Fact Check: Is Viral Video of Land Eviction Linked to Village Cooperative?

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - A video circulating on social media platform X [archive] and Facebook on August 1, 2026, claims to show the eviction of residents from their land to make way for the operational site of a Merah Putih Village Cooperative (Koperasi Desa Merah Putih).The video shows dozens of uniformed personnel dismantling a hut on an oil palm plantation while a group of women are cooking nearby. The video's narration claims that no community businesses are allowed within a two-kilometer radius of the cooperative.Is the video actually related to the construction of a Merah Putih Village Cooperative?FACT-CHECKTempo verified the claim using a reverse image search and by tracing reports from credible news sources.The findings show that while alleged land evictions for Merah Putih Village Cooperatives have been reported in other locations, the video in question actually shows the demolition of farmers' property in Laoli Village for a national strategic project (PSN) operated by PT Indonesia Hualy Industrial Park (IHIP).The video is identical to footage uploaded by the Legal Aid Institute (LBH) Makassar on X and Instagram on July 31, 2026. The ESANEWS_TV YouTube account and the @mongabayindonesia Instagram account also uploaded similar footage.The incident occurred when the East Luwu Regency Government deployed hundreds of personnel from the Public Order Agency (Satpol PP), police and the Indonesian Military (TNI) to demolish farmers' homes in Laoli Village, Malili District, East Luwu, South Sulawesi, on Friday, July 31, 2026.Comparison of clips from the circulating post and the original video uploaded by LBH Makassar on X and Instagram on July 31, 2026.The eviction of the farmers' homes was carried out to make way for the development of an industrial area operated by PT Indonesia Hualy Industrial Park (IHIP). Residents rejected the eviction, saying they had been managing the land since 1998.LBH Makassar researcher Siti Nur Alisa said the East Luwu Regency Government had unilaterally claimed 395 hectares of land in Laoli Hamlet by issuing a land management right (HPL) in 2024 without transparency or the involvement of the farmers.M. Ismail, a representative of the South Sulawesi People's Coalition Against National Strategic Projects (Koalisi Rakyat Sulsel Lawan PSN), said 17 farmers' homes were demolished. Several residents suffered injuries to their legs, stomachs, necks and faces, while some were also handcuffed.“The incident in Harapan Village was not merely an ordinary land eviction, but an example of the use of state power to seize people's living spaces for the interests of investment,” Ismail said, as quoted by IDN Times South Sulawesi on Sunday, August 2, 2026.Evictions for Merah Putih Village CooperativesAlleged land evictions linked to the development of Merah Putih Village Cooperatives have indeed been reported by the media in several locations.In Botto Mallangga Village, Enrekang Regency, South Sulawesi, for example, farmers' land that was the subject of a dispute with state-owned plantation company PT Perkebunan Nusantara XIV was cleared on April 10, 2026, for the cooperative project.A similar case occurred in Munjul Village, Pandeglang Regency, Banten, in February 2026. The government demolished the homes of six families occupying a former village-managed plot measuring 30 by 20 meters.Meanwhile, in East Flores Regency, East Nusa Tenggara, the construction of a cooperative triggered clashes among residents in Narasaosina Village and Bele Hamlet in Waiburak Village, Adonara Timur District, in July 2026.A civil society coalition called for the project to be halted, arguing that it had triggered a new conflict, although the Cooperatives Ministry denied that the construction was connected to the clashes between residents.CONCLUSIONThe claim that the video shows the eviction of residents' land for the operation of a Merah Putih Village Cooperative is misleading. The video actually shows a land eviction linked to an agrarian conflict over a national strategic industrial estate project in East Luwu Regency, South Sulawesi.TEMPO FACT CHECK TEAM**Do you have information or claims that you want to have fact-checked? Contact our ChatBot. You can also send criticism, objections, or feedback for this Fact-Checking article via email to cekfakta@tempo.co.id.