Land Tenure Conflict in the Middle of Africa van Java (Baluran National Park)

AbstractBaluran National Park is one of the first five National Parks in Indonesia and considered as National Park in 1980 coincided in World Conservation Strategy Day. Baluran National Park is located in Situbondo, East Java, and often called as ‘Africa van Java’. Currently, management of Baluran National Park faces up social problem due to the presence of settlement (illegal enclave) in the middle of this national park. This study has two research objectives as follows: (1) Creating social profile of society living in disputed territory; and (2) Outlining conflict map by explain contexts of conflict, actors, issues, dynamics, and solution. The research method which was chosen to frame overall assessment of solving conflict problem in Baluran National Park is a Case Study. This research tried to reconstruct the problem occurred with consider conflict facts and interpret behind the facts reflexively. This research series are divided into two focus of studies, there are social profiling of the society who live in disputed area and conflict mapping.The result of this research showed that people are living in disputed area inside Baluran National Park were originally laborer of PT. Gunung Gumitir who hold Hak Guna Usaha (HGU) –a right to use an area or land for economic purpose in Labuhan Merak and Gunung Masigit (inside the Baluran National Park area). The settlement grew bigger and reached 328 families (1.069 persons). Farming and breeding were two main occupations in the area. The existence of settlement inside Baluran National Park could endanger ecosystem sustainability. Uncoordinated policy in determining area status among ministries has become the source of land tenure conflict in Baluran National Park. This conflict had been emerged since 1975 and experienced 3 phase of dynamics that followed by issue alteration and main actors. Until this moment, the conflict is still remaining unresolved with the result that there is possibility of issue alteration, main actor shifting, and creating a new conflict