Subject: Rejection of the Ratification of the Bill on Forest Destruction Control (RUU P2H)

To Whom It May Concern,

The Honorable Leaders and Members of Commission IV of the Indonesian House of Representatives

In Jakarta,

The Java Forest Restoration Coalition (KPH Jawa) is a coalition of 36 civil society organizations in Java that are concerned about efforts to restore the Java forest. Established in Yogyakarta on January 17, 2012. In response to the ongoing deliberation of the RUU P2H by Commission IV of the House of Representatives and the criticism it has received from various parties (forestry experts, academics, NGOs, and indigenous communities), KPH Jawa would like to express the following key points:

1. KPH Jawa agrees that all forms of forest destruction must be stopped to prevent further damage to Indonesian forests. However, the enactment of the RUU P2H is not the best solution to address the issue of forest destruction in Indonesia.

2. KPH Jawa believes that the RUU P2H is not suitable to be enacted as a law, because:

a. In the General Provisions Article 1 paragraph 3 of the bill, it is stated that “Forest destruction is a process, method, or act of damaging the forest through illegal logging activities and/or unauthorized use of forest areas within the designated forest areas, which have been designated or are in the process of being designated by the Government.” This provision is very disadvantageous to the interests of indigenous/local communities living inside and around the forest, who usually also have traditional ownership/possession claims over forest areas that have been passed down through generations but have unilaterally been designated, identified, or are in the process of being designated by the Government.

b. The second part of the bill (Articles 11 to 25) contains various prohibitions for every individual. These provisions seem to ignore the fact that indigenous/local communities living inside and around the forest have traditionally utilized forest resources in their surroundings with various local wisdom that has been practiced for generations. The provisions in the bill are essentially already regulated in Law No. 41/1999 on Forestry; for example, in Article 50 (prohibitions) and Article 78 (criminal provisions).

c. In the recitals of consideration section of the bill, it is stated that “existing laws and regulations to date are inadequate and have not been able to effectively combat organized forest destruction.” In our opinion, the inability to address forest destruction is not due to inadequate laws and regulations, but rather due to the lack of willingness on the part of the government authorities to enforce the law (law enforcement), as most cases of forest destruction that have not been touched by the law are generally carried out by organized mafia involving certain parties.

d. Law enforcement has so far only targeted small-scale citizens, but has not touched organized/structured groups and licensed companies involved in forest destruction. Is there any guarantee that with the enactment of the RUU P2H, law enforcement will be consistently carried out to prevent and address forest destruction committed by organized/structured groups and licensed companies? We are concerned that the enactment of the RUU P2H will further strengthen the criminalization of indigenous/local communities who, on a small scale, utilize forest resources in their surroundings for their daily lives.

To address the issue of forest destruction in Indonesia, the formation of the RUU P2H is not the right step. The appropriate step to take is to comprehensively revise Law No. 41/1999 on Forestry in accordance with the demands of the times, including incorporating clauses on the prevention and eradication of forest destruction. These are some key points from KPH Jawa in responding to the ongoing deliberation of the RUU P2H by Commission IV of the House of Representatives, hopefully serving as considerations for the Leaders and Members of Commission IV in deciding the continuation of the RUU P2H.

Yogyakarta, April 5, 2013

Java Forest Restoration Coalition

Secretariat: Karanganyar RT:10 RW:29 No. 201, Sinduadi Mlati Sleman Yogyarta 55284, phone/fax: (0274) 551571

cc:
– Leaders of the Indonesian House of Representatives
– Leaders of the Legislative Body of the Indonesian House of Representatives
– Leaders of the PD Faction
– Leaders of the PG Faction
– Leaders of the PDIP Faction
– Leaders of the PKS Faction
– Leaders of the PAN Faction
– Leaders of the PPP Faction
– Leaders of the PKB Faction
– Leaders of the Gerindra Faction
– Leaders of the Hanura Faction
– Print, electronic, and online mass media

Members of the Java Forest Restoration Coalition:
– ARuPA, Yogyakarta
– FKKM, Jakarta
– FPP