On 14 February, shortly after Prabowo Subianto and his running mate emerged as the presumed winners of Indonesia’s presidential election, Prabowo told a crowd in Jakarta that “this victory should be a victory for all Indonesians.”

That proclamation may ring hollow for the country’s Indigenous peoples. Prabowo’s new government appears set to continue expanding Indonesia’s domestic resource-processing capabilities. This signals the continued, unjust plunder of Indigenous territory.

The government of the incumbent president, Joko Widodo, has been indecisive, and seemingly toying, with taking care of Indigenous communities. That their protection remains a normative and romantic discourse is apparent in government policy that does not protect them.

Numerous food security policies have not adequately considered Indigenous territories or sovereignty. Take for example the “food estate programme”, announced in 2020, to develop vast food plantations across Indonesia. Implementation of the programme in Gunung Mas Regency, Central Kalimantan province, failed to consult local knowledge. The disastrous results not only fell far short of achieving Indonesian food sovereignty, but also ignored the historical and philosophical value that Kalimantan people place upon Gunung Mas.

Indigenous voices vs political agendas

According to data from Indonesia’s Indigenous Peoples Alliance of the Archipelago, as of January 2024, the country is home to 2,565 Indigenous communities, representing 22 million people. These communities are spread widely throughout the country, so it can be argued that the basis and characteristics of Indonesian society are its Indigenous peoples. However, the misalignment of political policies with the protection of Indigenous peoples does not reflect this situation.

The major problems encountered by these communities are deforestation, agricultural crises, marginalisation and discrimination, and the usurpation of customary rights. These problems often coincide with massive extraction operations in indigenous forests by giant corporations.

Another issue is electoral participation: identification cards must be presented at polling stations, but Indigenous communities have faced difficulties in obtaining these.

The romanticisation of Indigenous peoples is a typical component of an Indonesian political campaign, with elites acknowledging related issues and making pledges. However, this is usually nothing more than a tactic for garnering electoral support.

For example, Widodo made six pledges regarding Indigenous rights during his 2014 election campaign. These were incorporated into his Nawacita programme, which would ratify Indonesia’s Indigenous Peoples Bill (RUU Masyarakat Adat) and create an independent task force for Indigenous communities, among other commitments. The Nawacita programme’s goals are yet to be realised.

Prabowo, a former defence minister, and his running mate, Gibran Rakabuming Raka, Joko Widodo’s son, did not reveal many concrete plans to bolster Indigenous rights during their election campaign, which calls their commitment to these issues into question.

The Prabowo–Gibran campaign championed ongoing investments in mining to capitalise on the energy transition. Indigenous communities are typically cast aside when these mega projects encroach on their territories.

For example, nickel mining in Halmahera, on the island of North Maluku, has led to the marginalisation and criminalisation of Indonesia’s isolated O’Hongana Manyawa (“the people of the forest”). While the tribe attempts to defend ancestral territories on Halmahera Island from the area’s biggest mining company, Weda Bay Nickel, deforestation and pollution has ensued.

No formal legal recognition

Currently, there is no legal umbrella that protects the existence of Indigenous peoples in Indonesia, and their status and recognition requires one. The Indigenous Peoples Bill was first proposed in 2009, but is yet to be ratified, despite Joko Widodo’s repeated promises to do so.

Once sworn in on 20 October, Prabowo and Gibran must therefore prioritise this bill. Obtaining consensus from Indigenous communities is crucial for the management of their lands, especially considering Gibran’s frequent promotion of downstream projects during the election campaign.

Indonesia’s Indigenous agenda is still far from attaining substantial progress. It should never again be used merely as a campaign tool to grab votes.

What’s next?

Despite the challenges, the current government has issued some policies pertaining to Indigenous inclusion. For example, the Ministry of Education and Culture has made efforts to incorporate Indigenous schools into its databases. And in 2023, the movement Indigenous Youth Front of the Archipelago (BPAN) received significant acknowledgement from the state when it won a Ministry of Youth and Sports award for its access-to-education advocacy.

