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December 10, 2024 | 08:53 pm
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - Development through the model of national strategic projects is a source of conflict and violations of human rights. One of the causes is excessive favorable treatment in the implementation of projects.
ON the north coast of Tangerang, Banten, social segregation is a real threat. Wealthy people will live in the Pantai Indah Kapuk (PIK) Tropical Coastland area, which is under construction. Meanwhile, the poor people who were forced to sell their land to the developer will probably end up living in the villages surrounding the area. Development, which should be a process of expanding human freedom, to quote from Nobel Prize-winning economist Amartya Sen, actually impoverishes and imprisons.
Although it marginalizes the poor, the Pantai Indah Kapuk 2 area, is in a strong position because it is protected by the state through its designation as a National Strategic Project (PSN). This is despite the fact that it is clear that the construction of PIK Tropical Coastland is not in accordance with the initial regional and spatial plan because most of the area is inside a protected mangrove forest.
Forced through as a PSN, there are indications that PIK Tropical Coastland represents a favor from the government to Agung Sedayu Group, the project developer. It is strongly suspected that the granting of PSN status is compensation for the request from then President Joko Widodo for Agung Sedayu to help fund the cost of constructing the Nusantara Capital City (IKN), an ambitious project that needs a flood of investments.
PIK Tropical Coastland is also a part of a major project to supply three million homes, a huge endeavor planned by President Prabowo Subianto. Participating in this program through corporate social responsibility, Agung Sedayu will supply funding of Rp60 billion to build thousands of basic homes. But there is no such thing as a free lunch: in return, the developer will be involved in the construction of a giant sea wall, a project worth Rp700 trillion that it is believed will protect the coastline of Jakarta from erosion by the sea.
At first glance, this all looks good because it will prioritize the construction of infrastructure to grow the economy, but without good corporate governance, PSN is just a dishonest way to protect crooked entrepreneurs. Starting from President Jokowi’s first administration until July 2024, there were 233 PSNs with a total investment of Rp6,247 trillion. A total of 195 PSNs have been completed and are in full operation as of the first half of this year. PIK Tropical Coastland is one of the 14 new PSNs entirely managed by the private sector.
The root of the problem is that in order to protect these PSNs, government institutions and officials are given excessive authority, even extending to violating the principles of good governance. The government, for example, can revoke or replace rules that slow down the implementation of PSNs. And for matters from permits to the procurement of land and funding, the government has rolled out the red carpet. A number of PSNs do not even have clear operating standards regarding the control of social and environmental impacts.
If these projects require protection, thanks to the legal umbrella, security forces can be readily deployed. And if a member of the public reports something related to a PSN to the law enforcement authorities, the Attorney General’s Office and the police will not investigate it, but will only send a report to the relevant official.
In a number of places, PSNs have resulted in human rights violations, the removal of civil and political rights, economic rights and social and cultural rights, as well as people’s collective rights. According to the National Commission on Human Rights, from 2020 to 2023, there were 114 complaints about PSNs. In general, people reported instances of violence such as detentions, intimidation and repression by the security forces. Others complained about agrarian conflicts because projects encroached on people’s land.
What happened with the Rempang Eco-City project in the Riau Islands, the Poco Leok geothermal project in East Nusa Tenggara, and the Indonesia Green Industrial Park in North Kalimantan are undeniable proof that in the planning of PSNs, there is minimal public participation. As well as sidelining people living near the relevant locations, PSN regulations that are not even-handed eventually result in conflicts breaking out. Another example of the disarray of PSN can be seen from the Kertajati West Java International Airport. As well as ignoring agrarian issues, the benefits from the airport will not be in proportion to the investment and the social costs. Built at vast expense, the airport is only used during the Haj season.
President Prabowo must re-evaluate the PSN model. Jokowi’s style of developmentalism must be halted. Development that violates human rights, leads to discrimination and abuses of power, deprives people of an opportunity, meaning that the poor in this country will continue to be marginalized.
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