The Alliance Against Climate Change (APPI) held a protest action at the Horse Statue monument in Central Jakarta on Friday November 5 calling on the government to take concrete action to tackle the global climate crisis.
The APPI is made up of a number of non-government organisations (NGOs) including Greenpeace, the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi), Extinction Rebellion, Women's Solidarity (Solidaritas Perempuan), the University of Indonesia Student Executive Council (BEM UI) and Respite for the Environment (Jeda Untuk Iklim).
They brought a number of banners condemning statements by President Joko "Jokowi" Widodo and his cabinet ministers during the GOP26 Climate Change Conference in Glasgow, Scotland, on Tuesday November 2.
"Jokowi, Climate Action Now, Not Bacot [all talk, empty talk], Deforestation has Declined Significantly Blah Blah Blah, Jokowi is Bacot, Climate Justice for All", read one of the banners.
Novita Indri from Respite for the Environment explained that the achievements cited by the government at the COP26 are not in accordance with the facts on the ground and Jokowi's claim that deforestation has declined by 82 percent is incorrect.
"The string of figures and words conveyed by the president at COP26 were just empty words", said Indri.
They also condemned the government for stating that the spirit of zero deforestation cannot be used to obstruct development during the Widodo era.
"The massive development which he says is being done 'for the sake of pubic prosperity' is in realty development which destroys the people's economy and condemns people to becoming dependent on the extractive economy which is owned by the oligarchy", she asserted.
During the action they held a counter COP26 conference at the Horse Statue saying that COP26 was just a talkfest for world leaders who are not thinking about the climate crisis.
The APPI urged the government to stop issuing new licenses for coal fired power plants (PLTU), including PLTU co-firing and PLTUs using CSS technology, retire existing PLTUs and immediately shift to renewable energy.
It also called on the government to prioritise zero deforestation without equivocating about development and economic growth.
The government must also immediately ratify the National Gender Action Plan to ensure access, control, participation and benefits for women in all climate policies and projects that are carried out, including ensuring that these policies and projects pose no danger or harm to women.
It must increase the target for emission reductions in nationally determined contributions (NDC) and ensure there is an ambitious plan to achieve net zero emissions by 2050 at the latest and stop issuing concessions on small islands and coastal areas.
Finally the government must increase protection, involvement and participation of those on the front line such as traditional communities, farmers, coastal communities and other local communities for the protection of the environment.
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Demo Tuntut Keadilan Iklim, Aliansi Sipil Sebut Jokowi Bacot".]