grarian :eform, little concrete ste#s ha e been taken to #lace control o er land in the hands of #easants. D=ually im#ortant is the lack of agricultural e5tension ser ices a ailable to smallholder #roducers, as well as the lack of subsidies offered to farmers to hel# them engage in #roducti e and #rofitable farming. K6ianto was lea ing for the "hili##ines the ne5t day, so we ended our discussion. His brother, Rudi, said he would be a ailable the ne5t day to answer any =uestions I had regarding 2:- or issues related to agrarian reform and other social mo ementsL. Bandung Agricultural +esource $entre (A+$) August 7 / #ource: 8udi Bac'riadi Q: 1an you give me more information on the )P/ and the nature of the de"ates they are engaged in at !resent? !ollowing the *++C ./0 conference where 6ianto and .ur !au;i were elected as the leadershi# for the newly formed &"2, the organisation's #osition and strategies for agrarian reform were outlined and centered #rimarily on ad ocacy. 1he main focus was to rebuild and rein ent issues of agrarian reform, to #ush the national go ernment for reform, and to monitor the Eand 2dministration "rogram $E2"% which was funded by the World Bank and essentially entailed titling land within the framework of e5isting land use and land tenureshi#. 1he E2" started in *++C $check WB website% and its mandate was strictly to formali;e land holdings through a titling #rocess and not to set about redistributing land to the landless or near landless. 2t the second .ational 2ssembly in *+++, the &"2 oted to endorse a threefold mandateA ad ocacy for agrarian reform, a cam#aign to educate #eo#le at grassroots le el, and to strengthen #easant mo ements and #easant organisation. 1he &"2 #ressure the go ernment to address the issue of agrarian reform which resulted in the #assing of 6ecree 1M" '((* in the national #arliament. In #art, this decree was #assed in the early stage of :eformasi following the end of the 3uharto regime, yet it is unclear just how much genuine will would be directed to the im#lementation of the decree. -ertainly former "resident Megawati resisted im#lementation, and no #resident since had included land reform as #art of an election cam#aign. 1he &"2 also broadened their cam#aign efforts and #ressured the go ernment to establish two bodies, the .ational Eand 2gency $B".% and the .ational -ommission on Human :ights $HuMa>%. -urrently, a central debate between &"2 and B". in ol es the B2E of *+G(. 1he B". is looking to re#lace the B2E on the grounds that it is no longer reflecti e of contem#orary agrarian issues in Indonesia. 1he &"2, on the other hand, considers the B2E to be an a##ro#riate framework for resol ing outstanding national land issues that will recogni;e the rights of #oor illagers to a better li elihood, though the challenge remains at the im#lementation stage. In '((<, new leadershi# at the &"2 resulted in much debate as to the #ros and cons of the 6ecree 1M" '((* which led to a second debate centered on the &"2 mandate that for some had em#hasised ad ocacy and cam#aign at the e5#ense of strengthening #easant mo ements and organisations. 2 decision was made by Drfan, the new 3ecretary /eneral of the &"2, to focus on #easant mo ements and organisations, and he went on to found 2/:2 that also reflected his strong Mar5ist iews. It was at this stage that 6ianto, Rudi and others started to #ull away from &"2 and look to found =
t'

their own research8based organisation Initially, the focused on ca#acity building of #easants, ./0s, and ci il society grou#s under the banner of Pergera*an $"eo#le's -entre and 2d ocacy Institute% which ended u# being a #recursor for 2:-, with both bodies still in e5istence to this day. Most of the tension that led to a #arting of the ways centered on 2/:2 taking the #osition of strengthening #easant mo ements through a strong Mar5ist ideology that alienated some acti ists and ./0s. In '((G, 2:- linked u# with a broader network D"6423 $D. "enelitias 6an 2kti itas 3osyal% and worked within this organisation until '((F8(+ when 2:- became autonomous from D"6423. Q: What are the main areas of focus for /R1 at !resent? 1he current focus for 2:- is the oil #alm sector, and it is working with the &"2 to de elo# o#tions to engage in joint research initiati es. 1here is a #roblem of stagnation with res#ect to the &"2 membershi# and the issue of fragmentation amongst #easant mo ements and organisations remains an im#ortant one to resol e. 2:- is looking at three regions, 3umatra, &alimantan, and 3ulawesi in order to select research sites that will hel# better understand the #resent8day oil #alm industry and its current dynamic state of e5#ansion. In addition, 2:- is trying to determine how successful were #ast land occu#ations. It is conducting an assessment of *( #easant organisations in Indonesia to assess their status with res#ect to membershi# and land occu#ations. Jiwo has begun research on land tenurial changes in West Ja a in one area where 3"" members ha e occu#ied land for o er *( years, and in another area where Ja anese in 1a#uas reclaimed land that had been taken from them during the 3uharto era. 1he initial assessment seems to indicate that is some cases land was sold while others were able to accumulate land on the occu#ied site. Q: What were the initia and use agreements that were associated with the and occu!ations? !or the 3"" members, land was to be used for indi idual use only for #easants strictly engaged in subsistence agriculture. 1he indi iduals in this case do not retain official title o er the land , and the 3"" has set this as one of their objecti es when dealing with the B".. !or the reci#ients of land on the 1a#uas site, most #referred to sell their land and work in the city. It is im#ortant to recall that these indi iduals lost their land in the 3uharto era, mo ed to the city for work, and for the most #art lost their interest in farming, though not their sense of injustice at ha ing had their land sei;ed by the go ernment without their consent. 2:- is not yet clear on the land titling issue as being either #ositi e or negati e for #easants. 0ur assessment to date seems to indicate that most #easants sell their land once they recei e title. Q: What !oints are "eing de"ated within !easant movements and organisations regarding !ost4 occu!ation? -ertainly one issue is how to maintain organisation now that #easants ha e access to land> 2nother #oint of debate, say in the case of 3"I ersus &"2 is should the focus shift now from ad ocacy $&"2's mandate% to how #easants could use technology and modern farming #ractices to im#ro e their li elihoods $3"I's focus%. 2nother im#ortant #oint to consider is how to engage in sustainable agriculture once land is occu#ied> 1he challenge for #easant mo ements and organisations is to determine what will be their area of focusA will it be on agricultural #ractices, or will it be on strengthening land tenure for #easants> 1he E2" is still on going through the B". where registration of #easant land and e5isting land use is underway in many #arts of ='