Civil support for Indigenous communities continues to be taken seriously, evidenced by initiatives such as the Nusantara Fund, which claims to be “Indonesia’s first direct funding mechanism for Indigenous peoples and local communities”.

Indigenous peoples do not only demand recognition and protection of their individual rights, but also the enablement of land restoration and collective rights. These demands are reaffirmed by the UN Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples. Indeed, the grand idea of ​​protecting Indigenous peoples is a tenet of sustainable development, but a transactional economic system that prioritises capital accumulation undermines it.

As the excitement of Indonesia’s general election subsides, we need to witness a practical realisation of policies that intersect with Indigenous rights. After years of fighting and struggling, the government must ratify the Indigenous Peoples Bill.

This article was originally published on Dialogue Earth under the Creative Commons BY NC ND licence.

Jakarta (Greeners) – Kalimantan Indigenous and Community Empowerment and Research Foundation (YPPMMA-KT) reveals local regulations over customary forests are yet to be passed. Simpun Sampurna, Chief of YPPMMA-KT, admits Central Kalimantan Government had form committees for indigenous peoples. Since last year, the local government has formed committees in all districts and cities in Central Kalimantan.

However, based on Law Number 23 of 2014 concerning the Regional Government, the community is only given the authority to work within the districts. Meanwhile, at the city level, it is the authority of the provincial committee.

“Up until today, there is no local government regulation (Perda) to complete this effort. We see this gap of regulation since the sixties,” Sampurna explains in a webinar “Indonesia Bicara: Klaim Hutan Adat,” “Indonesia Talks: Claim for Customary Forests” Thursday (17/09/2020).

Despite Law Number 50 of 1960 concerning Basic Agrarian Regulations that requires the making of Perda, the local regulation remains absence. As a result, problems related to indigenous peoples continue to develop.

Also read: AMAN : The New Capital City Will Create Social Impacts for Indigenous Groups

The Kinipan Conflict: Case of the Absence of Customary Forests Regulations

Sampurna mentions the Kinipan conflict as an example. In the Kinipan conflict, the lack of Perda leaving no space to accommodate the interest of indigenous peoples.

“We are facing a legal vacuum. Actually, this Kinipan problem will not be big if it (Perda) is implemented. Unfortunately, the local government is not running it,” Sampurna continues.

Adding to the topic, Forestry Law Expert, Sadino, said that customary forests are vulnerable to be the object of disputes. In Kinipan, he continues, many people claim forest ownership, but the object or customary forest is still in conflict.

“If there is still a dispute, there must be a solution to this tenurial conflict,” he argues.

Further, Sadino claims if the regulation recognizes the designated customary forest, indigenous peoples will continue to take care of them. Meanwhile, if the forest status is state forest, Sadino suggests the government to assist so indigenous peoples could be the forest handler.

“Also when the status is APL (Other Use Areas), it should benefit the indigenous peoples. The stipulation, format, and application would be different. As well as the problem of financing, and so on,” he said.

Masyarakat Adat. Ilustrasi: shutterstock

Also read: Less Lawmakers Supporting Indonesia’s Indigenous Peoples Bill

Determining the Subject, Object of the Customary Forest

Director-General of Social Forestry and Environmental Partnership, Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK), Bambang Supriyanto, clarifies that customary forest can be in state forest as well as in APL.

According to Supriyanto, if indigenous peoples are in a state forest area, the customary law community must be determined through a regional regulation following the mandate of Law Number 41 of 1999 concerning Forestry.

“The customary law community is characterized by a leader, a law, a territory, and the members of the community. It is spelled out in Srada MK 12, outlined in the Minister of Environment and Forestry Regulation Number 31, now Number 21 of 2019, about recognizing customary forests,” he explains.

For forest areas included in APL, he continues, the legal basis used is the Minister of Home Affairs Regulation Number 52 of 2014 concerning Procedures for the Recognition of Customary Law Communities. KLHK is in charge of determining the areas.

In addition, Supriyanto suggests the public to elaborate between the object and subject of the dispute before submitting a proposal. He adds the subject in question is the customary law community, while the object is customary forest.

