Restless Natives

A subsidiary of the Salim Group has been accused of misappropriating village land in Lampung. For New Order era businesses it seems to be rather a hard habit to break.

October 23, 2001

An atmosphere of quiet pervades the village of Surabaya Ilir in Central Lampung. As night falls, the village is consumed by darkness. There is no light. A solitary oil lamp flickers in the house of village representative Abdul Gani, struggling to stay alight against the wind that blows through cracks in the walls. Last Thursday, a group of local residents gathered at Abdul's house, reminiscing about a time when they still had "luxuries" like kerosen...

More Articles