Legal Certainty of Land Tenure of Customary Rights by Indigenous Peoples Based on the Administration of Customary Land

Abstract

The fact that customary land is not included as an object of land registration in Government Regulation No. 24/1997 causes indigenous peoples' control over customary land not to be based on rights that can be proven in writing. This causes the rights of indigenous peoples over their customary land to be marginalised. Following up on this, the Government enacted Minister of Agrarian Affairs Regulation No. 9/2016 on Procedures for Determining Communal Rights to Land of Customary Law Communities and Communities in Certain Areas, which was later revoked and replaced by Minister of Agrarian Affairs and Spatial Planning Regulation No. 18/2019 on Procedures for Administration of Customary Land of Customary Law Communities. Initially, indigenous peoples' land tenure was based on communal rights, and then it was changed to be based on the administration of customary land rights. Therefore, it is necessary to know the scope and purpose of customary land administration and the difference with land registration to understand how to guarantee the legal certainty of the control rights of indigenous peoples over their customary land. This research is normative juridical type by using a legislative approach and analytical approach. The research results show that customary land is not ordered for registration in Government Regulation No. 24 of 1997 concerning Land Registration. The administration of customary land is to record customary land in the land registry book so that it differs from land registration. Recording customary land in the land registry book can minimise overlapping disputes between indigenous peoples and private parties.