Fence reads "Who does it belong to?"

The discovery of a mysterious 30.16 kilometre bamboo sea fence in the Java Sea north of Tangerang, West Java, has left many people in Indonesia disconcerted and raised concerns about the privatisation of Indonesian marine waters by private corporations.

For almost a week after local fishers raised the alarm, the authorities and residents have been trying to figure out who and why the structure was put up.

The fence, which is six metres high and made of woven bamboo poles and sandbag weights, spans six sub-districts and covers the villages of Kronjo, Kemiri, Mauk, Sukadiri, Pakuhaji and Teluknaga.

Fishers have complained that the fence interferes with their work with local authorities saying it now takes up to an hour and a half longer for them to reach the open sea. 

Many have speculated that it is part of the massive Pantai Indah Kapuk II (PIK 2) residential and commercial project that once completed, will run from the north of the capital Jakarta to Tangerang regency on its western border.

According to the head of the sub-district that includes Ketapang, the fence delimits the area of a port envisaged as part of the PIK 2 project.

In early 2024, several civil society organisations criticised then president Joko "Jokowi" Widodo for designating the PIK 2 – which is a private development – as a National Strategic Project (PSN).

Such a designation not only allows the military and police to provide security, but it also protects developers from lawsuits, cuts red tape and allows them to receive government assistance in buying up land. On several occasions Widodo has been accused of favouring large real estate interests to the detriment of local communities.

At a press conference, a spokesperson for the project categorically denied any involvement, stressing that the PIK 2 project began in 2009 and had no relation to the mystery fence.

Fishers from the Ketapang Village in Tangerang regency however told the environmental news site Mongabay that after a group of boats tried to remove the fence, employees of a property developer quickly rebuilt it, showing a permit issued by the village administration.

In response to the public outcry over the fence, President Prabowo Subianto has ordered the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries to seal off access to the fence.

A local fisher group Jaringan Rakyat Pantura (JPR) has subsequently claimed that the fence was erected to prevent coastal erosion. "The sea fence that stretches along the north coast of Tangerang Regency was deliberately built independently by the community", claimed a JRP member.

The claim however has been met with scepticism. "Since when have Indonesian fishers invested such large sums to tackle marine erosion?", said Felix, a local resident, when speaking to AsiaNews.

Doubts about the JRP's claim were also raised by the Indonesian Ombudsman which found that the project required billions of rupiah with workers reportedly paid 100,000 rupiah per day.

[Based on a news report by Asia News titled "Mystery surrounds a 30 km long bamboo fence along the Java Sea coastline".]