Expansion and Conflict at Oil Palm Plantations: A Case in Terantang Manuk Village, Pelalawan District, Riau

Abstract

The massive expansion of oil palm plantations has social, economic and environmental impacts. One of the social impacts caused by the expansion of palm oil plantations is social conflict, so the purpose of this research is to identify and analyze the relationship between expansion and conflict in oil palm plantations in Terantang Manuk Village, Pelalawan-Riau. Palm oil plantation expansion is one of the factors for the emergence of social conflicts in rural areas. This research was conducted using a qualitative approach. Primary data were collected through in-depth interviews with the determination of the informants using purposive sampling technique. There were 16 informants who were interviewed, consisting of the village head, hamlet head, customary chairperson (ninik mamak), community leaders, chairperson of Cooperative Terantang Jaya Mandiri (TJM), leader of youth organization, and leader of college student organization. Secondary data quoted from archives of public correspondence, court decisions, and information from the mass media. The results of this study indicate that there are two types of expansion, namely informal expansion and formal expansion. Informal expansion only causes land conflicts, while formal expansion causes more diverse conflicts, namely land conflicts and conflicts due to oil palm plantation activities.