Indonesia. "easant organisations in West Ja a are generally of the o#inion that titling will im#ro e tenure security and that it offers them an o##ortunity to engage in subsistence agriculture. Q: In his most recent pu+lication, 'Indigenous "eo#les and 0il "alm "lantation D5#ansion,' $artua #irait has called upon government to support alternatives to palm oil! Is this a re,uest that is +eing made +y the )P-? 1he go ernment is currently #re#aring legislation that will re=uire farmers to register with the Ministry of 2griculture #rior to #lanting new cro#s which will essentially #re ent farmers from engaging in agricultural #roduction that is not sanctioned by the go ernment. 1he &"2 is drawing attention to the #otential negati e effects of this legislation regarding farmer autonomy and rights. 2t the same time, the organisation is also calling for go ernment e5tension ser ices for #alm oil #roduction, as well as for alternati e cro#s. Jakarta August 4 / #ource: 9artua #irait ($:FO+ / $;:A+) I was able to meet with Martua for about two hours at his home in 3outh Jakarta. We discussed his research in West &alimantan that led to the #ublication of 'Indigenous "eo#les and 0il "alm "lantation D5#ansion' in '((+. In addition, Martua ga e me a brief o er iew of the field research he is conducting in Eam#ung "ro ince and /arut, West Ja a as #art of his dissertation through the I33 in the Hague. He is officially on lea e as a research analyst from the -entre for International !orestry :esearch $-I!0:% and the -onsultati e /rou# on International 2gricultural :esearch $-/I2:%, though he continues to re iew their res#ecti e #ublications and #ro ide feedback and analysis on a regular basis. Q: What are some of the main issues you encountered in West )a imantan concerning indigenous !eo! es and the oi !a m industry? 1here were three distinct res#onses from indigenous #eo#les when oil #alm was being introduced in their res#ecti e areas. 0ne grou# endorsed oil #alm #roduction where some customary land was surrendered with some land retained as rubber gardens alongside #lots dedicated to egetable and fruit cro#s. 2 second grou# endorsed oil #alm and were fully incor#orated in the industry with no land being set aside for alternati e cro#s or traditional land use according to indigenous #ractices. 2 third grou# rejected oil #alm from the beginning, and they maintained their traditional rubber gardens and di ersified subsistence cro#s. 2s antici#ated, outcomes were une en as noted in our '((+ #ublication. 1he trend has been that once the oil #alm starts in one area, it continues to e5#and o er time and local #eo#le #rogressi ely see their communal land eroded. Eand in ariably became indi idualised, and leaders $adat or desa% stood to be benefit the most by getting more ka#lings or by ha ing their children educated at the e5#ense of the com#any. 1he go ernment task force $1"<&% established to o ersee and to enforce the oil #alm #lantation e5#ansion included such members as the district bu#ati, the county camat, the illage desa and dusun, and #olice and military #ersonnel, all of which stood to benefit directly from #lantation initiati es. 1he cost of the 1"<& was co ered by the com#any and a monthly sti#end of :# B((,((( made it such that task force members were #rimarily re#resenting the com#any interests and securing #ersonal benefits with little regard for the constituents they were sworn to ser e and re#resent as member of #ublic office or #ublic em#loyees. !or these and other reasons, I ha e recommended the abolishment of 1"<&, in =2
t'

addition to the fact that the body o#erates against the fundamental criteria of the :3"0, and s#ecifically, regarding its #rinci#le of !ree, "rior, and Informed -onsent $!"I-%. 1he Indigenous "eo#les 2lliance of the 2rchi#elago $2M2.% ha e in turn called for a halt on all oil #alm #lantation e5#ansions and ha e asked for a resolution of all outstanding land issues first. 1he 3"&3 is asking for better terms of incor#oration, a written contract, and better working relations with the estate, be it state8run or #ri ate. 0utstanding issues are that years later, some families ha e yet to recei e their #arcel of land, and in many cases when they are offered land it is much less than the ' hectares #romised. !or those who did recei e ka#lings, the e5#ected B year re#ayment of credit for de elo#ing the #arcel which was to be followed by recei ing clear title, ends u# being e5tended to *B years or more with the total cost of more than tri#ling what was originally #romised, in addition to no clear title within reach of most of the smallholders at #resent. When :3"0 membershi# was being discussed at the state #lantation "1".*<, the initial res#onse was to not join. Howe er, after much criticism from the #ublic and an angry res#onse from #lasma holders, the com#any announced in '((G that it would adhere to the :3"0 #rinci#les. 1o date, the local situation has not changed, though C years ha e already gone by since this announcement. 1hough it is a member of :3"0, "1".*< is currently being 'sco#ed' for certification. 2s #er :3"0 guidelines, only successful certification is made #ublic, and in cases where an estate $#ri ate or #ublic% has failed to meet the criteria for certification, the information concerning the details of the shortfalls remain confidential and outside of the #ublic domain. Q: 1an you te me more a"out the /kuan scheme you mention in your +,,5 !u" ication? 1he International -entre for :esearch in 2groforestry $I-:2!%, currently the World 2groforestry -entre, was a##roached by oil #alm com#anies from Indonesia, Malaysia, and Holland to write a document entitled '"ri ate8"ublic "artnershi#' and that would address issues related to climate, the en ironment, and social dimensions of the the oil #alm industry. !rom this document came the C generation shareholder model, the 2kuan scheme, that was not to be regulated by the go ernment and was #resented as a com#any solution to outstanding issues related to the industry. 2 first #oint was that beneficiaries of ka#lings could be geogra#hically dis#ersed de#ending on a ailability and could be anywhere from *(8*B kilometres away from the illage site. 2 second #oint was that the land offered was often less $at times greater than B(N less% than what the beneficiaries were entitled to recei e. Q: 1an you te me a"out SP)S in West )a imantan and where the organisation !ositions itse f in re ation to other 62Os and organisations? 3"&3 is not a #art of &"2. 1he oil #alm farmers' union is su##orted by 3awit Watch and it works in close relations with 2M2.. 1he Institute of 6ayakology in "ontianak #ublishes the &alimantan :e iew and makes a ailable current information and analysis that hel#s ad ance 3"&3's cause. 3"&3 focuses on issues related to adat land, while &"2 looks more at #easant issues and not adat land claims #er se. In my o#inion, the relations between 3"&3 and &"2 are not so good. Jakarta 5 Consortium for Agrarian %eform ,3 A- 5 August > / (ource. I!ham Arsya! ==
th

