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Corruption threatens Indonesia’s biodiversity and conservation sector
Corruption facilitates illicit wildlife poaching and trafficking, creating opportunities for bribery and extortion of officials involved in customs, licensing, and certification processes for wildlife products.
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Disaster in sight: A local resident looks at a degraded forest area on Mount Sala in North Aceh on Feb. 6, 2021. The forest cover has shrunk as a result of rampant conversion of forest land into plantations. (Antara/Rahmad)
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ndonesia faces numerous conservation challenges, including forest fires, air pollution, wildlife crimes and natural-resource exploitation. At the heart of these issue lies integrity and corruption, which have become major obstacles for law enforcers.
Research has shed light on how corruption contributes to biodiversity loss and environmental degradation. To combat this menace, we must focus on raising compliance awareness and enhancing the technical and integrity-related competency of forest rangers, police and customs officials.
Conservation efforts in Indonesia are hampered by the inadequate implementation of environmental regulations. Despite ratifying the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Fauna and Flora (CITES) and developing various conservation-related regulations, enforcement remains weak. As a result, the illegal wildlife trade has flourished, making it one of the country’s largest crimes.
The absence of robust sanctions, limited resources and poor coordination among government units perpetuate this issue. Furthermore, these crimes have been fueled by the advancement of technology and financial services, enabling illicit transactions to occur more easily and discreetly.
Corruption associated with wildlife crimes has emerged as a grave global environmental concern. The estimated annual value of the illegal wildlife trade worldwide ranges from US$7 billion to $23 billion. Corruption facilitates illicit wildlife poaching and trafficking, creating opportunities for bribery and extortion of officials involved in customs, licensing and certification processes for wildlife products. Weak legislation and enforcement exacerbate this problem.
Corruption is also deeply rooted in the exploitation of natural resources and land in Indonesia. Despite having substantial environmental and natural resource policies, their actual implementation suffers due to weak political consensus or lack of will within sector agencies, limited awareness at local levels and capacity challenges across all government levels.
Natural-resources management remains vulnerable to graft, particularly in the issuance of permits, spatial planning and corporate adherence to environmental regulations. Licensing processes often witness rampant bribery, with large companies offering bribes to regional leaders or government officials to secure business permits for resource exploration and exploitation.
