‘Just let me die here’: Why locals on Indonesia’s Rempang oppose eviction for China-backed project

Some involved Chinese investments, such as nickel mining in Sulawesi, but some did not. 

He cited, for example, the andesite mining in Wadas, Central Java, which has been controversial since 2019. 

The andesites would be used to construct a dam about 12 km from the site, but some locals oppose it, believing it will destroy the environment. 

He also cited the Mandalika Circuit on Lombok island, where villagers were evicted for the project. 

Mr Usman Hamid, Indonesia director of Amnesty International, said National Strategic Projects are the roots of widespread human rights violations problems in Indonesia. 

“They reflect economic growth ambitions that are not friendly to human rights, the environment and renewable energy. 

“Therefore, we urge the state to stop implementing National Strategic Projects that have been done without a feasibility study on a clean and healthy environment and its impact on human rights,” he stated.  

According to Mr Roni Septian, head of policy and advocacy at civil organisation Agrarian Reform Consortium (KPA), such conflicts arise because such projects do not serve the people’s interests but rather business people. 

Between 2020 and 2023, they recorded at least 73 agrarian conflicts involving National Strategic Projects.

During the last nine years of Mr Widodo’s tenure, where he has pushed for massive infrastructure projects, KPA noted 2,701 agrarian conflicts compared to 1,770 during former President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s government.  

Mdm Suraya Afiff, an anthropologist from the University of Indonesia, said according to the United Nations (UN), eviction of indigenous peoples is not permitted. 

“So, according to the UN, it can be categorised as a serious violation,” she said.

“Forced displacement like that could be categorised as genocide, according to international rules.”