Idham 2rsyad has been elected the 6irector /eneral of &"2 for the #eriod '((+8'(*'. I met him in his office in 3outh Jakarta where we had about two hours to discuss arious issues. He informed me that funding comes from the !ord !oundation, the D4, and organisations like !rUres des hommes $!6H%, a -atholic ./0 based in !rance. Q: 1an you give me an overview of )P/ and the organisation's current areas of focus$ &"2 is a consortium of *F) organisations in *G #ro inces and our main focus is related to 2grarian :eform issues. &"2 has three acti e areas of concernA *% 3trengthening #easant mo ementsP '% 2d ocacy for agrarian reformP and <% research and em#irical data collection. 1he organisation works directly with the B"., the Ministry of 2griculture, and the Ministry of Masallah 2graria. 3ome of the biggest challenges faced by &"2 is that there is no #olitical will to im#lement agrarian reform, #easants ha e become marginalised, and u# until now, the greater majority of B2E *+G( has not been im#lemented. 3ince '(((, there has been a discussion amongst #easant farmers and ./0s on re ising B2E *+G( though no consensus has yet been reached on whether to re ise the law, and if yes, in what manner. In *++C, E2" has recommended changing B2E *+G( altogether and not attem#t to re ise it. In '((F, new legislation has been #assed that in ol es new regulations for B". to deal with land reform issues. In our iew, the biggest administrati e challenge is sectorialism and we need new regulations to im#lement reform. 1here are many contradictory regulations among different ministries, and the Ministry of !orests is endowed with tremendous #ower, controlling o er )(N of Indonesian land that is categorised as forestry land. It is interesting to note that though the Ministry of !orestry states that land is a ailable for new #alm oil #lantations, yet there is no land a ailable for redistribution to #oor #easants. -urrently in Indonesia, )( N of #easants are either landless or own less than *7' ha, and e ery year, agricultural land is decreasing. 1he &"2 is also cam#aigning for the management of land and resources to be #laced in the hands of #easants. 1here are C main #roblems according to &"2A *% the balance of ownershi# and management of resources is skewed against #easantsP '% this imbalance s#urs on conflict related to agrarian reform which in turn leads to human rights iolations and iolenceP <% /o ernment regulations that fa our ca#italist de elo#mentP and C% the lack of will on the #art of the go ernment to im#lement agrarian reform. 1he im#act of these four #roblems is an increase in #o erty and unem#loyment, as well as an increase in urbani;ation and in conflict which taken all together weaken the national economy and leads to high le els of #easant migration. 1he &"2 argues that in order to increase #roducti ity, #easants needs access to land for subsistence farming and to grow cro#s for local or e5#ort markets. In '((), Indonesian "resident 3BR announced he wanted the legal bodies B". and B2""D.23 to im#lement agrarian reform, and he referred to o er F million hectares of land a ailable. In reality, 3BR has been using 'agrarian reform' only as a means of ad ancing land titling initiati es which has only increased the land grabbing #henomena. Q: What is )P/'s !osition on and tit ing initiatives such as 7/P and 768P'P?

=6

E2" was im#lemented between *++C8'((( through the B"., while the E.T"6" came into #lay from the year '((( to '((+ working through B2""D.23. Both titling #rograms were su##orted by the World Bank. 1he main objecti es were to facilitate the certification and titling of e5isting land use and land holdings without any #ro isions for the redistribution of land. 1he &"2 has issued a memorandum that outlines our o##osition to the titling scheme because the main #roblem of balance of ownershi# needs to be addressed first, and that the current a##roach to titling sim#ly formali;es and legali;es e5isting imbalances. Q: #he )P/ resorts to and occu!ation as a strategy to !ut and in the hands of !easants$ Is this a successfu strategy? 1he &"2 considers the following in its strategic #lanningA how to occu#y land>P how to manage land after the occu#ation> and how to influence the go ernment to make regulations more fa ourable for #easant li elihoods> 1o answer your =uestion, in light of the go ernment's unwillingness to im#lement agrarian reform, land occu#ation as a strategy has been successful to date, though is not without #roblems. 6uring the 0rde Baru there were only two #easant mo ements in e5istence, 3"JB in West Ja a $later to become 3""% and 3"I in 3umatra. 1he #olice would regularly e5ert iolence and arrest #eo#le who were agitating for agrarian reform. 3"" #easant members in West Ja a ha e been occu#ying a##ro5imately )(,((( hectares since *++F. 1he land has been brought into acti e culti ation since this time, and on occasion #olice still come by to intimidate or harass 3"" members. In '((), the .ational Human :ights -ommission $HuMa% #ut forward a #ro#osal to the go ernment to establish a -ommission of -onflict to resol e the outstanding issues with land reform. 1he #ro#osal was su##orted by former "resident Megawati, though the current "resident 3BR has effecti ely blocked the formation of this commission. In Indonesia, our #roblem is not an institutional one, but rather a structural one where #ower gra itates within certain circles and e5cludes a broader based distribution of genuine democratic #ower8sharing. 1he go ernment generally #refers to use the security a##roach $ie% bring in B:IM0" security forces% to inter ene and dismantle land occu#ation areas or #easant farmer #rotests. Q: .o what e(tent does )P- wor* with other organisations such as /ia 0ampesina and others? 1here is no direct connection between &"2 and Tia -am#esina which tends to work more closely with the 3"I #easant union and the IE-. 3"" is not a national organisation, but rather re#resents C regions in West Ja a and is closely affiliated with &"2. In &alimantan Barat, &"2 has members in < regions, including 3anggau district, and the 3"&3 is also a member of &"2. !or 3"&3, the main organisations where they draw su##ort is from 2M2. $2llians Masyarakat 2dat .asional% and 3awit Watch. Q: What is )P/'s !osition with regards to the oi !a m industry? In 3umatra, we are discussing ways in which community ownershi# of land dedicated to oil #alm can be achie ed. We look at how the communities can achie e greater social and economic benefits for members in the community. 3awit is not the #roblem, #er se, but it does undermine agrarian reform in that #eo#le lose access to and control o er land, and o er time are reduced to a landless labour force working for #lantation interests. In 3umatra, we are also looking to address the issue of land distribution and to find ways to offset the social and en ironmental negati e outcomes associated with a #lantation economy. 3inar Mas, which controls o er B(N =4