“The government determines the designated customary forest based on suggestions, for example, the suggestion from the local government. From there, then we verify whether any other party has right to said customary forest,” Supriyanto explains.

“We try to facilitate all parties. In addition to regulating the government, we also facilitate and mediates. We do this until all of the parties’ rights are obtained,” Supriyanto adds.

Writer: Ida Ayu Putu Wiena Vedasari

Editor: Ixora Devi

In August, Indonesia received USD 103.78 million from the Global Climate Fund (GCF). Executive Director of Madani Berkelanjutan Foundation, Muhammad Teguh Surya, argues that the fund needs to be prioritized to reduce deforestation and degradation at the site level.

He introduces the strengthen of Social Forestry and Forest Management Units (KPH) as the solution.

“The two initiatives can strengthen the tenure rights of indigenous and local communities,” says Surya to Greeners, Tuesday (15/09/2020).

Also read: Six Governors Committed An International Pledge On Deforestation

According to Surya, the Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK) must be completely transparent regarding the program implementation and funds distribution.

“The implementation of the future program must have extensive consultations. The government needs to consult with the indigenous, local community and civil society,” Surya adds.

Surya emphasizes that the existence of indigenous peoples is closely related to the forests. Indigenous peoples depend on the woods to meet their daily needs. Moreover, indigenous peoples’ cultural and religious rules also tie to nature.

“Local communities, particularly indigenous peoples, interact with the forest is not merely for economic reason. They have a deeper intention,” Surya claims.

Seeing how deep the relationship between indigenous people to the forest, Surya adds, it is ideal for them to become the forest guards. Surya believes, given the opportunity to protect the forest legally, indigenous people will preserve the forest.

Also read: AMAN : The New Capital City Will Create Social Impacts for Indigenous Groups

Laju deforestasi pada 2019 mencapai 465,5 ribu hektare. Foto: shutterstock

Community-based Environment Conservation

Echoing Surya, Knowledge Management Manager Madani Berkelanjutan Foundation, Anggalia Permatasari, testifies that GCF should engage with the community-based program.

“Including the acceleration and strengthening of social forestry and recognition of tribe territories,” she said on Wednesday (16/9).

To strengthen the social forestry, she adds, it needs to be synergized with other programs—namely, climate change adaptation and mitigation program, peat restoration, and critical land rehabilitation.

Further, a program to reduce deforestation and degradation is also needed. This program is the main mitigation action for Nationally Determined Contribution (NDC) in the forestry sector.

“Indigenous peoples must be the main beneficiaries of GCF. Especially regarding the recognition of indigenous peoples’ rights to forests,” Permatasari argues.

“After receiving recognition, indigenous peoples can also benefit through empowerment or livelihood programs which are also mentioned in the GCF Funding Proposal,” she adds.

Sustainable Investment for Indigenous Peoples

Furthermore, GCF should also be used to empower the economy of indigenous peoples through community investment plans. This investment plan could be in the form of micro, small, and medium enterprises.

Additionally, she believes it should be used to facilitate the preparation of regional regulations. These regulations can accelerate the designation of customary forests.

Permatasari also clarifies that indigenous peoples had never received similar funding assistance. The reason being it is the first time Indonesia has proposed a performance-based payment for REDD+ to GCF.

GCF grant Indonesia the fund because it had successfully reduced emissions by around 20.3 million tons of carbon dioxide equivalent (tCO2eq) in 2014-2016. The Environmental Fund Management Agency (BPDLH) is now managing the fund.

Writer: Ida Ayu Putu Wiena Vedasari

Editor: Ixora Devi

Jakarta (Greeners) – President Joko (Jokowi) Widodo announced the new capital city of Indonesia will be moved from Jakarta to a location in Kalimantan island. However, the indigenous peoples’ alliance (AMAN) states that the move will create new conflict, social issues.

Rukka Sombolinggi, AMAN’s secretary general, said that herself or AMAN has not been invited to discuss about the moving despite the fact that it has social risks on indigenous peoples in the island.

