(2 Mar 1998) Indonesian/Nat
While Indonesia's economic and political woes dominate the country's politicians, a group of farmers are fighting to bring another issue to the limelight.
Hundreds of rural residents living on the island of Sulawesi want the government to address the country's transmigration policy, which has moved thousands of people from Java, to the less populated islands.
Economic crisis or not this is back breaking work.
But rain, hail or shine these fields in the rural heartland of Sulawesi, must be tended - and what makes this work even more difficult, is that the land they farm is not their own.
These men moved here from Lamongan in East Java 26 years ago.
Their hometown was hit by flooding and the government convinced them to relocate to the eastern part of the island of Sulawesi - one thousand kilometres away.
In a bid to entice them to move, the Indonesian government offered each man two hectares of land.
Special certificates were handed out, but when the time came to claim the land, local residents refused - those migrants who did manage to get land caused anger among locals who lost land without any payment from authorities.
Wardji, who took part in the transmigration scheme, has been leading a fight to try and get these people the land they were promised.
25 years on, the battle still continues, but many are now tired and giving up the fight.
While the population of this small community has remained steady at least a thousand migrants have gone back to Java, hurt by broken promises and disillusioned with the transmigration scheme.
SOUNDBITE: (Bahasa Indonesia)
"Our old place was flooded. We came here because the government promised to give each family a house and 2 hectares of land. But we have already waited for more than 25 years, and still we haven't received the land."
SUPER CAPTION: Wardji Farmer
However the government did give them houses.
Many still live in what resemble small wooden huts they originally moved into more than two decades ago.
Some luckier people got money from relatives in Java and bought their own land.
They now employ the landless majority, and have been able to add some modern conveniences to the neighbourhood.
However, most, like Wardji still want the government to come through on their promise.
Wardji and the rest of the migrants have been working on a letter writing campaign and will ask Indonesian President Suharto to help out after his expected re-election this month.
They have even hired a lawyer, but so far have had no success.
SOUNDBITE: (Bahasa Indonesia)
"We sent the letter to the Minister of Transmigration, the Vice President and now the president. As of now we have received no response."
SUPER CAPTION: Wardji, Farmer
The Transmigration Ministry has refused to comment on the plight of the Kendari migrants or any issues dealing with the controversial transmigration policy.
While the program is intended to thin out the overpopulation of Java, locals on the smaller islands are less than welcoming.
But the migrants say they will continue their fight - hopeful the government will eventually live up to its promise.
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