of the oil #alm area in 3umatra, is one of our main challenges when #ushing for agrarian reform and change of ownershi# schemes for smallholders. 3 A office / (ource. 6hi*ault (imonet, volunteer with $<8 'rEres !es hommes ,'9/I met 1hibault at the &"2 office in 3outh Jakarta. When I finished my inter iew with Idham, I sat with 1hibault who had been working as a olunteer at &"2 for o er a month as #art of his academic re=uirements as an undergrad student in "aris, !rance. He #ro ided me with im#ortant information about ongoing land dis#ute sites in the Jambi #ro ince, 3umatra where the &"2 is acti ely su##orting members of the #easant mo ement ""J $G ((( members% that is engaged in land occu#ations on land currently under the control of 3inar Mas. 1he com#any holds a license to de elo# B(( ((( hectares in Jambi #ro ince alone, and it has #lantations in eight #ro inces in 3umatra. 1he &"2 has #rioriti;ed su##orting #easant mo ements as #art of its larger mandate on agrarian reform, and Iwan .urdin from &"2 is in charge of #ro iding needed su##ort for #easants in ol ed in land occu#ation as a strategy to reclaim land from the com#any. 1he ""J was established in '((*, and in '((B, it had successfully obtained a signed agreement with the local go ernment that would ha e 3inar Mas return B' ((( hectares of land back to the #easants li ing in Jambi. In '((F, howe er, new leadershi# at the ""J resulted in a re ersal of this agreement where the leader o#ted instead for a collaborati e solution between #easants and 3inar Mas that would not in ol e the release of the land already agreed u#on. 1his change of a##roach was treated as a betrayal by ""J members who ha e since elected a new leader in '((+ who endorses land occu#ation to reclaim their land. 2Vdil, the current leader of the ""J, e5#lained that before the arri al of W&3 $3inar Mas subsidiary% in *++C, #easant farmers were able to de elo# their cro#s inde#endently. 2t the time W&3 indicated that they sim#ly wanted to e5tract the lumber and would lea e the land in the hands of the #easants. Eater, W&3 began de elo#ing their acacia and eucaly#tus #lantations, #easant land was incor#orated into the area claimed by W&3, and those who o##osed the #roject were intimidated by officials and some were arrested. 2Vdil stated that with the com#licity of the local go ernment, the com#any acts with im#unity, and #easants are determined more than e er to reclaim their land. 3ome communities in Jambi ha e succeeded in occu#ying some *( N of the claimed land to date, though the occu#ations are s#urring an aggressi e res#onse from the national assault force B:IM0". 2Vdil said that #easants who currently occu#y land are intimidated by the #olice force and army #ersonnel, and in a number of cases, homes are burned to the ground as a means of forcing #easants to abandon their occu#ied land. 2ccording to the ""J, the documents which grant W&3 access to #easant land clearly state that inhabited areas are to be e5cluded from the com#any9s de elo#ment area which makes the iolent tactics used to force #easants to lea e their land an illegal act. He added that the com#any is the enemy, but the go ernment is as well because it not only shelters the com#any, it mobili;es national and local forces to #romote com#any interestsP here like in Jakarta, the go ernment does nothing. 0n 2ugust <, '(*(, #easants in Jambi initiated their land occu#ation across multi#le illage sites. 1he s#ecial #olice force B:IM0" was sent in, they shot into the crowd injuring three #easants, and dis#ersed the #easant grou#s. 0n 2ugust C, '(*(, Iwan and 1hibault met with 'B illage leaders from Jambi #ro ince to discuss strategy and coordination among ""J members, and to u#date #easants on the status of negotiations that are on going with go ernment officials in Jakarta. Tillagers from 6aenau =!

Eamo indicated that two members recei ed letters of intimidation from the #olice, adding that on the third letter, the #olice ha e legal grounds to arrest them for land occu#ation. In the illage of "ouked Indah, transmigrant illagers started #lanting oil #alm on reclaimed 3inar Mas land in '((F, and that since '((', *C illagers ga e been arrested to date for land occu#ation. 1wo years ago the illage leader had his house burned down by com#any militiamen, and when the #easants mobilise to occu#y land, the military and #olice are sent in des#ite the local go ernment's su##ort for ha ing the land in =uestion returned to the #easants. 1he illage of "ouked Indah continues to resist and #ursues a di erse agricultural #roduction of banana, coconut, and corn which its sells to a local market ia their illage coo#erati e. In the illage of :antau Badak, G(( transmigrants ha e been li ing here since '((<, and they are slowly and #rogressi ely adding land that was e5#ro#riated by 3inar Mas and de elo#ing it into #alm oil #roduction. 1heir strategy entails a less confrontational a##roach which has not #ro oked any iolent or re#ressi e res#onses from the armed forces so far. 1he &"2 ho#es to organise the ""J illages into a more coherent and coordinated #easant mo ement similar to that of the 3"" in West Ja a that has successfully occu#ied land since the *+F(s. 1wo months earlier, on June )th, '(*(, #easants from ** illages in :iau #ro ince, 3umatra occu#ied an oil #alm #lantation site to #rotest against the management of the coo#erati e !armer 3ehati "rima that is res#onsible for the #lantation. B:IM0" from :iau was mobilised, one woman was killed by the #olice, '( were seriously wounded, 'B others were slightly injured, and ** #eo#le were arrested. Idham 2rsyad, the secretary general of the &"2 organised a #ress conference in Jakarta on June +th denouncing the use of iolence to resol e agrarian conflicts. 2ccording to the &"2, the coo#erati e in :iau controls a##ro5imately *( ((( hectares of land that was released by the original #easant owners under a #lasma8inti scheme that has only #ro ided minimal returns to the #lasma farmers as a result of mismanagement, e5#loitation, and outright fraud on the #art of the coo#erati e. 1he &"2 met with re#resentati es of the -ommission of Human :ights, as well as the -ommission of the .ational "olice !orce in Jakarta on Jun **, yet no concrete outcomes ha e been discerned from these meetings. Irwan from the &"2 noted that at the national le el, the =ualified and com#etent commissions ha e little effecti e #ower, while at the local le el corru#tion is endemic. Bogor < #a=it /atc' / August 2, 23%3 / #ource: Abetnego -arigan ( >ecutive *irector) $Inter iew was recorded <) see 2 1arigan 3W wa file% Q: 1an you give me a "rief "ackground on Sawit Watch? 3awit Watch was established in *++F. 2t that time, #alm oil de elo#ment and e5#ansion was one of the main causes of the ram#ant forest fires in Indonesia at the time as a result of the burning of forests to clear land for #lantations. In '((<, 3awit Watch e5#anded its sco#e and mandate beyond en ironmental issues and began including issues related to human rights, and social and economic de elo#ment. 3awit Watch has obtained the legal status of an association $#erkum#ulan% and has *<B indi idual members, mostly acti ists, though also includes members of #arliament, the human rights commission. 1here are members from all the #ro inces and there are members from the .etherlands and the 4&. 3ince '((B, 3awit Watch is a member of :3"0 and it is now sitting on the e5ecuti e board of :3"0. 0ur organisation recei es funding from ./0s in 3weden, /ermany, Belgium, and the .etherlands. We ha e #ut together a strong network of #ublic interest lawyers who hel# su##ort indi idual and community claims and who hel# organise an effecti e cam#aign lobbying for social and economic rights for rural =7

