Asia regional exchange on social inclusiveness and youth: what I learned

The event was organised by the ILC, the Coalition for Tenure Justice in Indonesia, Samdhana Institute and the Tenure Facility. It brought together selected partners, members and allies working in advancing communities for tenure security, and I have been nominated by the Community Development Association (CDA), Bangladesh, a member of ILC. 

With ILC member the Consortium for Agrarian Reform (KPA), I went to Pemuteran and Sumberklampok villages in North Bali, Indonesia, and visited two communities: one community had had their land redistributed, and another community, that lived in the forest area, was still struggling for the recognition of their land rights. We met with peasant unions from the two communities and learned from them.

Strengthening youth and women through education

KPA organised ARAS (Academy of Agrarian Reform), an education platform to strengthen the peasant union members. Raising awareness of women’s access to land rights is one of the key activities of ARAS, as many women peasants in Indonesia are not familiar with this idea. ARAS also emphasises the importance of making long-lasting collaboration between the women and men peasants in an effort to realise genuine agrarian reform.

The youth also participate in ARAS to gain an understanding of the importance of land rights. The programme also seeks to give young people practical skills like advocacy, journalism, and campaigning, among others. ARAS also acts as a regeneration process of the agrarian reform movement, with the aim of bringing more young people to leadership positions in land rights organisations.

Farming for wellbeing and sustainability 

Peasants in Sumberklampok and Pemuteran Village produce chillies, corn, sweet potatoes, and sorghum. They also formulate and sell organic products from their yields, such as moringa powder, coconut oil, organic soap, coffee, different kinds of beans, and more. 

KPA is currently building an online marketplace to support peasant unions in selling their products, and the profit from the sales would be directly collected by the unions. In addition, KPA also organises a series of training on production and management systems to improve the economic welfare of the peasant union members. 

The two communities also rely on livestock farming as their source of income, and they also produce organic fertilisers. We were impressed by their ability to organise themselves while maintaining a sustainable practice in food and agricultural production. 

A bottom-up approach to land recognition 

Under Indonesia’s Agrarian Reform programme, the identification of land to be redistributed was made by the government through a top-down process. As a result, some areas identified as land objects for Agrarian Reform were found to be not suitable for agriculture or farming. In addition, to be eligible for the Agrarian Reform program, the government requires that the land be free from any other claim or overlapping rights, meaning that disputed lands or agrarian conflict areas cannot qualify for redistribution as they do not fulfil these criteria. 

To respond to this challenge, KPA has developed a bottom-up approach where the communities themselves define priority lands. KPA calls this approach “Priority Location for Agrarian Reform” (LPRA), which they believe is an effective way to mobilise and strengthen people's organisations fighting to recognise their land rights. 

Threats of land grabbing from private companies are still a reality. In Sumberklampok Village, the community is facing a challenge related to the claim of forest areas. Indonesia's forest area is under the authority of the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, while land area is under the authority of the Agrarian and Spatial Planning Ministry/National Land Agency. This sectoral division of the national territory clashes with the communities’ vision of one unified territory and constitutes a major obstacle to the recognition of Indigenous territories encompassing forest, land, as well as coastal and marine areas. 

Areas classified by the government as forests are not allowed for farming. This is why the peasant unions demand the government recognise their land rights in the framework of Indonesia’s Agrarian Reform. The peasant unions agreed on what they consider fair land tenure security for all union members and how much land is used for agriculture and animal husbandry, among others. 

What I recommend

Access to land rights addresses human rights, as the right to land is equal to the right to life. In the face of the climate crisis, tenure security can play an important role in reducing inequality and supporting climate change adaptation and mitigation. Secure land tenure is also key to achieving ecologically sound livelihoods for the people.

Governments across the globe need to acknowledge sustainable land use policies with a view to save the younger generation, who will lead our future. Education on land tenure security for youth living in rural areas is also a small step towards a more just future. 

This is also one of the key priorities of CDA in Dinajpur, Bangladesh. CDA has seen the growth of People’s Organisations (POs) advocating for tenure rights in the country and an increase in women and youth engagement in policy advocacy. I would be happy to welcome ILC members in Dinajpur for another learning exchange opportunity like this and share our ideas.