Sikka Residents Face Displacement Amid Land Dispute Over Traditional Land Rights

In Nangahale Village, Talibura District, Sikka Regency, East Nusa Tenggara (NTT), Indonesia, residents were devastated on January 22, 2025, when PT Kristus Raja Maumere (Krisrama) carried out land evictions. At the time, eight villagers were engaged in legal proceedings at the Maumere District Court. Upon returning to their village, residents witnessed their homes and crops destroyed, with villagers being forced to vacate their land, which the company claims falls under its concession. Antonius Toni, a 61-year-old resident, was shocked and grief-stricken to see his home, painstakingly built over years, reduced to rubble by excavators. He stated that he has submitted the remaining remnants of his belongings to the police as evidence, but no action has been taken to date. Currently, Toni and many other affected villagers are displaced, seeking shelter at their children's homes. The evictions are based on Krisrama's claim to a "Right to Cultivate" (HGU) certificate for its coconut plantation. However, according to the Sikka Regency branch of the Alliance of Indigenous Peoples of the Archipelago (AMAN), the company's HGU expired in 2013, and there are uncertainties surrounding its renewal application. This situation highlights a protracted land dispute between villagers asserting their traditional land rights (Ulayat) and the company's claims.