More commitment needed to save orangutan<\/p>\n
Herman Rijksen, Jakarta<\/p>\n
The Orangutan Action Plan Workshop, which was held in
\nBrastagi, Tanah Karo in North Sumatra from Sept. 20 to Sept. 23
\nwas a political move by an international non-government
\norganization (NGO) to further confuse conservation efforts in
\nrelation to the orangutan.<\/p>\n
Those who conducted the workshop seemed not to listen to
\ninformation on the existing situation. For instance, much of the
\ninformation on the Leuser Ecosystem (LE), and problems in
\nconserving it, were not considered in the final conclusion of the
\nworkshop.<\/p>\n
The Leuser Ecosystem covers over 70 percent of the
\ndistribution range of the Sumatran Orangutan, and its management
\nis implemented, under a presidential decree, by the Leuser
\nInternational Foundation (LIF). The LIF is an officially
\naccredited foundation of Indonesians who have international
\naccess to expertise in conservation.<\/p>\n
The most important issue of the past ten years has been
\ninsufficient leadership of the government agency Forest
\nProtection and Nature Conservation (PHKA). By \"leadership\" I mean
\nsupport, guidance, and supervision of the management body
\nresponsible for clear conservation duties. In the Leuser
\nEcosystem this refers specifically to the LIF.<\/p>\n
For more than a decade the LIF has undertaken integrated
\nmanagement for conservation of the Leuser Ecosystem area and has
\nsolved many problems concerning its conservation through its
\nexcellent cooperation with the local government. Unfortunately
\nits work has been frequently hampered by lack of cooperation from
\nsome powerful international NGOs and corrupt local politicians.<\/p>\n
The workshop, which pledged support for conservation of the
\norangutan, gave insufficient attention to this local initiative.<\/p>\n
If there is widespread support from the likes of the
\ngovernment and international NGOs then the chances of survival of
\nthe orangutan in Sumatra are far higher than the chances of
\nsurvival of the orangutan in Kalimantan, where conservation is
\nunder the leadership of international NGOs.<\/p>\n
The best way for international NGOs like Conservation
\nInternational (CI), the World Wide Fund for Nature (WWF) etc., is
\nto support local NGOs and influence the authorities to issue good
\nregulations and to provide proper supervision regarding the
\nconservation work undertaken by these local organizations. So the
\nrole of the government is to support, to guide, to supervise and
\nto control the NGOs. The role of the international NGOs is to
\npromote good governance by the authorities with respect to
\nconservation and to provide resources where necessary.<\/p>\n
It was a pleasure to see the minister of forestry --
\nrepresenting the government of Indonesia in the recent
\nInternational Forum (GRASP) in Kinshasa -- pledge to support the
\nsurvival of the Sumatran Orangutan. It is in his power to stop
\nfurther habitat destruction on state forest land by timber
\nconcessions and encroachment by local people as well as to stop
\nfurther planning and development of roads that endanger the
\nhabitat of the orangutan. The world expects that the minister
\nwill be supported in this task by the entire government structure
\nof Indonesia and in particular by the President.<\/p>\n
My final remark is that the orangutan is one of the oldest and
\nmost important stakeholders in the forests of Indonesia, and can
\nonly be saved from extinction if there is the full commitment of
\nthe Indonesian people even without foreign interference or
\nfinancial support.<\/p>\n
The writer is a member of the Species Survival Commission,
\nPrimate Specialist Group of the IUCN.<\/p>",
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