Dharmastuti/SWA & LM, Jakarta – The thick palls of smoke choking North Sumatra and Riau Provinces has compelled the Ministry of Forestry and Plantations to announce that it plans to sanction as many as 12 business people.
Unfortunately, the Ministry claims that imposing the sanctions may prove difficult and the government's track record of prosecuting such cases is not reassuring.
"We have the full authority to take actions by directly prosecuting offenders, because the slash and burn practices are the companies' responsibility," explained Secretary General of the Ministry of Forestry and Plantation, Suripto, during the Conflict Resolution Workshop at the National Resilience Institute, Jl. Kebon Sirih , Central Jakarta today. He added that administrative sanctions are to be imposed on those suspected of intentionally burning off forests.
Unfortunately, Suripto said that the Ministry is still having difficulties in imposing legal sanctions because the persons actually lighting the fires have yet to be located. "So who are we going to impose the sanction on? I once suggested imposing administrative sanctions, such as revoking their rights to use the land. But this requires coordination with banks and foreign investors," Suripto explained.
Suripto said the Ministry had prepared a helicopter on stand-by every day to monitor the fires and alert the Ministry of new ones. "We also granted Rp 100 million (US$ 11,300) to each affected province so that they can prepare reliable officers to be sent immediately to the hot spots," added Suripto.
As reported earlier, smoke from hundreds of fires has not only lead to hazardous levels of pollutants recorded across the islands of Kalimantan and Sumatra but has now reached into Singapore, Malaysia and Thailand. The fires have been attributed to land clearing activities by businesses holding Forest Concession Rights (HPH), coconut palm oil plantations and small scale farmers all extending the boundaries of their land.
Although the Ministry is unwilling to release the names of those on the blacklist, Detik inteviewed Chairman of the Environmental Impact Management Agency (Bapedal) for Region I of Sumatra, Drs Teuku Alamsyah, on Thursday from Pekanbaru who fingered several offenders. Alamsyah indicated that forest concessions owned by PT Mandau Abadi and PT. Arara Abadi and other areas owned by PT. Karyatama Bhakti Mulya, PT. Subur Arum Makmur and PT. Sawit Rokan Hulu are also burning off illegally in Kampar municipality. Elsewhere, In Rokan Hulu municipality, the hot spots are located in forestry concessions owned by PT. Kulim Coy and a coconut palm oil plantation owned by PT. Sawit Rokan Indah. Hot spots are located in plantation areas owned by PT. Inti Prima and PT. Sari Lembah Subur in the Pelelawan municipality.
Not a single offender has ever been punished in the province for illegal burning of forests. Several companies listed above were also guilty of illegal burning during 1997 when some 15,000 square kilometers of forest were destroyed and hazardous smoke drifted in Malaysia. In Riau, as many as 350 hotspots were recorded last week although the names of offending companies remain unclear.
Last Friday the Minister for the Environment appeared visibly frustrated and anxious when discussing the problem at a seminar in West Kalimantan. He called on the police and local governments and prosecutors to "drag slash and burners to court" and told those in attendence that Indonesia has only ever held five companies responsible for the practice before a court of law.