Land Tenure Security and Peacebuilding in Aceh, Indonesia

Abstract

In this article, I address whether activities meant to improve land tenure security may have supported or undermined peace-building during the postwar stabilization and transition period of 2005–2008. In 2005, the population of Aceh began recovery from both a 29-year separatist war and the 2004 Indian Ocean Tsunami. Property and tenure systems were severely damaged by both the war and tsunami. The primary project designed to support land tenuresecurity during this period was an internationally fundedand state-administered project called the Reconstruction of Aceh Land Administration System (RALAS). RALAS successfully registered land in several areas of Aceh and rebuilt much of the technical capacity of the state land administration system. Yet, the linkage of RALAS primarily to post-disaster activities meant that connections between land tenure security and postwar dynamics were often missed. As a result, actors involved in RALAS did not clearly identify or take advantage of opportunities to link land tenure security to peace-building. In addition, a lack of understanding of fundamental legal problems typical of postwar scenarios caused several problems for the implementation of RALAS. This article concludes with lessons learned regarding the timing, location, institutional capacities, and methods of implementing land reform for peace building.