March 11, 2026 | 10:03 am
TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - For nearly the past two years, Simon Petrus Balagaize, Chairperson of the Malind Kondo Digul Indigenous Community Forum, has grown increasingly close to Yasinta Moiwend, 61. Wherever the Marind-Anim indigenous woman goes, Simon accompanies her. They share the same goal: to save Marind-Anim land from destruction caused by the national strategic project (PSN) to develop rice fields and oil palm plantations, which the administration of President Prabowo Subianto is accelerating.
The 43-year-old man’s connection with Mama Yasinta began when Wanam village in Ilwayab District, Merauke Regency, South Papua, was overrun by thousands of excavators beginning in May 2024. The heavy equipment arrived in several waves, accompanied by thousands of soldiers. Without much explanation, the government—assisted by mining entrepreneur Andi Syamsuddin Arsyad, better known as Haji Isam—cleared hectares upon hectares of forest in Wanam.
Dozens of clans holding customary land rights in Wanam opposed the clearing because it proceeded without their consent. Dialogue took place several times but ended in deadlock. Residents then staged demonstrations while carrying out customary blockade actions by planting red crosses. “At that time Mama Yasinta had already stood up to resist the food estate project,” Simon said when contacted on Thursday, March 5, 2026.
The government did not respond to the community’s criticism. Several clan representatives, including Yasinta, traveled to Jakarta in November 2024 to express their rejection of the destruction of the Land of Papua. Simon joined the group because his own village was also included in the planned evictions. Various efforts failed to produce results, even though they returned to the State Palace again in 2025.
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