Conflict and Resistance in Oil Palm Corporation ; An Analysis of Corporate Relations, Labor, and The ‘Ninja’ Phenomenon at Aceh Tamiang
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.29103/icospolhum.v4i.374Keywords:
Oil Palm Plantation, Bargaining Power, , Conflict and Resistance, Unequal Distribution of Benefits, NinjaAbstract
This paper discusses the situation of oil palm plantations in Kecamatan Seruway, Aceh Tamiang. In terms of historical trajectory, the plantations in Kecamatan Seruway have undergone various changes in land ownership, starting from the Dutch colonial era with rubber as the primary commodity, transitioning to involvement with DI/TII members, and eventually obtaining rights as Hak Guna Usaha (HGU) under the name of PT Mopoli Raya. Although some land is owned by the local community bordering the company's HGU, conflicts that arise tend to be related to labor rights perceived as commodities within the oil palm plantation. Using a descriptive qualitative research approach, the results of field research indicate that conflicts in Kecamatan Seruway are closely related to the relationship between the corporate plantation and its workers. While there have been some negotiation efforts by former members of the Oil Palm Workers Union regarding wages, production processes, and inhumane management practices, the primary conflicts appear to revolve around labor issues. However, the oil palm companies are deeply integrated into the daily life of the community, given the overlapping locations with their HGU areas. The presence of these companies has raised awareness that they should provide benefits to the community, whether through corporate social responsibility, local labor recruitment, or smallholder plantation schemes. The community recognizes the importance of playing a role in negotiations with the company, and formal village head positions are considered one means to enhance bargaining power in interactions with the company. However, the 'Ninja' phenomenon, which involves the theft of oil palm fruit within HGU areas, has emerged as a form of resistance to the perceived uneven distribution of benefits from the plantation. Overall, conflicts in Kecamatan Seruway are related to the relationship between the oil palm company and its workers, as well as the community's efforts to obtain benefits from the company's presence. The 'Ninja' phenomenon reflects resistance to the unequal distribution of benefits from the plantation
References
O. Hospes, C. Kroeze, P. Oosterveer, G. Schouten, and M. Slingerland, “New generation of knowledge: Towards an inter- and transdisciplinary framework for sustainable pathways of palm oil production,” NJAS Wageningen J. Life Sci., vol. 80, no. 1, pp. 75–84, Mar. 2017, doi: 10.1016/j.njas.2017.01.001.
S. B. Hansen, R. Padfield, K. Syayuti, S. Evers, Z. Zakariah, and S. Mastura, “Trends in global palm oil sustainability research,” J. Clean. Prod., vol. 100, pp. 140–149, Aug. 2015, doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2015.03.051.
L. Reijnders and M. A. J. Huijbregts, “Palm oil and the emission of carbon-based greenhouse gases,” J. Clean. Prod., vol. 16, no. 4, pp. 477–482, Mar. 2008, doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2006.07.054.
O. A. Rojas-Castillo, S. Kepfer-Rojas, N. Vargas, and D. Jacobsen, “Forest buffer-strips mitigate the negative impact of oil palm plantations on stream communities,” Sci. Total Environ., vol. 873, p. 162259, May 2023, doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162259.
B. Azhar, A. Oon, A. M. Lechner, A. Ashton-Butt, M. S. Yahya, and D. B. Lindenmayer, “Large-scale industrial plantations are more likely than smallholdings to threaten biodiversity from oil palm replanting spatial disturbances,” Glob. Ecol. Conserv., vol. 45, p. e02513, Sep. 2023, doi: 10.1016/j.gecco.2023.e02513.
K. Nishina et al., “Dissolved N2O concentrations in oil palm plantation drainage in a peat swamp of Malaysia,” Sci. Total Environ., vol. 872, p. 162062, May 2023, doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.162062.
C. M. Abazue, A. C. Er, A. S. A. Ferdous Alam, and H. Begum, “Oil Palm Smallholders and Its Sustainability Practices in Malaysia,” Mediterr. J. Soc. Sci., Dec. 2015, doi: 10.5901/mjss.2015.v6n6s4p482.
E. Meijaard et al., “The environmental impacts of palm oil in context,” Nat. Plants, vol. 6, no. 12, pp. 1418–1426, Dec. 2020, doi: 10.1038/s41477-020-00813-w.
R. Cazzolla Gatti, J. Liang, A. Velichevskaya, and M. Zhou, “Sustainable palm oil may not be so sustainable,” Sci. Total Environ., vol. 652, pp. 48–51, Feb. 2019, doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2018.10.222.
L. M. Noirot et al., “Impacts of empty fruit bunch applications on soil organic carbon in an industrial oil palm plantation,” J. Environ. Manage., vol. 317, p. 115373, Sep. 2022, doi: 10.1016/j.jenvman.2022.115373.
R. Astuti et al., “Making illegality visible: The governance dilemmas created by visualising illegal palm oil plantations in Central Kalimantan, Indonesia,” Land use policy, vol. 114, p. 105942, Mar. 2022, doi: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2021.105942.
