Faisal Maliki Baskoro, Jakarta – Indigenous organizations on Wednesday warned that industrial expansion continues to displace indigenous peoples across Indonesia at an alarming scale, as a new report documented more than 11.7 million hectares of customary lands taken over the past decade.
The Indigenous Peoples Alliance of the Archipelago (AMAN), the Global Alliance of Territorial Communities (GATC), regional Indigenous federations, and Earth Insight found that Indonesia has recorded nearly 700 land conflicts in the past decade linked to mining, logging, oil and gas, geothermal development, and other extractive activities.
According to the report, Indonesia's Indigenous customary territories span around 33.6 million hectares that protect biodiversity and carbon-rich landscapes. Yet only a fraction of those lands have been formally recognized.
The Central Statistics Agency (BPS) data cited by the group suggests less than 1 percent of more than 25 million hectares of indigenous territories have received legal recognition, while palm oil, forestry, and mining concessions jointly cover tens of millions of hectares.
The study also highlighted the case of the O'Hongana Manyawa, one of the last nomadic forest communities in Indonesia, whose territory on Halmahera has been overlapped by more than 65,000 hectares of mining concessions involving at least 19 operators.
"The expansion of mining, palm oil, and development projects has taken more than 11.7 million hectares of customary territories in a decade," AMAN Secretary-General Rukka Sombolinggi said. "Sustainability can only be achieved through the sovereignty of Indigenous Peoples."
The report arrives ahead of COP30 in Brazil, where indigenous coalitions aim to press governments to embed land rights recognition, defender protections, and direct financing for Indigenous communities into climate policy.
While diagnosing growing pressure, including from energy transition-linked metals, the document also spotlights locally led wins. On Flores Island, the Gendang Ngkiong community secured recognition for 892 hectares of customary land through participatory mapping. In North Sumatra, the Ompu Umbak Siallagan community won legal acknowledgment after decades of conflict with pulp concessions.
"The world has a viable roadmap toward regeneration, but only if Indigenous stewardship is fully recognized and financed," said GATC Executive Secretary Juan Carlos Jintiach.