“Up to this date, indigenous peoples have yet to be asked to discuss about moving the new capital city, especially AMAN. Kalimantan island is not prone to natural disasters, yet it’s vulnerable to social conflicts given the facts that the history of the island,” said Sombolinggi in Jakarta, on Thursday (01/08/2019).

READ ALSO : Central Kalimantan District Government Ensures New Capital City Not Developed On Peatlands

Furthermore, she said that the move should be cautious about transferring more problems to indigenous peoples as the government needs to be aware that it is for people’s welfare, and nothing else.

“Currently, we cannot differentiate between government talking interests as public servants or interests of major companies which will come to invest in the new capital city’s infrastructure development,” she said.

Based on AMAN data on customary areas indicative maps, nearly all areas in Tanah Bambu, Gunung Mas, and Palangkaraya of Kalimantan are customary forests.

“It’s not we don’t want new capital city, but when it is not being moved successfully, then it would only transferring new problems occurs in Jakarta, that is how Betawi people are evicted from their own lands,” she said.

Rukka Sombolinggi (Sekjen AMAN). Foto: www.greeners.co/Dewi Purningsih

To move ethnics and culture, she added, is dangerous in Kalimantan. Moving state officials, from the president, ministers, to other civil servants have the potential of social conflicts.

“You can’t just fire all employees then hire people of Gunung Mas, for instance, that’s hardly possible. There will be human migration, surely people from outside of Gunung Mas have different backgrounds,” she said adding that land clearing for buildings and other infrastructure will be massive, meanwhile people of Kalimantan know that they have intact forests.

“From our monitoring, when Palangkaraya was announced as the new capital city, there are lots of people buying lands in Palangkaraya. Surely, people with full understanding will be so easily sold their lands, given the economic pressures. We fear that this issue to Gunung Mas will happen again,” she said.

READ ALSO : Government Ensures New Capital City Will Not Cut Down Protected Forests

She suggested for central government to be able to explain all consequences to public, especially indigenous peoples if the move is going to happen in Kalimantan, give them information on positive and negative impacts.

“Don’t use excuses such as giving new jobs for local people because that wouldn’t hold long. The reality is probably they will be hired as labours because they don’t qualified according to the company’s requirements,” she said.

On May, President Jokowi visited two locations in Kalimantan, — Bukit Soeharto of Kutai Kartanegara in East Kalimantan and Gunung Mas in Central Kalimantan –, as potentials for new capital city.

Reports by Dewi Purningsih

Jakarta (Greeners) – An environmental watchdog, dubbed as #Vote4Forest, launched a research on lawmakers’ track records in relation to environmental bills. The first series of the assessment is focusing on the perspectives and political decisions of the lawmakers on the Indigenous Peoples Bill, of which 12 out of 26 members agree with the bill.

“Our assessment discovers that there is no assurance that members of House of Representatives (DPR) from areas where indigenous peoples live supporting the bill of indigenous peoples. This assessment also reveals that from 28 members of the Legislation Body of House of Representatives actively participating in the discussion of the bill, only 46 percent is supporting the bill, [meanwhile] remaining 54 percent shows no support and reject the bill,” said Teguh Surya, Director Executive of Madani Berkelanjutan Foundation, in Jakarta on Wednesday (23/01/2019).

In addition, the assessment shows that National Democratic Party and Gerindra Party support the bill, meanwhile, National Mandate Party, PDIP Party, and National Awakening Party (PKB) tend to support, Golkar Party and People’s Welfare Party are neutral, and Democratic Party and Hanura Party reject the bill.

READ ALSO: Experts: It is Time to Include Local Wisdom into Disaster Mitigation 

Surya said that out of 28 members of Legislative Body involved in the bill of indigenous peoples, 26 members are running again for 2019-24 period, raising questions on the course of the bill for the next five years.

“These indigenous peoples bill is an immediate importance as it accommodates the recognition and protection of indigenous peoples. Members of House of Legislative for the four years failed to grasp the essence of the Constitution, instead, prioritizing bills with less relevance to people’s welfare,” he said.

