Our family has been living here ever since before this country gained independence.” The Crux of the ProblemĪ marsh replaced a once-productive farming area in Ulak Teberau, where villagers are challenging a land grab by a palm oil company. “Now, every time we want to fish, we have to gain permission from the company. Ruslan said that his livelihood options are now severely limited due to the lack of access to surrounding lands. The land in dispute is now a degraded marsh that is no longer productive or accessible to the villagers, thus undermining the well-being of nearly 400 households in the village. “The oppressors never left, only their skin color changed,” said Ruslan, 55, a resident of Ulak Teberau. Residents claimed that the company unlawfully appropriated more than 3,000 hectares which once belonged to them. Over the next two decades, the firm extended its reach, managing more land than its license allowed―and taking away the villagers’ lands. Affandi The villagers’ troubles started back in 1997, when a palm oil company secured a concession license to manage about 10,000 hectares of land in Musi Banyuasin District.
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