Rempang-Galang Disorot, IAW Demands Prabowo Audit Projects and Land Status

JAKARTA - Indonesian Audit Watch (IAW) asked that the project and land status in Rempang-Galang be thoroughly audited. This step is considered important so that large investments do not ignore the rights of the community who have been waiting for legal certainty over their land for years.

This was conveyed by the Founding Secretary of IAW, Iskandar Sitorus, who said that the Rempang and Galang issues had developed far beyond mere investment projects. The area is now considered a test for the government in balancing the interests of investment with the protection of community rights.

"Rempang-Galang is the clearest mirror to see whether the state serves investors faster or first resolves the rights of the people who have been asking for legal certainty over their land for years," Iskandar said in a statement, Thursday, June 25.

He said that the agrarian problem in Rempang actually emerged long before the Rempang Eco-City project was included in the government's development agenda. The community which is part of the Rempang Galang Islands Indigenous People's Association (HIMAD PURELANG) has applied for recognition of land rights since around 2008.

"This means that the state actually has a very long time to solve the agrarian problem in Rempang before investors enter. But what happened was the opposite. When the people asked for certainty of rights, the process was slow. When large investments come, the state machine moves much faster," he said.

This question, continued Iskandar, is becoming more complex after the Rempang Eco-City project was pushed as a National Strategic Project (PSN) and attracted investment in the glass industry and solar panels from the Xinyi Group from China.

However, there are various fundamental issues that have not been resolved. Among them are the status of land, the existence of the old village, the rights of indigenous people to the relocation of residents.

"The findings of the Ombudsman, the attention of Komnas HAM, and various public protests show that Rempang cannot be read only as an investment project. This also concerns agrarian conflicts, spatial planning, government administration, and public confidence in the state," he explained.

IAW also highlighted the legal status of Rempang Eco-City in the era of President Prabowo Subianto's government. He said the government needed to provide an open explanation about the project after there were differences in interpretation regarding the status of the PSN.

"The state must explain publicly whether the Rempang Eco-City is still in the PSN status, has changed status, or is running through another policy scheme. The legal status of the project determines the basis for land acquisition, relocation, security, and accountability for the use of state funds," he said.

In addition to Rempang, Iskandar highlighted the entry of new investments on Galang Island through the Wiraraja Green Energy and Semiconductor Industrial Park (GESEIP) project which is said to have an initial investment value of around 4.89 billion US dollars or equivalent to Rp. 82 trillion.

"From glass to chips. From Chinese investment to American investment. This area now has a much larger economic and geopolitical dimension than before," he said.

He assessed that the amount of investment should not sideline the settlement of community rights. So there needs to be a transparent explanation from the government.

"If the rights of the community are not resolved, investment will stand on conflict. If land status is not opened transparently, strategic projects will turn into a source of state delegitimization," he concluded.

Therefore, IAW encourages the government to form a special Rempang-Galang settlement table involving related ministries, BP Batam, local governments, Komnas HAM, the Ombudsman, and community representatives.

Iskandar said that a fair settlement of Rempang-Galang could become a national development model that could bring together strategic investments and the protection of community rights. On the other hand, the ongoing conflict has the potential to become one of the largest agrarian problems inherited at the beginning of President Prabowo Subianto's administration.

"Investment can enter, downstream can run, semiconductors can be developed. But the rights of the people must not be sacrificed. The state must ensure that development does not stand on land whose status is not clear and the community is still injured," he concluded.