Indonesians.

Q: What is the main focus of your organisation? 1he main focus of our organisation is to ad ance the cause of social and economic rights for communities in ol ed in the oil #alm industry by lobbying the go ernment and the #ri ate sector to address our concerns. We are also in ol ed in building community ca#acity in order to hel# local #easant farmers and workers achie e greater benefits and fairer returns from their in ol ement with oil #alm. 3awit Watch is acti ely su##orting communities in B main #ro incesA &alimantan Barat, &alimantan 1imur, Jambi, :iau, and 3umatra 4tara. We also work closely with 3"&3 which re#resents o er G((( members of inde#endent oil #alm smallholder #roducers. 0ur entry #oint with e5isting #lantations is to su##ort communities in ol ed in #alm oil which includes both labourers and smallholder farmers. 1his in ol es #ro iding them with information to hel# them build a stronger #osition when making a claim for better work conditions, greater trans#arency, or better returns on their in estment in oil #alm, both in terms of land, financial commitment, and labour. !or smallholders, the issues in ol e #ower relations with the estate or com#any, access to in#uts, and fair #ricing for the har ested fruit. !or labourers the issues tend to gra itate around worker rights, working hours, and working conditions. 1here are, of course, many issues related to land conflict and com#eting land claims. In areas where #lantation e5#ansion is the issue, we look at ways to su##ort indigenous #eo#les' land claims and local communities affected by #otential oil #alm e5#ansion. Eand rights are an im#ortant focus, in addition to ways to achie e sustainable rural li elihoods. We look at ways in which land tenure #olicies at the national and subnational le els affect local communities and how these #olicies #lay into the #rocess of land ac=uisition. Q: What are some of the main !ro" ems that your organisation has identified in re ation to the oi !a m sector? In Indonesia, one of the main #roblems is structural #roblems at the national and subnational go ernment le els that includes such issues as o erla##ing #olicies between com#eting ministries i.e.% forests, agricultural etc. 2lso, a major #roblem centers on how #olicies are im#lemented by the go ernment and how com#anies are allowed to not fulfill their obligations to smallholders, workers, and communities, or how currently about only half of the com#anies ha e legal #ermits to de elo# oil #alm in Indonesia, yet continue to o#erate and e5#and. In this regard, these com#anies which don't ha e legal #ermits to de elo# oil #alm, largely do so under the authority of the bu#ati and effecti ely by#ass legal channels in #ractice. 1here are serious issues related to communication of information and trans#arency as well. In terms of the land tenure conflict, the go ernment has in ited in estors #rior to #ro#er consultation with the communities in ol ed in the the #rocess. 1he go ernment is already clearly in iolation of its own socialisasi #rocess which is a necessary ste# to legally de elo#ing #alm oil #lantations. 2lso, from the 3awit Watch stand#oint, the go ernment lacks #ro#er information as to which land is #ri ate, which land is communal, and which land is state landP therefore, it is not in a #osition to in ite in estors to de elo# oil #alm until this land issue is =8

