Tempo Investigation
THE plantation and forest production projects under way in Merauke Regency at the
southern tip of Papua, are in danger of unraveling. Last year, a wood-processing factory of
PT Medco Papua Industri Lestari stopped operating for two months as a result of heated
protests from local residents. Clearing of land for planting sugarcane by PT Cenderawasih
Jaya Mandiri, a subsidiary of the Rajawali Group, also ran into trouble. Two tribal groups
disputed over the amount of land to be used by the company. Similar confl icts have taken
place in many other areas in Merauke, affecting over a dozen companies there.
What is going on? Why is Merauke, known as a relatively calm region of Papua, suddenly
beset with problems? The numerous protests from Merauke’s indigenous tribal groups,
who are accusing companies of not respecting their customary rights, threaten to turn the
ambitious project of the Agriculture Ministry, the Merauke Integrated Food and Energy
Estate, into a failure.
Tempo reports directly from Kampung Zanegi in the Animha District, and gets to the
root of this cultural confl ict over the clearing of hundreds of thousands of hectares of
forest in Merauke.
Full report available at http://tapol.gn.apc.org/reports/120415_Tempo_report.pdf