P

em>Poor law enforcement has been the main cause of deforestation, now reaching over 1 million hectares a year. The government established a presidential taskforce to deal with long-standing problems and to impose a two-year moratorium for forest and peatland to run REDD-Plus projects. The Jakarta Post’s Adianto P. Simamora talked to Mas Achmad Santosa, a member of the taskforce. Here are the excerpts.

Question: Could you explain what the taskforce would do with the so-called “forest mafia”?

Answer: Indonesia suffered vast deforestation when destruction and encroachments were seemingly done in “legal” ways. Natural forests and peatland containing high-value environmental resources were reduced to only some 28 million hectares in the country. The forests became incapable of providing for forest-dependant people.

Forest destruction increased as permits were carelessly issued after regional autonomy. The issuance of permits was allegedly linked to illegal logging syndicates.

Supervision and law enforcement did not work well because of bureaucratic graft, both in the central and local administrations, as well as within law enforcement institutions. Eliminating this is a big challenge for the government.

What is the progress so far from the cooperation between the taskforce and the Forestry Ministry?

The working group was set up in August 2010 to address the forest mafia. We chose Central Kalimantan as a first priority for several reasons, but mainly because the province still has huge forest and peatland areas where the violations continue. Also, the government chose the province as a pilot project to implement the reducing emissions from deforestation and forest degradation (REDD-Plus) scheme.

The taskforce is currently working with stakeholders in the province, the Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) and the Financial Transaction Reports and Analysis Centre (PPATK) to gather data on forestry sector graft. The Forestry Ministry is working with the Attorney General’s Office, the National Police and the KPK to follow up on law enforcement.

Is the cooperation related to the REDD-plus and forest moratorium programs?

The contributions of the working group on the implementation of the REDD-Plus will be substantial. We are aiming to recover law enforcement authority in the forestry sector so that all offenders are punished, no matter who they are. We will recommend policy improvements to resolve deforestation and forest degradation.

What are your thoughts about the planned forest moratorium?

It seems to me some of the key decision makers are still half-hearted in their efforts to implement the moratorium for forests and peatland. Many decision makers have the mindset that the two-year moratorium would be the end, and not a means to an end.

If the country wants to meet the 26 percent emissions cut target, we can no longer run with the business as usual. The moratorium is the time to resolve forest management issues such as forest boundaries, spatial planning, improve bureaucracy on forest management, both at the central and regional levels to make better licensing system and to develop antigraft strategies.

It will also improve law enforcement and empowerment of the roles of local communities living around the forest.

To support the President’s commitment to protect the forests, it needs uniformity of attitudes and mindsets among the decision makers in both central and local administrations.