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N. Sumatra residents demand Supreme Court review verdict on contested state land
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The disputed land, located in Pasar IV of Helvetia village, Labuhan Deli district, was the center of a corruption case implicating businessman Tamin Sukardi of private firm PT Erni Putera Terari. (Shutterstock/S Curtis)
H
undreds of residents of Helveta in Deli Serdang regency, North Sumatra, have demanded that the Supreme Court review its recent verdict to hand over 106 hectares of land previously granted as a concession to state-owned plantation company PT Perkebunan Nusantara II (PTPN II) to a private firm and a mass organization.
The residents questioned Supreme Court ruling No. 1331, which stipulates that the land be given to plantation firm PT Agung Cemara Realty (ACR) and Islamic organization Alwasliyah, urging that the land be returned to the state.
A spokesperson for the residents, Batao Simanjuntak, said the ruling violated the law, arguing that the land should still be in the state’s possession according to a 2002 decree issued by the National Land Agency (BPN).
"We suspect a land syndicate was behind the Supreme Court ruling. The ruling should have granted the 106 hectares to the state, instead of giving it to private firms or other parties. [The ruling] should be questioned," Batao said during a rally in front of the North Sumatra governor’s office on Monday.
The disputed land, located in Pasar IV of Helvetia village, Labuhan Deli district, was the center of a corruption case implicating businessman Tamin Sukardi of private firm PT Erni Putera Terari. Following the case, in which Tamin was sentenced to five years in prison in May, the Supreme Court also ruled that the land had been seized by the state.
The same verdict, however, ruled that 74 ha of the seized land would be given to Mujianto, director of PT ACR, while the remaining would be given to the Alwasliyah board of trustees.
Batao questioned the reasons behind the verdict, urging the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) to investigate the case given that the land was a state asset.
