Environmental Groups angry at Indonesian Forest Plan

Environmental Groups angry at Indonesian Forest Plan



Feb 2007 - Conservation 
groups from Indonesia and the United States are criticizing 
World Bank support for an expansion of industrial forest 
plantations in Indonesia. The bank's report, issued Wednesday 
in Jakarta, identifies as "among the highest priorities," 
support for the Indonesian Department of Forestry's plan for 
accelerated plantation development. 
"In Indonesia, plantation establishment has traditionally been 
linked to extraordinary deforestation, uncontrolled forest 
fires impacting local communities and neighboring countries 
and significant human rights violations," said Rivani Noor of 
CAPPA, the Community Alliance for PUlp and Paper Advocacy, on 
the Indonesian island of Sumatra. 
The World Bank report, "Sustaining Economic Growth, Rural 
Livelihoods, and Environmental Benefits: Strategic Options for 
Forest Assistance in Indonesia," explores what the bank calls 
"the challenge of harnessing the country's significant forest 
resources to better contribute to growth, rural livelihoods 
and environmental protection." 
Logging operations on Halmahera island North Maluku province 
of Indonesia, are focused on lowland forest, the most 
important habitat for many bird species. 
While the bank says "poor governance has led to considerable 
environmental degradation: over 25 million hectares of the 
forest estate - an area the size of Great Britain - no longer 
has trees," the Indonesian plan would establish five million 
hectares of industrial timber plantations and two million 
hectares of so-called "community forests." 
Neither of these forest management types would be good for 
Indonesia, the environmental groups warn. 
"The push to establish between five to seven million hectares 
of industrial plantations will cause tremendous harm to our 
forests and the women and men whose livelihoods depend on 
them," said Farah Sofa of WALHI, Friends of the Earth 
Indonesia, Indonesia's largest environmental group. 
"So-called plantation - community "partnership" programs have 
generated conflicts, impoverishment, and environmental 
degradation for decades, said Rukaiyah Rofiq of Yayasan 
Keadilan Rakyat, a local group based in Jambi Province of 
Indonesia. 
"Lack of recognition of adat and community land and forest 
rights, the use of military security forces on behalf of 
plantation companies, the loss of lands due the vastly unequal 
power of the partners are all tremendous problems with 
community plantation programs," Rofiq said. 
"We oppose the application of plantation partnership programs 
in the continued absence of full prior recognition of 
indigenous forest and land tenure rights," said W. Koesnadi, 
who represents the group Yayasan PADI of East Kalimantan. 
Country Director of the World Bank Indonesia Andrew Steer 
views the plan as a way to save Indonesia's forests and assist 
local communities to develop. 
"Now is the time when Indonesia is in a dynamic governance 
transition, for decentralized governments and forest sector 
stakeholders to implement policy actions to save Indonesia's 
unique forests," said Steer. 
Logs cut illegally from Sumatran forests. 
"In fact," he said, "it is time for a comprehensive framework 
that integrates sustainable forest management into the global 
strategy for mitigating climate change and preserving 
biodiversity." 
The report focuses on land and people, not forests and trees, 
said Steer. He says that change shifts the balance toward 
improving community livelihoods, while maintaining 
environmental services and biodiversity values. 
Between 1985 and 2004, "donor" funding for Indonesia's 
forestry sector totaled over US$1 billion, with the bank 
providing approximately one third of these funds, many of 
which must now be paid back by the Indonesian people. 
During this period, massive overcapacity was established in 
the forestry sector, illegal logging grew to astonishing 
proportions, the land and forest rights of indigenous 
communities were increasingly violated as entire areas were 
subject to military intervention on behalf of forestry 
companies, said Titi Soentoro, policy coordinator for the 
Indonesian group NADI. 
"It is important to remember that the bank withdrew from 
Indonesia's forestry sector after disastrous projects with 
irreversible impacts on forests and indigenous peoples," said 
Dr. Stephanie Fried of the U.S. nonprofit group Environmental 
Defense. "We do not see substantial positive change in terms 
of illegal logging, corruption, and human rights in 
Indonesia's forestry sector." 
In the new plan, the bank admits that the Indonesian forestry 
sector suffers from tremendous overcapacity, including large 
bankrupt paper and pulp mills operating without a legal supply 
of timber. 
The report mentions "corrupt practices" apparently involved in 
the sale and debt restructuring efforts of major forestry 
companies and cites as a "moral hazard" inappropriate debt 
write-offs and settlement agreements which plague the sector. 
Teak plantation in Java, Indonesia 
Rather than recommending a downsizing of the industry in line 
with bankruptcy proceedings, however, the bank calls for a 
vast increase plantation establishment which would keep these 
companies and, apparently, new companies planning on 
constructing additional mills afloat. 
The bank suggests as a "policy of convenience" that "on 
conversion forest land, it may be appropriate to allow some 
added timber harvest in the short run to balance industrial 
timber demand and supply." 
"Reducing overcapacity in the forestry sector, through the 
downsizing of bankrupt companies and preventing the 
establishment of additional industrial capacity including new 
paper and pulp mills is one of the key first steps which must 
be undertaken to bring demand into line with legal timber 
supply," said Berry Nahdian Forqan, director of WALHI South 
Kalimantan. 
"The troubled United Fiber System and Kiani Kertas mills are 
the perfect example of financially unstable companies without 
access to sufficient legal timber," said Forqan. 
"The bank claims to have followed a process of consultation 
during the development of this plan," said Noor, facilitator 
of CAPPA. "Despite our repeated requests, they have refused to 
provide copies of their draft strategy and plan in Indonesian 
language, making it impossible to carry out proper 
consultation with affected peoples. It is as if nothing has 
changed."

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