Indonesia legal aid group condemns police shooting of villagers in Central Kalimantan plantation

Indonesia’s leading legal aid organisation has intensified its criticism of the authorities following the shooting of four villagers in Central Kalimantan, saying the incident exposes systemic violence linked to security arrangements in the oil palm plantation sector.

In a statement, the Indonesian Legal Aid Foundation (YLBHI) said the shooting of residents of Kenyala Village on 22 December 2025 illustrated how communities living around plantation concessions remain vulnerable when police officers appear to act as an extension of corporate security rather than as protectors of citizens.

The incident took place inside the concession of PT Karunia Kencana Permaisejati in Telawang Subdistrict, East Kotawaringin Regency. Four residents were shot during what police described as a joint security operation.

One victim, identified only as F, suffered a serious gunshot wound beneath the armpit that penetrated his body and was admitted to intensive care at dr Murjani Regional General Hospital in Sampit. Three others — identified as AM, J and IS — were wounded in the arm, leg and hand, and were treated at the Telawang community health centre.

YLBHI said the use of live ammunition constituted a violation of police procedure and a grave breach of human rights, including the rights to security, bodily integrity and freedom from violence.

Under Indonesian law and international standards, it stressed, law enforcement officers are bound by the principles of legality and proportionality and may use force only as a last resort.

“Firing live ammunition in the absence of any threat to life is excessive and unlawful,” YLBHI said, adding that allegations of theft could never justify such force.

The organisation also pointed to what it described as the long-standing involvement of police officers in plantation security operations — often referred to as the “security business” of agribusiness companies — and warned that without addressing this structural issue, similar violence would continue.

Alleged shooting and customary investigation

Details of the shooting first emerged through a Facebook post by Gahara Ramadhan, chair of the East Kotawaringin Dayak Customary Council (DAD Kotim). He alleged that members of Indonesia’s paramilitary police unit, the Mobile Brigade (Brimob), had opened fire on four local residents at around 4.00 pm local time.

Gahara later confirmed the incident and said the Dayak Customary Council had formed the Pandawa Lima Team to conduct an independent field investigation. He said the council had coordinated with the damang, or customary head, of Telawang Subdistrict to jointly establish the chronology of events.

According to preliminary information gathered by the council, the four residents were allegedly collecting oil palm fruit inside the company’s plantation when they were pursued by officers believed to be Brimob personnel. Witnesses told the council that the residents were intercepted and then shot. Gahara stressed that these accounts would be verified through the ongoing customary investigation.

He said a customary hearing would be convened once the investigation was completed, describing the case as serious enough to involve the Mantir Basarah Hai, the customary judicial council. “This is a major case that demands our full attention,” he said.

Explanation from Central Kalimantan Police

The Central Kalimantan Police said they were still verifying the circumstances of the shooting. The head of public relations for the Central Kalimantan Regional Police said officers had received information that several injured people were being treated at a hospital in East Kotawaringin.

According to police, personnel involved in a joint security operation had reported that several members of the public were suspected of stealing fresh fruit bunches of oil palm. Officers arrived at the site at around 3.30 pm local time and initially attempted to stop the alleged theft through what police described as “persuasive measures”.

After warnings were issued, police said the individuals allegedly resisted and attempted to flee.

Officers then fired warning shots into the air. Police claimed the situation escalated and posed a danger to security personnel, prompting what they described as “firm and measured action”. It was only later, they said, that information emerged about gunshot injuries among members of the public.

Police said investigations were ongoing to determine whether the bullets that caused the injuries came from police firearms or from another source. They urged the public not to draw conclusions while the investigation was still under way.

YLBHI demands accountability

YLBHI said responsibility for the incident did not lie solely with officers on the ground but extended up the chain of command. It called on the East Kotawaringin Police Chief and the Central Kalimantan Regional Police Chief to provide a transparent explanation to the public as to why police were deployed to protect corporate assets rather than to safeguard citizens.

The organisation said the case echoed a previous incident in Seruyan Regency in June 2024, when Brimob officers opened fire during a plantation-related conflict, killing one resident. The repetition of such cases, YLBHI argued, showed that violence in plantation areas was structural rather than incidental.

Describing the shooting as a warning that security governance in plantation areas had reached a point of crisis, YLBHI called for an independent and transparent investigation involving institutions outside the police.

It urged the National Police Chief to evaluate regional police leadership, demanded a comprehensive internal investigation by the police’s professional standards division, called for oversight by the national police commission, and asked the National Human Rights Commission (Komnas HAM) to conduct an in-depth human rights inquiry.

“Without exposing the root of the problem,” YLBHI warned, “similar acts of violence will continue to recur.”