Fidelis E. Satriastanti – As with any law, implementation is the key. While the passage on Tuesday of the 2009 Environmental Protection and Management Law was largely welcomed, an environmental law expert said it would only be effective if it was enforced with a strong hand.

"This new law gives the State Ministry for the Environment tremendous authority, including giving its investigators the power to arrest violators," Rino Soebagyo, the executive director of the Indonesian Center for Environmental Law, said on Wednesday.

"However, the first task for the ministry is to maintain its integrity because, if it's weak, it could be corrupted."

Rino said the ministry would need to prepare infrastructure to support its new authority.

"If they are now allowed to make arrests, it has to be clear where they are going to detain their prisoners," he said. Anna Sinaga, a research officer for the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR), said the law showed progress, especially in terms of law enforcement.

"However, they should take into consideration the need for cooperation between various sectors, such as forestry," she said.

Anna said the next task for the ministry was to finish formulating about 18 government decrees and eight ministerial decrees to implement the law. "So, the bottom line is seriousness in enforcing the law, otherwise it will end up just looking good on paper," she said.

The new law replaces the 1997 Environmental Management Law, which was seen as ineffective in the face of the multitude of environmental problems faced by the country.

Compared to the previous law, the 2009 law is viewed as more progressive because it mandates coordination between civil servant investigators, police and prosecutors in handling environmental cases. It also gives the ministry authority to hand over their investigation reports directly to prosecutors, instead of going through the police.

Rino said the ministry's investigators had sufficient training and were ready to take on their new role, but added that they would need to increase their numbers.

"There are only about 90 civil servant investigators in the ministry," he said. "They are spread throughout all sections and not unified under one investigative authority."

Furthermore, Rino said, the new law did not in any way take away the police's authority to arrest violators. "The law stipulates coordination with the police," he said.