Regarding The Conflict On Rempang Island, BP Batam: Many Provocateurs

Head of BP Batam as well as Mayor of Batam Muhammad Rudi (Photo: dock. Mery Handayani/VOI)

Head of BP Batam and Mayor of Batam Muhammad Rudi revealed that the conflict that occurred on Pulau Rempang, Batam, Riau Islands was mostly ridden by provocateurs.

For your information, the situation on the island of Rempang is volatile along with the rejection of residents who are threatened with being evicted due to the construction of Rempang Eco City.

"Initially it was good. But after we wanted to re-enter, there seemed to be a lot of provocateurs from outside. So people started to think differently," he said in a meeting with Commission VI of the DPR, Wednesday, September 13.

Initially, Rudi said the land to work on Rempang Eco City was 17,600 hectares. Within the 17,600 hectares there are 10,028 hectares of protected forest and 7,572 hectares that will be used by PT MEG for investment in the Xinyi Group factory. The factories built are the glass factory and the second largest solar panel after China.

Rudi said BP Batam did not work on the entire land. But only 2,000 hectares for the Xinyi Group with an investment of approximately IDR 172.5 trillion or with 11.5 billion US dollars.

"So not overall on 17,572 hectares of land completed. But in the near future we have to complete the 2,000 so that the order to us is that September 28 which is 2,000 hectares can be completed," he said.

However, said Rudi, it is not easy to empty 2,000 rights. This is because there is a proconstraint from the Rempang community itself.

The one from outside is because many entrepreneurs control the land above 17,600 hectares. Some control 100 hectares, some 200 hectares because their status is protected forest and HPL will not be compensated, we want to take it back," he said.

"This is the province so that they use the community of 16 villages above 17,000 hectares, but the 700 (family heads) in 2,000 hectares (regions to be built by glass factories and solar panels by PT MEG and Xinyi Group) are currently affected," he continued.

Quoted from the BP Batam page, Rempang Eco City is one of the projects registered in the 2023 National Strategic Program whose construction is regulated in the Regulation of the Coordinating Minister for Economic Affairs Number 7 of 2023 which was ratified on August 28.

The Rempang Eco City project is an integrated industrial, trade, and tourism area aimed at encouraging competitiveness with Singapore and Malaysia.

The project will be worked on by PT Makmur Elok Graha (MEG) with an investment target of IDR 381 trillion by 2080. PT MEG is a colleague of BP Batam and the Batam City Government. Later, the company will help the government attract foreign and local investors in economic development on the island of Rempang.

To work on Rempang Eco City, PT MEG was given an area of around 17,000 hectares covering the entire island of Rempang and Subang Mas Island. The government is also targeting the development of Rempang Eco City to absorb around 306,000 workers by 2080.

However, the construction of the project was protested by residents of Rempang by blocking the joint apparatus which will set and measure land on Thursday 7 September.

The violent conflict resulted in injuries and even trauma to local children being triggered by residents' rejection of the project which required around 7,500 local residents to be relocated.