Z. Ogahara, K. Jespersen, I. Theilade, and M. R. Nielsen, “Review of smallholder palm oil sustainability reveals limited positive impacts and identifies key implementation and knowledge gaps,” Land use policy, vol. 120, 2022, doi: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2022.106258.
O. Pye, “Commodifying sustainability: Development, nature and politics in the palm oil industry,” World Dev., vol. 121, pp. 218–228, Sep. 2019, doi: 10.1016/j.worlddev.2018.02.014.
R. E. de Vos, A. Suwarno, M. Slingerland, P. J. van der Meer, and J. M. Lucey, “Pre-certification conditions of independent oil palm smallholders in Indonesia. Assessing prospects for RSPO certification,” Land use policy, vol. 130, p. 106660, Jul. 2023, doi: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2023.106660.
A. Ruml et al., “Smallholders in agro-industrial production: Lessons for rural development from a comparative analysis of Ghana’s and Indonesia’s oil palm sectors,” Land use policy, vol. 119, p. 106196, Aug. 2022, doi: 10.1016/j.landusepol.2022.106196.
I. A. Rum, A. Tukker, A. de Koning, and A. A. Yusuf, “Impact assessment of the EU import ban on Indonesian palm oil: Using environmental extended multi-scale MRIO,” Sci. Total Environ., vol. 853, p. 158695, Dec. 2022, doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.158695.
K. T. Tan, K. T. Lee, A. R. Mohamed, and S. Bhatia, “Palm oil: Addressing issues and towards sustainable development,” Renew. Sustain. Energy Rev., vol. 13, no. 2, pp. 420–427, Feb. 2009, doi: 10.1016/j.rser.2007.10.001.
M. Corciolani, G. Gistri, and S. Pace, “Legitimacy struggles in palm oil controversies: An institutional perspective,” J. Clean. Prod., vol. 212, pp. 1117–1131, Mar. 2019, doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2018.12.103.
N. Yuslaini, U. Suwaryo, N. A. Deliarnoor, and D. Sri Kartini, “Palm oil industry and investment development in Dumai City, Indonesia: A focus on local economy development and sustainability,” Cogent Soc. Sci., vol. 9, no. 1, Dec. 2023, doi: 10.1080/23311886.2023.2235780.
R. Rokhim, A. D. Januari, U. Atik, S. Shara, and N. Rusdayanti, “Palm oil social conflict resolution and mediation in Jambi,” Cogent Soc. Sci., vol. 6, no. 1, Jan. 2020, doi: 10.1080/23311886.2020.1812831.
N. K. Abram et al., “Oil palm–community conflict mapping in Indonesia: A case for better community liaison in planning for development initiatives,” Appl. Geogr., vol. 78, pp. 33–44, 2017.
B. Wassmann, M. Siegrist, and C. Hartmann, “Palm oil and the Roundtable of Sustainable Palm Oil (RSPO) label: Are Swiss consumers aware and concerned?,” Food Qual. Prefer., vol. 103, p. 104686, Jan. 2023, doi: 10.1016/j.foodqual.2022.104686.
M. P. J. Tabe-Ojong, E. L. Molua, M. A. Nanfouet, C. J. Mkong, V. Kiven, and V. A. Ntegang, “Oil palm production, income gains, and off-farm employment among independent producers in Cameroon,” Ecol. Econ., vol. 208, p. 107817, Jun. 2023, doi: 10.1016/j.ecolecon.2023.107817.
P. H. Yap, J. M. de Man, and L. de Man, “Polymorphism of palm oil and palm oil products,” J. Am. Oil Chem. Soc., vol. 66, no. 5, pp. 693–697, May 1989, doi: 10.1007/BF02669954.
F. Boons and A. Mendoza, “Constructing sustainable palm oil: how actors define sustainability,” J. Clean. Prod., vol. 18, no. 16–17, pp. 1686–1695, Nov. 2010, doi: 10.1016/j.jclepro.2010.07.003.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
Copyright (c) 2024 M. Nazaruddin, Abdullah Akhyar Nasution, Ade Ikhsan Kamil, Awaludin Arifin, Faizul Aulia
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.
Authors retain the copyright and grant the journal the right of first publication. This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 that allows others to share the work with an acknowledgement of the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 that allows others to share work with an acknowledgement of the works authorship and initial publication in this journal.
All articles in this journal may be disseminated by listing valid sources, and the article's title should not be omitted. The content of the article is liable to the author.
Authors are able to enter into separate, additional contractual arrangements for the non-exclusive distribution of the journal's published version of the work (e.g., post it to an institutional repository or publish it in a book), with an acknowledgement of its initial publication in this journal.
Authors are permitted and encouraged to post their work online (e.g., in institutional repositories or on their website) before and during the submission process, as it can lead to productive exchanges and earlier and greater citation of published work.
In the dissemination of articles, the author must declare the Proceedings of International Conference on Social Science, Political Science, and Humanities (ICoSPOLHUM) as the first party to publish the article.
