Thursday, 17 September 2026
LABUHANBATU UTARA | INDATANEWS.COM - A dispute over an access road between farmers and the operator of the HGU (Right to Cultivate) land at PT SMART Tbk's Adipati Plantation in Aekkorsik Village, Aekkuo District, North Labuhanbatu Regency, North Sumatra, has flared up again. Several farmers are now protesting a ban on moving an excavator across the company's HGU area to clean drainage canals that are considered essential to their agricultural activities.
The conflict escalated on Saturday, August 22, 2026. The excavator owner, accompanied by a plantation supervisor and a heavy-equipment foreman, sought permission for the excavator to pass through the plantation area to reach the TP Siahaan plantation. The machine was intended to clean a drainage canal whose water flow has increasingly been disrupted by the prolonged dry season."We, the farmers and field workers, object to this prohibition because restrictions on the use of the access road make our work more difficult. Now we are also being prevented from bringing in an excavator to clean the drainage canals," said Parumum Hasibuan, a supervisor at the TP Siahaan plantation, to journalists on Sunday, August 23, 2026.
Parumum said he, excavator owner Iwan Pranoto, and the heavy-equipment foreman had been seeking permission since August 18, 2026, for the excavator to enter and pass through the company's HGU area. In their view, the excavator was necessary because cleaning the drainage canals was directly related to agricultural activities and the transportation of residents' harvests.At the same time, Samin, the excavator owner's foreman, worked on a written request for permission to enter the area adjacent to the HGU land of PT SMART Tbk's Adipati Plantation in Marbau.
"The permit application was prepared and submitted on August 20, 2026. The following day, Samin met with Iskandar Simatupang, the manager of PT SMART Tbk's Adipati Plantation, to follow up on the application," he said.According to information from Samin as relayed by Parumum, the plantation manager rejected the request. Samin said the company cited an ongoing legal dispute between TP Siahaan and PT SMART Tbk as the reason for the rejection.
Iwan then sought a direct explanation at midday on August 21, 2026. He contacted the relevant parties to arrange a visit to the Adipati Plantation office. However, they were unable to meet the plantation manager.On August 22, 2026, another attempt was made to obtain permission. The TP Siahaan side was again informed that the company would not allow the excavator to enter. According to their account, the heavy equipment was intended solely to clean the plantation's drainage canals.
Parumum described the canal cleaning as an urgent necessity because the dry season has increasingly affected water flow in several canals."Cleaning the canals is very important because they are gradually drying up during the current dry season. At the same time, we use boats to transport harvested oil palm fruit," Parumum said.
While Parumum was in Medan, the company's security personnel allegedly warned Paris Laia and Aderia Laia, members of Parumum's group, against accessing the TP Siahaan plantation.
According to Parumum, the security personnel said the company had closed the access road because TP Siahaan had made numerous demands related to the plantation while it was being managed by PT SMART Tbk. Based on the information received by his side, the closure was temporary, and reopening the road would depend on TP Siahaan's willingness to reconcile.Parumum also accused the company of blocking the road by dumping mud onto it. He said the mud came from canal-cleaning activities. In addition, he alleged that the company had excavated the roadside along an area measuring nearly one meter, making the road even narrower.
He further said the road had also been damaged by the company's use of heavy machinery. The TP Siahaan side had likewise maintained the road because many farmers use the access route in the Pasar 3, Division 4 area within the HGU land of PT SMART Tbk's Adipati Plantation.Following the dispute, the company also installed a sign prohibiting use of the road. Written permission from PT SMART Tbk was additionally required for the transportation of logistics weighing more than one ton.
According to Parumum, the restriction directly affects 12 farmers who use the road for their agricultural activities.He said local residents had been using the road since 1999. Farmers use it to transport harvests, fertilizer, logistics, and other supplies needed for plantation operations and for people working in the area.
"Restrictions on access have severely affected the community's agricultural activities and increased costs. A harvest that would normally take about five days can now take 11 days. Fertilizing, which normally takes three days, can also take five to six days," he said.
Parumum believes that PT SMART Tbk may have violated the law through what he considers discriminatory measures that have been in place since November 1, 2025. He said the restrictions had made the situation even more difficult for farmers, who were already facing economic challenges.
He also argued that the road, which has been jointly used by local residents for nearly three decades, constitutes an easement or right of way.According to Parumum, the access dispute is linked to the legal case between TP Siahaan and PT SMART Tbk. He said Indonesia's Supreme Court, Mahkamah Agung, had rejected PT SMART Tbk's request for a judicial review.
In Decision No. 1449/Pdt/2025, the company was reportedly ordered to pay more than Rp8.7 billion. The amount consisted of Rp1.7 billion in repayment of funds that TP Siahaan had invested in the company while PT SMART Tbk was managing his approximately 73-hectare plantation, as well as Rp7 billion in losses resulting from delayed oil palm production.The TP Siahaan side hopes the ruling will also pave the way for a resolution to the access problem it has been raising for years. Parumum said his side had also submitted a request for voluntary enforcement of the ruling but had yet to receive a response from PT SMART Tbk.
Meanwhile, Nathan, a spokesperson for PT SMART Tbk, has yet to issue a statement regarding the rejection of permission for the excavator to enter the HGU area of the Adipati Plantation.In an earlier statement, Nathan said the company had never closed the road and had no intention of making it difficult for residents to access the area. He also said the company had already cleaned drainage canals in the Pasar 3 area.
According to Nathan, residents can still travel through the area by motorcycle or motorized three-wheeled vehicles to carry out plantation activities and transport fresh fruit bunches.The latest dispute over access for an excavator once again shows that the conflict between the farmers and the company remains unresolved. On one hand, farmers need access and canal cleaning to maintain their agricultural activities. On the other hand, the company maintains that it continues to provide access for community activities. A solution that accommodates the interests of both sides therefore remains the hope, so that the community's agricultural activities are not further disrupted. (IDNC)
REPORTER: Ucok Bangun/ML Harahap | EDITOR: Fik Sagala
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