Meanwhile, Rina Mardiana, an academician of Agrarian Research Center of Bogor Agricultural Institute, said, “We have analysis that these members of legislative’ partisanship towards indigenous peoples are low.”

“Furthermore, there are indications that the members don’t understand about the indigenous peoples bills and the existence of these indigenous peoples,” she said adding that the analysis was a collaboration between Madani Berkelanjutan Foundation, WikiDPR and Change.org Indonesia.

She said that members of legislative have no political will, either from the government or decision makers, as there was inconsistency shown by parties supporting the bill.

READ ALSO: Experts Push Indonesian Government to Audit Spatial Planning Laws 

Erasmus Cahyadi of Alliance of Indigenous Peoples of the Archipelago or AMAN said that the result is still uncertainty prompting disappointment from indigenous peoples as conflicts and criminalization are on-going.

“From the latest record, conflicts occur in East Sumba where customary lands are granted permits by the government to sugar cane company, PT Muria Sumba Manis. Consequently, it receives protests from indigenous peoples and demonstrations are continue to happen,” said Cahyadi.

#Vote4Forest is an initiative of collaboration between Madani Berkelanjutan Foundation, WikiDPR, and Change.org Indonesia, to provide public information related to lawmakers’ track records on environment issues ahead of the 2019 General Election.

The assessment is conducted based on qualitative and quantitative using main data from meetings on the indigenous peoples published through Wikidpr.org, official documents from the election committee or KPU on infopemilu.kpu.go.id, and news media reporting and social media.

Reports by Dewi Purningsih

Jakarta (Greeners) – Indigenous Peoples’ Alliance of the Archipelago (AMAN) urges government to implement its commitments on indigenous rights, said its secretary general Rukka Sombolinggi, in Jakarta, on Wednesday (9/8), to commemorate International Indigenous Peoples Day.

Sombolinggi said that government policies on indigenous peoples have been improving for the past ten years however not in implementation.

The progress can be seen from Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono presidency with the signing of Letter of Intent between Norway and Indonesia which supported indigenous peoples, establishing REDD+ agency, and the Constitutional Court Decision, or dubbed as MK35 which had ruled out indigenous forests not as state forests.

As a result, regional regulations and governor regulations have been issued throughout the country for the past ten years.

Currently, she said indigenous peoples bill had been pushed through legislative committee and President Joko Widodo was the first president officially declaring his commitment for indigenous peoples. However, the commitments have yet to be fully implemented.

READ ALSO: Indigenous Peoples Issues Missed Out At Conservation Law Revision

“The proof in the field is a lot different on paper. It has not shown government’s seriousness, for instance on handing over indigenous lands of 13,000 hectares on December, which was far from the numbers declared by AMAN and its network, a total of 8.7 million hectares [already submitted] to the government,” she added.

Secretary general of Indigenous Peoples’ Alliance of the Archipelago (AMAN), Rukka Sombolinggi.

Furthermore, agrarian reform movement has not shown any significant data. Instead, President Widodo handed out certificates individually of which not in line with agrarian reform and indigenous peoples’ aspiration on its customary lands.

“Seeing from these facts, it is obvious far from expectation, especially with Ministry of Environment and Forestry will only allocate one billion rupiah for customary forests. That’s a small amount. What can they do with that money? It shows that all of those commitments are only in paper. Not to mention task force on indigenous peoples which have never been discussed again for the past three years despite of continuous tenure conflicts,” she said adding there are lots of things can government can achieve.

She suggested agrarian reform and returning customary forests, government along with AMAN to check locations being excluded, such as at ex-Business Permit Rights of Penunggu customary lands in East Sumatra. “Unfortunately, this sitting together has yet to be realized”.

READ ALSO: Women Find It Difficult to Fight for Their Homeland

International Day of Indigenous People’s theme for this year is ten anniversary for adopting UN Declaration on Indigenous Peoples Rights and Indonesia is one of the nation signing on the declaration.

