Responding to the devastating impact of Cyclone Senyar, which has claimed at least 604 lives due to floods and landslides on Sumatra Island in Indonesia, Amnesty International Indonesia's Executive Director Usman Hamid said:
"Amnesty International expresses its condolences to all those affected by the recent flooding and landslides on Sumatra Island. The loss of life and devastation is an imaginable tragedy with hundreds still missing and tens of thousands displaced in less than a week.
"Indonesia and the international community must mobilize the necessary resources to support rescue efforts in the affected areas. The focus must be on saving lives and providing relief for those who have lost their homes and livelihoods in a manner that is compliant with human rights.
"This tragedy should serve as another reminder of the Indonesian government's obligation to ensure a collective, human rights-consistent plan to address climate change.
"This is an ecological disaster. Environmentalists have warned the government about the increasing level of widespread deforestation in areas affected by these floods. And this is a human-caused climate change. It has made extreme weather events more deadly as they trigger mass floods and landslides that impact communities.
"Communities affected by this disaster have contributed almost nothing to greenhouse gas emissions, yet they are paying for governments' inaction on climate change and curbing deforestation.
"Our 2016 report stated that 'palm oil plantations have been developed by clearing forests and the resultant deforestation has been linked to serious environmental problems, including the destruction of habitats for orangutans and the Sumatran tiger'.
"There can be no solution to this devastation without a roadmap for climate justice, and there is no climate justice without human rights. The government of Indonesia must also investigate the alleged role of illegal logging in these floods. It must evaluate land use permits in the area and answer questions about how land use change has contributed to the severity of the floods on Sumatra Island."
Background
Cyclone Senyar made landfall and brought high-speed winds and waves on Sumatra Island last week, devastating Aceh, North Sumatra and West Sumatra provinces and killing at least 604 people so far. The National Disaster Mitigation Agency said 464 people remain missing as of Monday 1 December. The disaster affected a total of 1,5 million people in the three provinces with 570,000 people have been displaced, the agency said.
Despite being the deadliest disaster since a massive earthquake and subsequent tsunami killed more than 2,000 in 2018, the central government has yet to declare national emergency in response to the floods and landslides that could allow all-out efforts.
The Indonesian government have dispatched rescue teams to Sumatra to help local rescue workers who are struggling to reach some hardest-hit areas. Thousands have been cut off and left without critical supplies.
Media reported that many areas were cut off due to blocked roads, while damage to telecommunications infrastructure has hampered communication. Rescuers used helicopters to deliver aid to people in areas that could not be reached by road.
In 2016, the Amnesty International report 'The Great Palm Oil Scandal: Labour Abuses Behind Big Brand Names' stated, "Indonesia is the largest producer of palm oil in the world and produces 35 million tonnes of the oil per year. The rapid expansion of palm oil plantations in Indonesia has been driven by an increase in the global demand for vegetable oils for food and non-food uses, including biofuels."