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Walhi endorses 'environment-friendly' legislative candidates
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Empty bottles: Two boys salvage plastic bottles from the polluted Citarum River in Bojongsoang, Bandung regency on Feb. 19. The World Bank declared the Citarum River the most polluted river in the world a decade ago, a description widely picked up by media and environmentalists.
(AFP/Timur Matahari )
T
he Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) has released the names of 131 “environment-friendly” legislative candidates that the group is endorsing in the upcoming elections.
“They are made up of nine Regional Representatives Council (DPD) candidates, 15 House of Representatives candidates, and 107 Regional Legislative Council (DPRD) candidates," Walhi campaign manager Khalisah Khalid said on Thursday, as quoted by Antara.
The profiles of the selected legislative candidates have been posted on Walhi's official Instagram account @walhi.nasional together with their electoral district, their candidate number as well as their commitment to pushing for environmental conservation and protection for indigenous peoples.
Khalisah said the publication of the 131 names was based on Walhi's evaluation that the previous election did not produce lawmakers that cared about the environment, which led to environmental issues taking a backseat during the 2014-2019 legislative term.
"Environmental issues were almost never discussed, such as the indigenous peoples bill and the renewable energy bill," she said. "Instead, issues such as the palm oil bill, which pose a threat to people's way of life, were prioritized."
She expressed hope that voters would be able to use the information to make a wise choice come election day on April 17.
"Choosing candidates should not be based on ethnicity, religion or race but rather based on whether they have a good track record on environmental issues," she said. (kmt)
