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More than 100,000 people evicted for land reclamation: Report
More than 100,000 fishermen and people living in Indonesia's coastal areas lost their homes in connection with land reclamation projects in 2016, according to a report by activists.
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Fishermen of Muara Angke hold a rally on a man-made islet, known as Islet G, in North Jakarta, in April 2016. (The Jakarta Post/Seto Wardhana)
More than 100,000 fishermen and people living in Indonesia's coastal areas lost their homes in connection with land reclamation projects in 2016, according to a report by activists.
Fishermen had to relocate far from their livelihoods, as the government and developers proceeded with ambitious reclamation projects all over the country.
At least 16 coastal areas were affected by reclamation projects, according to the report by the People’s Coalition for Fisheries Justice (KIARA), released on Tuesday.
“As a result, more than 107,361 fishermen [not counting their family members] were evicted from their livelihoods,” the report says.
That figure does not take into account the 2.2 million lives that might be affected by the controversial Benoa Bay reclamation project in Bali.
(Read also: Activists up the ante against reclamation)
Even if the fishermen did not lose their livelihoods and continued to work as fishermen, their welfare was severely affected by the reclamation projects, the report said, referring to the massive reclamation project in the Jakarta Bay as an example.
“Our data and information center found that almost all costs for fishing had doubled. At the same time, catches and income had decreased drastically,” the report says. (dmr)