made clear. "resently, only about C(N of the land in Indonesia is registered, and the G(N area that is non8registered directly in ol es large #ortions of the Indonesian #o#ulation. 1he go ernment claims full authority on all non8registered land, yet much of the land is being acti ely and #roducti ely used by communities, though they remain unregistered. 1he go ernment needs to com#letely reform its #olicy regarding community land rights, to #ro#erly identify community lands, and to de elo# effecti e mechanisms to fairly resol e land dis#utes. In our e5#erience, the #ro incial and community borders themsel es often lack clarity and are in conflict with one another. 1he resolution of border dis#utes falls under the Ministry of the Interior. !or e5am#le, we are assisting in a case where a com#any o#erating in 3umatra is not sure with which district they need to register their land dis#ute claim, either :iau or .orth 3umatra, because of the o erla##ing claims and lack of clarity of boundaries. 2nother issue in ol es a breakdown in the #rocess occurs when the bu#ati issues a #ermit to a com#any without a clear understanding of the land status, and also without the authority to issue a H/4 which can only legally be issued by the B".. 2s a result, many com#anies o#erate without a #ro#er license which means they are not #aying #ro#er ta5es on the land, nor on their o#erations. 1he B". ado#ts a #assi e stance and doesn't #roacti ely seek to sol e the #roblem of illegal oil #alm o#erations. Q: Why is the government not "eing !ro4active in so ving the icensing issue if it means ost revenue for the government? 1his is a difficult =uestion to answer, but on the one hand the e5em#tion from ha ing to #ay land ta5es because of the lack of a H/4 works as an incenti e for in estors to in est in the oil #alm industry in Indonesia. "alm oil is a ery #rofitable sector. 0n the other hand, the H/4 #roblem is difficult for the go ernment to sol e because many #ermits ha e been issued in land designated as forest which is an illegal allocation of land. 1o deal with the H/4 in ol es ha ing to sort out which forest land was de elo#ed into oil #alm and which one wasn't. :emember that oil #alm can only be de elo#ed on non8forest land where forest land is su##osed to be first con erted to agricultural land and taken out of the forest reser es. If the B". would attem#t to issue H/4s to com#anies that now lack a legal #ermit, the H/4 would be considered illegal because the com#anies are o#erating on land designated as forest. In &alimantan Barat, we found that <*B #ermits were issued o er a total area of <.B million hectares of forest land. Eocal go ernment issues the #ermits $illegally%, though it remains ery attracti e for in estors to de elo# oil #alm under such conditions des#ite it #resenting a risk gi en the illegality of the enter#rise. 1he business #layers in Indonesia knows how to ensure that o#erations can kee# running by influencing go ernment officials informally, and by that I mean through corru#t means of obtaining su##ort. It is also difficult for the go ernment to make changes because the com#any is in full o#eration, the mill is acti ely #roducing -"0, and much of the economy is de#endent on the industry des#ite it not ha ing been legally established from the beginning. In theory, it is sim#le for the go ernment to re oke an o#erating a license, yet in #ractice the go ernment wants to maintain an 'in estor8friendly' climate e en though the go ernment in essence is against its own regulations. 1he national go ernment gi es u# the re enue of land ta5 because the H/4 is not issued, but it recei es a ta5 on the e5#orted -"0. 2t the local le el, the benefits are linked to what is termed the multi#lier effect where em#loyment and wealth is generated locally that can bring greater #ros#erity to an area in ol ed in the oil #alm industry. 1he ta5ation system in Indonesia is ery =9

centralised and the largest #ortion of the ta5 re enue goes to Jakarta. 1he -"0 ta5es are channeled e5clusi ely to the ca#ital. In the case of the land and building ta5es, the majority is intended for the local go ernment, so there is little incenti e for the national go ernment to enforce legal re=uirements gi en that Jakarta has little to gain financially from the increased ta5 re enue. Most of the largest oil #alm income earners in in Indonesia are com#anies based in Jakarta with some im#ortant ones also based in Malaysia. 2n im#ortant #oint to consider also, is that most of the middle and u##er management of the oil #alm industry is registered in Jakarta which is where their income ta5 dollars stay, while general labourers and lower income #eo#le are registered in their local areas, are ta5ed locally, and the bulk of their ta5 money stays locally. 1his hel#s e5#lain why the infrastructure and #ublic ser ices are so #oorly de elo#ed in rural areas across Indonesia. 1he skewed ta5ation system fa ours a wide dis#arity between central ca#ital and local rural in the country. 1he lack of re enue that stays locally, in addition to the reliance on the multi#lier effect to generate local re enue, creates a situation where there is a need to continually e5#and oil #alm #lantations to hel# raise standards of income rurally. It is an odd situation where a skewed ta5ation system $and multi#le illegalities% add to the argument for a greater e5#ansion of land dedicated to #lantations. 1he e5#ansion is a ery big issue and behind it lies the corru#tion related to the issuing of #ermits. Q: /re there efforts to revise the ta%ation system in order to "etter serve oca communities? 1his would be ery difficult in the Indonesian conte5t. 1he central go ernment, until now, has not demonstrated a willingness to tackle this issue. 1o date, no one has raised the signal of dealing with the issue of redistributi e ta5ation with re enue generated from the agricultural sector. 1his has only been a##lied to oil and gas so far. 1here are many benefits that could follow on a re ision of the ta5ation schemes that go also beyond infrastructure and the #ro ision of #ublic ser ices. !or e5am#le, funds channeled locally could be used to deal with e5ternalities like floods that occur fre=uently during the rainy season or #ollution as a result of #alm oil #roduction. In 3anggau district, the Ministry of Water is ha ing to deal with a serious com#laint related to the contamination of local water from effluents coming from -"0 mills. It is a local #roblem, yet most of the wealth is directed to the central go ernment. I attended a meeting last week on oil #alm #roduction in &alimantan 1imur, and the annual #roduction alue of -"0 is a##ro5imately 43W B( billion, yet little of that money stays in the local communities. 1he majority funnels #rimarily to foreign in estors and a small #ercentage stays as -"0 ta5 destined for Jakarta. K2t this #oint, "ak 2betnego showed me his "ower"oint #resentation on the e5#ansion of oil #alm in -entral &alimantan from '((< to '((F from a isual stand#oint using ma#s. 3ee slide show in the field documents file entitled 3awit Watch 2betnego 1ariganL. In the case of &alimantan, the total land area was *B million hectares $check , did he say B( or *B> unclear%, while the area e5cluded from #lantation concessions is '.C million hectares which includes the ri ers. More than half of the concessions are issued by bu#atiA C.B million hectares are dedicated to oil #alm concessions, yet e5isting #lantations co er +(( ((( hectares, of which only CB( ((( hectares ha e a #ro#er H/4. 1herefore the national go ernment collects land ta5 only on half of the current oil #alm #lantation land. 2##ro5imately <.G million hectares are not de elo#ed into oil #alm yet. 6