International Day of Indigenous Peoples is celebrated on August 9 since 1995. It was chosen to mark the first day meeting between UN working group for indigenous peoples to promote and protect human rights in 1982.

Reports by Danny Kosasih

Garut (Greeners) – Exploitation on lands and water resources by corporate have directly affecting women’s welfare and their future as well as their families.

Unfortunately, women have lack of chances to defend themselves and fight for their rights of lands. Meanwhile, due to exploitation, women as the figure close to natural resources, they have become vulnerable of the impacts.

Siti Maimunah, researcher and coordinator of Sajogyo Institute Scholarships Program, underlined negative stigma stick on women if they have chosen to fight. The stigma, then, resulted to lack of bravery and confidence for women to fight.

“Don’t even think about leading a struggle, it’s already hard for them to even join due to those constructed stigmas,” said Maimunah at the sideline of jamboree of women fighters in Garut, on Sunday (16/7).

READ ALSO: Women Fighters of Indonesia Jamboree Brings Together Tough Women To Talk About Environment

She cited Aleta Baun’s case who had fought for indigenous peoples rights and the environment against marble mining in East Nusa Tenggara.

On early days of her fight, she said, Mama Aleta was often labeled as irresponsible mother, prostitute and even accused of having an affair with the motorcycle driver (ojek) as she mostly went out in the middle of the night to organize other indigenous women in her village.

“Imagine if that’s a man, then he wouldn’t have to face those negative stigmas,” she argued.

Furthermore, she said that women’s struggles was not something easy as they have to plan strategies, organize the people and fight for their homeland and at the same time, they have to think about their husbands and children, for their food, other domestic chores, which would not be the same case with men fighters.

Other women fighters are Eva Susanti Hanafi Bande, who fights for farmers’ rights against PT Kurnia Luwuk Sejati and Gunarti, the first female to organize mothers of Sukolilo village of Pati district in Central Java protesting against mining activities.

READ ALSO: Households Bear High Health Risks From Solid Fuels

Their struggles, said Maimunah, were triggered from a tipping point of lifetime experience, including becoming police target, sent to prison and left their families.

“Does it need to experience those tipping points to fight for their homeland? Does it need to have casualties? That’s not the case, isn’t it. It’s the reason we gather all these women with struggles of their own on this jamboree for them to share their minds, ideas and stories,” she said.

The term “Homeland Fighters” was coined based on situations faced by the women against all kinds of destruction. Meanwhile, jamboree is the platform for all women to meet, study and lesson learned from different backgrounds.

Nissa Saadah Wargadipura, one of founder of Ecology Islamic Boarding School, At-Thaariq, Garut, shared her story on social ecological crisis in Garut, underlining to start the struggle was never easy, for instance starting ecological boarding school which applied agro-ecology method.

When it was started, Wargadipura recalled, there were criticisms and disbelief that the method would succeed.

“Previously, no one believed in our agriculture method, which does not follow mainstream agriculture pattern that destroys land and water. Most importantly, our farming needs are self-sufficient, such as fertilizer, seedling bank to store local seeds, we also domesticate snake to balance the ecosystem,” she said. “This is the answer for food security. Agro-ecology is the answer from Islamic boarding school on maintaining good relationship between human and nature as we seek for honor, grace, dignity and not just profits.”

Reports by Danny Kosasih

Jakarta (Greeners) – Amid interest on revision of conservation law, an activist said that it had excluded indigenous peoples as actor of conservation, in Jakarta, on Tuesday (11/4).

Kasmita Widodo, coordinator of ICCAs Indonesia Working Group (WGII), said that indigenous peoples as actor of conservation posses traditional knowledge which has yet to be acknowledge by government.

As a result, WGII had encouraged government and legislative to acknowledge people conservation areas which would support government’s program in remote conservation areas.

“The revision must also establish better administration and include indigenous peoples’ rights,” said Widodo.

READ ALSO: New Year, New Hope for Indigenous Peoples in Indonesia

Meanwhile, Nur Hidayati, executive director of Indonesian Forum for the Environment, slammed on the drafted revision which included private security guards to protect the forest as not in line with the country’s justice system.

