Indigenous Rights Bill Could Affect Indonesian Companies’ Land Concessions if Passed

Fidelis E. Satriastanti, Jakarta Globe 14 Mar 10;

A law is being drafted that would not only acknowledge the rights of indigenous groups to own their ancestral lands but could affect companies with land concessions in disputed areas.

If the bill, being drafted by the Regional Representatives Council (DPD) and the Indigenous Peoples Alliance of the Archipelago (AMAN), is adopted by the House of Representatives, it would be the first to fully protect the rights of indigenous people.

“We need this law because it could provide a legal foundation for conflicting parties to turn to,” AMAN secretary general Abdon Nababan said. “If they have the same legal ground, I think all those [land] conflicts could be settled.”

Abdon said the bill had been included on the House’s National Legislation Program (Prolegnas) list for 2010-14, and a whole year would be spent focusing on approaching indigenous peoples at the regional level. He said the most controversial aspect of the bill would be economic.

“The economic battle will be very visible because once acknowledgment of indigenous rights has been elaborated, [it will have to be established] how to renegotiate companies’ concessions on their customary lands.”

Indigenous people were acknowledged in the 2007 Law on Coastal Areas and Small Islands Management and the 2009 Law on Environmental Protection and Management, but these did not cover the rights of indigenous people comprehensively.

In addition, Indonesia, along with 144 other countries, supported the United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples, which was issued in September 2007.

“The 2007 law only covers indigenous people in coastal areas and the new green law is only talking about the environmental perspective,” Abdon said. “Meanwhile, you need to understand that indigenous peoples should be defined by their customary systems, not just boundaries.”

He said the toughest challenge was to impose the understanding that indigenous peoples have their own laws in their own areas, which was the source of land conflicts in the country.

“The conflicts started when government failed to acknowledge that there are customary laws that covered customary lands before this republic was formed,” he said.

Based on AMAN data, there are at least 50 million to 70 million indigenous people among Indonesia’s 220 million population. However, only about 1,163 communities are under the alliance.

Members of Commission III of the House of Representatives, responsible for human rights, had no immediate comment.

The government has stated that there is no such thing as an indigenous person, as every Indonesian citizen is equal in the eyes of the Constitution.

Indigenous people start mapping territory
Adianto P. Simamora, The Jakarta Post 13 Mar 10;

Indigenous people have begun mapping their customary land across the country in an effort to gain recognition amid conflict with the government and business communities over land ownership.

The Alliance of Archipelagic Indigenous People (AMAN) estimated the indigenous people had traditionally occupied about 20 million hectares of land, most natural forest.

AMAN, with its 1,163 communities occupying about 7.5 million hectares of land, mapped 2.3 million hectares of customary land.

“We will submit the map to the government as a reference for land policies,” secretary-general of AMAN, Abdon Nababan, told The Jakarta Post on Friday.

The mapping was organized by AMAN, Forest Watch Indonesia and the Network for Participatory Mapping.

The coalition set up a customary land registration body that will be in charge of mapping the land
traditionally occupied by indigenous people.

Abdon said that massive conversions of forest occupied by customary communities were undertaken for business purposes, including plantations, and mining had yet to negate the involvement of indigenous groups.

It then led to repeated conflicts between customary communities with business players.
The map will determine the total forest belonging to indigenous people, which will be used as a source for their livelihood.

He said that the government must change its perspective in managing the country’s natural resources by ignoring the rights of indigenous people and undermining local wisdom in protecting forests.

“The government still looks at customary land as state forest, though the indigenous people occupied the area long before the government’s presence,” he said.

“Indigenous people need legal certainty,” he said.

Articles 18B and 28I in the amended 1945 Constitution say that the state recognizes and respects the rights of indigenous people.

The House of Representatives is scheduled to discuss a draft bill on recognition rights of customary communities this year.

The 1999 ministerial decree on guidelines on resolving the rights of customary land stipulates the state protected customary community.

So far, the Forestry Ministry and the Energy and Mineral Resources Ministry have ignored communal rights by issuing mining permits and forest concessions.

Coordinator of the BRWA, Kasmita Widodo, said the mapping process would take place in three years. The locations would be determined during the congress in April in Medan, North Sumatra.

The customary community roles has been a crucial issue in international climate change talks in protecting forests to prevent carbon leakage once the deforestation and forest degradation scheme to reduce emissions (REDD) occurs.

The unclear status of indigenous people managing forests may hamper the REDD program’ implementation.

Environment Minister Gusti Muhammad Hatta said at least 20 percent of revenue from the REDD scheme should be transferred to indigenous people, who play crucial roles in protecting the forest.