!rom our stand#oint, this is one of the #roblems related to the corru#tion issue that is a challenge for the national go ernment. In informal discussions, we ha e learned that the bu#ati recei es :# * billion #er *((( hectare released into oil #alm concessions. 1he com#any then says that they ha e documents signed by the bu#ati, e en though the com#any is legally obligated to negotiate with the local community. !rom a more e5treme #oint of iew, oil #alm is not de elo#ment, it is con=uest. In many cases, local go ernment $camat, ke#ala desa7dusun% ha e cons#ired with the com#any to by#ass legal #rocesses to benefit themsel es #ersonally and to #romote com#any interests o er those of the communities they are su##osed to re#resent. In addition, in the socialisasi #rocess, neither the go ernment, nor the com#anies #ro#erly e5#lain to the #eo#le the risks and benefits of oil #alm. In #articular, the risks get o erlooked, es#ecially when you consider that -"0 is a commodity subject to international market fluctuations. !armers generally only hear about the benefits of oil #alm from the com#any #ers#ecti e. 1here is a lack of trans#arency and clarity as to the amounts of land, credit, and com#ensation, and e5#ected earnings, and there is little written documentation to refer to. Q: What is your im!ression of how sma ho ders are "rought into ! asma schemes? 2#art from the lack of understanding farmers ha e on the risks in ol ed in the oil #alm industry, as well as the lack of trans#arency on multi#le le els including where their #lasma #lots will be located in relation to the illage, what debt will be incurred and for how long, etc., smallholders, ha e in many cases been decei ed from the outset. In the case of "1". *< for e5am#le, many of the ka#lings were underde elo#ed by the state with res#ect to industry standards. Dach hectare was to ha e *'B seedlings $bibit% #lanted on it, yet in a lot of cases only F( to *(( trees were #lanted with the remaining seedlings sold for #rofit at :# 'B ((( each. 1here is a serious #roblem of corru#tion regarding the de elo#ment of the #lasma land. How are these #lasma farmers to become #roducti e> 1hese ka#lings naturally end u# #roducing much less fruit gi en the reduced number of tress, yet the estate #osition tends to be that the 6ayak are la;y and don't o#timi;e their #lasma holdings for high yield. 1his is the stigma that is associated with many of the 6ayak #lasma farmersP also, that the 6ayak are not fit to become oil #alm farmers. 1he 3"&3 farmers didn't know what was the industry standard for * hectare of land, and 3awit Watch has hel#ed inform them of the nature of the industry. !or e5am#le, 3"&3 #easant farmers in Dast &alimantan ins#ected their #lasma #lots, reali;ed they were sub8standard relati e to the number of re=uired trees, and refused to sign their contracts. Who takes res#onsibility for these substandard #lots> In reality, it is the go ernment's res#onsibility to enforce the industry standard and to #ressure the com#any to fulfill their contractual obligations, yet this oftentimes doesn't ha##en for com#le5 reasons, be it corru#tion or sim#ly by the com#any's $#ri ate or state% creati e way to a oid the #roblem and shift the blame. 1here are good e5am#les of smallholders in 3umatra that are doing well in oil #alm, but it has nothing to do with either go ernment #olicies or com#any su##ort, but rather community initiati e to #ro#erly manage their #lots and look to benefit from the o##ortunities #resent. In many meetings with the #ri ate and state #lantation managers, they fail to #roduce regulations that outline #lasma standards that would enable smallholders to become more efficient and #roducti e growers. Q: /re there terms in the contract signed "y the com!any and the sma ho der that out ine the conse9uences of fai ure to com! y with its contents :ie$ in the case where su"standard ! ots are deve o!ed "y the estate?

6'

1here are no such #oints outlined in the contract. In many cases, we found that com#anies told the farmers, ?We will re#air the substandard #lots. Just sign the contract.@ 1he farmers signed the contract without knowing the industry standards. When we offered training to the farmers in Dast &alimantan, at the end of the session, some of the farmers were crying, saying that ?after twenty years of farming in oil #alm, we ne er got any training. .o wonder we struggled so much.@ 2 big #roblem is that oil #alm is #romoted without ca#acity building that should include go ernment e5tension ser ices. 1he reality is that oil #alm is #romoted as a means of accessing land, and "1". *< is not different from #ri ate com#anies. Q: Wou d you say that "y kee!ing ! asma ho dings at su"standard eve s a so "ecomes a means of accumu ation for individua s or com!anies that go on to ac9uire ka! ings from fai ed farmers? Many, many #lasma farmers failed and in a large number of cases the #lots were sold to #lantation managers. Many of the managers at "1".*< accumulated land this way, as did #eo#le li ing in Bodok and elsewhere who #urchased the failed #lots at a good #rice. 1here are also cases where farmers cannot contend with the management of their ka#lings due to lack of ca#acity and e5tension ser ices by the go ernment which leads them to sell their #lots and seek a li elihood elsewhere or in another area as is the case with many "a#uans who are #resently selling their oil #alm #lots. I'm not one to s#eculate too much about cons#iracies or the like, but I do think at times that the substandard #lots are de elo#ed by design. 1he com#any and go ernment don't really ha e a big interest in de elo#ing #lasma #lots because the main focus is on the estate 7 inti land. When 3uharto started with the inti8#lasma schemes for oil #alm in the *+)(s, the ratio was '(AF( under "I:81rans where the bulk of the land was held in #lasma for smallholder #roduction. Why is it called inti> Because inti is not bigS 1here were many #roblems with #roduction, ca#acity, etc. and mills were not running at #roduction with #lasma which led to a shift in de elo#ment schemes where #lantations seek to increase estate holdings. .ow, there are many #lantations that are de elo#ed without #lasma $cites e5am#les where no #lasma e5ists in oil #alm de elo#ment , unclear on recording%. .ew generation of #lantation schemes started around '(((. -om#anies would build #lasma if there was conflict with land ac=uisition. When #easants resisted gi ing u# their land, then the #lasma card is #layed by the com#any. In the current e5#ansion stage, we will see the majority of the land will be held as inti land, and an increasing number of farmers will be #rogressi ely s=uee;ed by land shortage on the one hand and labour sur#lus on the other gi en the limited ca#acity of #lantations to absorb labour. 2 irtual time bomb is in motion, and in some res#ects it is already started. 1here will be an increase in the imbalance in landholdings between com#any and communities. Ironically, the 3uharto era #lasma scheme offered more o##ortunities to farmers than the current model of majority inti, in s#ite of all all the corru#tion associated with his regime. !rom the current model stand#oint, it is easier to manage the workers on the #lantation than it is to manage the #lasma farmers because the latter retains inde#endence to some degree while the former is totally de#endent on the com#any. Q: /ccording to Sawit Watch0 how then shou d oi !a m "e deve o!ed and managed? .ow there is some debate within 3awit Watch about this #oint, and I will gi e you one #ers#ecti eA to bring back the com#any #lantation as a trigger for de elo#ment, meaning that the 62