“Because, law enforcement in conservation management in the revision should be done by government officials not private sectors,” said Hidayati.

Furthermore, she said that the revision intended to protect areas was being infiltrated by business interests. Without acknowledging indigenous peoples, she added, the revision would only serve for business purposes.

She cited Indonesia’s genetic resources had become target from pharmaceutical companies. “We are not aware about biopiracy because they have never been revealed,” she said.

Not Yet Studied

Meanwhile, Ilyas Asaad, Ministry of Environment and Forestry’s Expert Staff on Inter Central and Local Agencies, who also serves as head of revision team. said that he had not yet studied on the revision drafted by House of Parliament.

“On indigenous peoples, it is true, that we need to regulate because they have conservation areas in customary forests. Whether that’s going to be an option in the meeting is up to our discussion,” he said. ” Even if it would be brought up in the meeting, I think legislators will approve on the issue.”

On private security, he said that forest protection by people was allowed. However, he said that he had yet studied the draft to understand on the issue.

“There’s public supervision and it’s possible. Perhaps, that is the consideration from legislative as protection cannot only be from government. It needs the support from people. People here can also mean company but what we need to regulate is the mechanism. We’ll have to see the draft again,” he said.

READ ALSO: Minimum Participation of Indigenous Peoples in Tackling Climate Change

WGII is a working group established after ICCAs Symposium held in Bogor, in 2011. Members of ICCAs Indonesia include Customary Forest Registry Agency or BRWA, Participative Mapping Network (JKPP), WWF Indonesia, Kiara, Non-Timber Forest Products – Exchange Program (NTFP-EP), Walhi, AMAN, Sawit Watch, Pusaka and HuMa.

The aim of WGII is to increase understanding on indigenous peoples implement conservation based on traditional knowledge.

Reports by Danny Kosasih

Jakarta (Greeners) – After decades of waiting to be acknowledged by the state, indigenous peoples in Indonesia started off 2017 with a new hope as President Joko ‘Jokowi’ Widodo had issued Decision Letter on Customary Forest Declaration, on Friday (30/12), at the Presidential Palace.

The 13,122 hectares of customary forest covered nine indigenous peoples in the country.

“We all know that indigenous peoples have their own capabilities to manage their own customary forest based on local wisdom. Indigenous peoples have long understand and protect the harmony between human and nature. I believe these important values of which we will remember in this modern age and with the Letter, indigenous peoples can settle down and manage [their own customary forests] forever,” said President Jokowi.

Minister of Environment and Forestry Siti Nurbaya said the next step would be to strengthen customary forest status under Ministry of Home Affairs, Ministry of Social Affairs and National Commission on Human Rights.

Furthermore, she said that the process had been dynamic and specific. Constitutional Court had declared that customary forest was under indigenous peoples and no longer considered as state forest. Currently, she said, forest areas managed by concessions holders in North Sumatra have been declining.

The government’s role is to establish interaction between indigenous peoples and following up on the regulations.

READ ALSO  : The Welfare of 10,2 Million People Living in the Forest Areas Is Far From Achieved

The decision should have been the foundation for the government to establish interaction between indigenous peoples and sharing information, following up on the next steps after the declaration so that the essence of the policy is that people have access to customary forest in accordance to local wisdom,” she said.

Secretary General of Indigenous Peoples Alliance of the Archipelago (AMAN), Abdon Nababan, appreciates the policy as an historic event as indigenous peoples have been waiting for 71 years to get customary forests recognized. Furthermore, he said that the government to ensure indigenous peoples felt and acknowledged in this country, administratively,” said Nababan. “It is a bit slow but this decision should be appreciated.”

“The access to customary forest will bring benefit to indigenous peoples such as strengthening customary forest management based on local wisdom, which has been tested for many years, protect local wisdom to genetic resources, conflict resolution, domestic economic stability based on natural resources and local wisdom,” he said.

Nine customary forests declared for the first time in Indonesia by President Joko Widodo are :

Foto : Istimewa

Reports by Danny Kosasih