Abstract
This article argues that repossession of land by community members and land reform is vital to support the rural poor and to ensure the sustainability of the commons. Repossession requires bottom-up initiatives, social mobilization and external interventions. The case is a study of oil palm plantations in Tanah Laut Regency, South Kalimantan, Indonesia. The mangroves and lowlands in Tabanio and Ujung Batu have always been governed by indigenous (adat) laws. Through local government consent and partnership, in 2007 an oil palm plantation company under the Kintap Jaya Watindo (KJW) holding group obtained the right to privatize and convert + 900 hectares of lowland into plantations, resulting in ecological devastation and a loss of livelihood. This land grab led to conflicts with community members due to deception, unfavorable incorporation of community members into their schemes, unwanted land conversion and horizontal conflicts between communities. Increased commercialization of local oil palm resources, monetary compensation, and construction of basic infrastructure such as roads and latrines led to spiraling conflicts. Intimidation by local government officials and elites worsened conflict and in 2011 community members burned the plantation, leading to the company's withdrawal. Subsequently, social institutions and local rules have played a role in protecting coastal resources on behalf of the community, recognizing collective identity and social and ecological responsibilities. Behavioral change and innovative power structures are locally sensitive and environmentally appropriate. Key Words: land grabbing, land reform, agricultural differentiation, extractive institution, exclusion, adverse incorporation, inclusion, power, common law
Highlights
Indonesia's population reached 210 million in 2000, with a growth rate of 1.8% per annum
In May 2007, under the Nucleus Estate and Smallholder (NES) scheme, Kintap Jaya Watindo Ltd. sought to adopt and implement an 80:20 scheme for an initial ten year period, whereby community groups from Tabanio and Ujung Batu would provide 80% of the land to be planted with oil palm by the company and of which, 20% would be given for the community to manage
Attended by members of the House of Representatives, judges from the provincial court, the governor of South Kalimantan, government officials from Tanah Laut Regency and Tabanio village and community members in Tabanio, the negotiations led to the formulation and stipulation of MoUs and judicial doctrines which mandated the termination of Kintap Jaya Watindo's activities in Tabanio
Summary
Indonesia's population reached 210 million in 2000, with a growth rate of 1.8% per annum. Decentralization, and the Regional Governance Law No 23/2014 on the reassertion of the provincial government in providing authorization in forest and coastal resource use, as well as the effects of the 2007-2008 global financial crisis have led to the disengagement of the national government from controlling agricultural development in oil palm. This is marked by the removal of national government subsidies and services which previously supported smallholders and, with endorsement from the provincial government, by the shift away from smallholders to investor-managed agribusinesses and their intensification of control over land use and the commodity value chains in oil palm at the provincial level (Cramb 2018: 6). This article "argues for the need to go beyond simplistic dualist model of exclusion and inclusion to grasp the simultaneous interaction of processes leading to the inclusion, exclusion and adverse incorporation" (McCarthy 2018: 116)
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