The building of a new capital city in Indonesia is causing an Indigenous tribe to fear that their home and land will be taken away from them.

The Balik Indigenous people, native to East Kalimantan, will be among the hardest hit when Indonesia replaces Jakarta – its sprawling and sinking capital city – with a brand-new urban centre, to be known as Nunsantara, on the island of Borneo.

The Indigenous Peoples' Alliance of Nusantara (AMAN) estimate 20,000 Indigenous people will eventually be displaced due to construction, especially around the Sepaku river.

Sibukdin, the leader of the Indigenous Peoples Suku Balik of Sepaku, issued a declaration on behalf of all the Indigenous people of the region, as village evictions were being "normalised" to the public in the name of construction.

Amongst the statements made, Sibukdin declared:

"The Indigenous peoples of Suku Balik refuse to eviction ancestral historical sites, graves or certain places that are believed by the indigenous people Suku Balik to be sites that have been passed down from generation to generation.

The Indigenous Peoples Suku Balik in area of New Capital City of Indonesia rejects the village eviction program.

The Indigenous peoples of Suku Balik agreed not to be relocated or transferred to another area by the government.

The Indigenous peoples Suku Balik strongly refuse to be moved or separated from their ancestral lands."

They also advocated asked for the Indonesian government to focus on Indigenous people, arguing it was irresponsible for groups to lobby the government and make decisions on behalf of Indigenous people without consulting with the different groups.

AMAN's spokesperson, Muhammad Arman, told Al Jazeera that whilst Indigenous people also need development, the building of Nunsantara "will destroy them."

"Indigenous people will end up pushed out of their land, it's just a matter of time," he said.

"Development should not violate the human rights of Indigenous people; they can't just be sacrificed in the name of national development."

Advocacy groups like AMAN argue that one of the main issues facing the Balik people is the proving of land ownership in order to secure financial compensation. The Indonesian government is paying every displaced family, but this doesn't make up for the major displacement.

"Indigenous people's land ownership is not considered to have strong legality, if there is no certificate, Arman said.

"The inheritance of land in Indigenous communities is not seen as legal."

Head of the Department of Politics, Media and Philosophy at La Trobe University, Dr Dirk Tomsa, specialises in Indonesian politics. He told National Indigenous Times he was "afraid" for the local Indigenous population in East Kalimantan.

"Not only will they lose their land and ability to continue their customary farming practices," Dr Tomsa said.

"But they are also likely to face difficulties getting adequate compensation because land prices in the area are already soaring beyond what was offered to them as financial benefit by the government."

He said land grabbing by the government and a lack of concern for the Indigenous population was not something new.

"Given the crucial importance of the new capital project for the Indonesian government, I would not expect this pattern to change."

Echoing the declaration by Sibukdin, Dr. Tromsa told National Indigenous Times.

"Indigenous groups have already repeatedly lamented the lack of proper consultation about the various impacts of the project on their lives"

"These complaints have been echoed by NGOs, advocacy groups and academics, so it seems clear that the government is indeed not receptive to the concerns of the local Indigenous communities."

In March, dozens of local residents along the Sepaku river began erecting posters and signs, protesting the development. Many of these were women, protesting the Kalimantan IV River basin centre project, which is projected to cost 242 billion rupiah. The Women Organization of Indonesia Indigenous Communities Alliance stated that:

"The duty of the state is to pay attention to and provide protection for rights individual or communal rights of Indigenous peoples, who reflecting the cultural values.

"The existence of this flood management / normalization project…will threaten the loss of the Suku Balik Indigenous Settlement, it also indirectly it will also eliminate part of the indigenous history behind, including eliminating the collective rights of the indigenous women."

The government has argued that they do listen to the Indigenous people, and have offered financial incentives, as well as training in new farming techniques and digital literacy. Whilst this has been welcomes by some of the East Kalimantan locals, the rhetoric has been rejected by the Sibukdin, who says the new capital will force their land to be taken.

"We don't want to be relocated from the land of our ancestors," he told Al Jazeera.

"They said this capital is for the welfare of all Indonesians? But which Indonesians? We don't feel it's for us.

"They can easily erase our rights. Such is the greatness of people in authority. But they even moved the graves of our ancestors. The new capital is haunting us and haunting the future of our children too."