Protecting a farmer from losing his land and going to prison

A farmer in Sulawesi claimed that a company had taken over the use of his land, even though he had a certificate to prove his ownership. The company had him charged him with falsifying the land certificate, pointing out discrepancies between the certificate and entries in the land registration book, and the farmer was threatened with one year’s imprisonment.

LBH Makassar called as witnesses the traditional leaders of the communitywho knew the history of the land’s ownership, arguing that the information on the farmer’s land certificate was valid and perhaps had not been altered. On February 14, 2014 the judges declared the accused not guilty of all charges and released him.