Researcher: Conflict On Palm Land Causes Big Costs and Must Be Handled

INDUSTRY.co.id - Jakarta - Researchers say the conflicts that occurred in oil palm have caused huge expenses and should be dealt with immediately because it harms all parties.

Daemeter Consultant researcher Godwin Limberg said based on five case studies, the tangible cost of social conflict ranges from 70,000 to 2,500,000 US dollars.

Tangible costs represent 51 to 88 percent of operating costs and 102 to 177 percent of the investment cost per hectare per year.

"If calculated per year, for one conflict event, the tangible cost ranges from 500 to 15,000 US dollars per hectare per conflict," he said in a written statement in Jakarta on Friday (23/3/2018).

Godwin argues, the cost of the corporation is very significant, and is a barrier to the productivity of the company.

In fact, he added, the cost was potentially bloated because based on case studies showing that 57% of corporations that experienced initial conflicts could experience recurring conflicts in cases that were deemed to have been completed.

He added that the conflict tends to occur during the production period. Of all the results of his case study evaluation, conflicts generally occur in the early days of production.

Usually, at that time, corporations responded not to eliminate income and profits if the operation stops.

Godwin also suggested, the importance of government needs to build the capacity of local stakeholders. "There should be parties in the region who can act as mediators between corporations and communities in land disputes so that the settlement does not drag on," he said.

Meanwhile, another researcher from the same institution, Rimawan Pradipti said the government should fix the governance of land permit to avoid potential future conflicts.

It means that strong institutions are responsible for managing licensing for land clearance in clear and clean locations.

"Currently, the existing institutions are still fragile so the market mechanism is not working well due to the many gaps that can be misused," he said.

Researchers from Agrarian Reform Village Circle (KARSA) Rando Zakaria say, the settlement of land conflicts is not an easy problem, because the main characteristic of the conflict is the dynamic nature of the conflict.

Over time, the original simple conflict can be complex escalated, he added, but on the other hand, prolonged conflict may subside drastically or gradually.

"All parties agree that the conflict raises enormous costs and should be dealt with immediately because it harms all parties," he said.

In resolving the current land conflict, he added, the government must stand in the middle and be fair to all parties not to lose and have a way out. (tar)