original #lantation scheme can be reinstated where the majority of the land is owned by #lasma farmers and they are the main #roducers of the oil #alm fruit. My e5#erience with a community in .orth 3umatra that has struggled to recei e its #lasma holdings which dates back to *+)F. 3o far, they ha e not recei ed the land, but the community #o#ulation has gone from '(( families to BB(, and yet they are still struggling to regain the initial land holding of *G+ hectares from o er three decades ago. 1hey were originally struggling for li elihoods and now they are struggling for housing and li elihoods. !or the com#any, the issue is to find a way to access the raw material $1B3% to #roduce -"0 which is where the money is being made. 1hey are not interested in the land #er se, but in the raw material from the land which can be #roduced by communities. When you look at Ja a where an indi idual may own (.'B or (.B ha and yet a com#any can control *((( hectares, you get a sense of the imbalance that e entually creates a time bomb. 1he key is how to transfer the management to the state, and through the state, back to the community> 1his has ne er been the intent of #lasma8inti schemes, yet it needs to be considered as an o#tion for genuine de elo#ment to occur and for oil #alm to be a trigger of de elo#ment. Q: What is Sawit Watch's !osition on the current &/PP;6/S and tit ing !rogram? :emember that the titling #rogram is not taking #lace in areas where there are serious land conflicts like in &alimantan or elsewhere. 1he issue debated is often surrounding communal land. !rom our #ers#ecti e, land titling is not a #roblem #er se, but rather what is the ca#acity of farmers, what e5tensions are being made a ailable to su##ort rural li elihoods> 1he e5#ansion issue is an im#ortant one because the machine of unem#loyment in Ja a is ali e and well and is dri ing the go ernment to #romote #lantation e5#ansion as a solution to the unem#loyment #roblem. 1he #roblem in Ja a is not sol ed by #lantation e5#ansion. In #lantation areas, such as .orth 3umatra, there is increasing unem#loyment. 2lso, in 3umatra, we ha e noticed that labourers on the #lantation earn less than on #lasma holdings. In an odd way, the image of a #lantation worker is better than working for a smallholder in that some #restige is associated with #lantation work. It was interesting to witness a debate last year about how the -"0 from Indonesia and Malaysia is sold on the international market at the same #rice, yet the #lantation wage is considerably higher in Malaysia, to which the Indonesian com#anies had no res#onse. 1he com#anies here may claim that they are #aying the workers the minimum wage as determined by the go ernment, yet they fail to acknowledge that the wage is not sector s#ecific and that it re#resents and a erage wage across all sectors. In my o#inion, the com#any uses the minimum wage line as a sca#egoat to a oid #aying a decent li ing wage. Q: In genera 0 how do you com!are oi !a m in some !arts of Sumatra with that in )a imantan? 0ne big difference is that in 3umatra, some communities ha e retained control o er the #roduction #rocessA they manage their #lots, they grow their fruit, and they see re enue returned to their community for infrastructure and ser ices. In &alimantan, in contrast, much is controlled by the state 7 com#any #lantation and little seems to be channeled back to the community. In many res#ects, the big difference is one of #ower relations that are ery much 6=

skewed in fa our of the state7#ri ate com#any in &alimantan in com#arison to oil #alm in some #arts of 3umatra. Q: 1an you te me a"out the atest government scheme entit ed the Revita isation Pro.ect that "egan in +,,<? Many studies from ./0s, go ernment, and com#anies show that #lasma #roduction is generally *B tons of 1B3 lower #er year. We ha e already looked at some of the reasons why the #roduction is lower on #lasma #lots. In '((), the go ernment launched its ':e italisation "roject' for oil #alm which is described as a one8roof management scheme where all the land would be de elo#ed as inti. !armers who had gi en u# land to the inti scheme would recei e a #ercentage of the earnings from a s#ecified area of inti based on the land surrendered to the estate. 1hrough this #rogram, the go ernment has been #romoting e5#ansion under a one8roof management model. Many organisations such as 3"&3 and others o##ose this scheme. !armers would retain the license of their #arcel 1he go ernment is also #ro#osing a ':e#lanting 3cheme' where all land will be transformed into inti land only. How is the go ernment #romoting this scheme and what is the res#onse> In :iau, for e5am#le, farmers were informed of the scheme, informed of the a erage earnings, and in the end rejected the scheme. !armers #rotested because their offered wages was between :# *B(k to :# B((k #er month $lower than current earnings%, there were confrontations between #easant farmers and the #olice, and one #erson was killed with many injured as well. 1he focus now has shifted to the criminalisation of the farmers. :esolution to date has not been resol ed, though there has been some reform to the coo#erati e in order to gain a better return to the farmers. 2lso, according to unofficial re#orts of the incident, the #olice ha e asked that the farmers not file an incident re#ort related to the death of one indi idual, and the #olice, on their side, will not file a re#ort concerning the land occu#ation undertaken by the farmers. Q: What can you te me a"out the current e%!ansion that is "eing !ro!osed for Indonesia? 1he e5isting + million hectares is being #ro#osed to e5#and to 'G million hectares. Much of the #ro#osed e5#ansion is slated to ha##en under the 'one8roof8management' scheme. In the case of &alimantan, there is much re#lanting taking #lace that is creating an o##ortunity to e5#and as well the estate area. Q: /ny c osing ideas0 thoughts? !or 3awit Watch, it is im#ortant that the smallholders are organised as a grou# in order to more effecti ely negotiate for better terms with the com#any. 1he objecti e also is to hel# strengthen the smallholders as an organised grou# to better manage their #lots and to increase their ca#acity to ultimately manage the #lantations in the long run. 1he ultimate objecti e is to build sufficient ca#acity with the smallholders so that they are able to manage the #lantations as a way of better securing li elihoods and to a ert the e entual time bomb that is at our doorste# related to labour sur#lus and land shortages. It is interesting to note that though #lasma farmers in 3umatra were recognised for their #roducti ity on their ka#lings, the com#any still o#ted to #ro#ose a 'one8roof8management' scheme con erting all the land to inti for the sim#le reason that more #rofits could be funneled to the com#any. -orru#tion channels ensure that such initiati es are sustained and su##orted by the 66

army and #olice force if local resistance is sufficiently high. !or Indonesia, making a change toward democracy in ol es breaking out of the mindset of money #olitics and look for ways to de elo# industry in the country that brings greater returns by #roducing alue8added #roducts instead of sim#ly being an e5#orted or raw goods.

64