Nusakambangan forests on the brink of destruction<\/p>\n
Agus Maryono and Amin A. Abdurrahman, The Jakarta Post,
\nCilacap, Central Java<\/p>\n
Most people might know Nusakambangan as a prison island with its
\nmaximum security lock-up for hundreds of hardened, dangerous
\ncriminals like former president Soeharto's son Tommy Soeharto.
\nBut only a few may be aware that the island has some rich low-
\nland forests which are home to many kinds of species, including
\nprotected ones.<\/p>\n
There are at least four conservation areas with more than 535
\nkinds of plants on the island measuring 17,000 hectares. It is
\nsituated south of the town of Cilacap in on the main island of
\nJava.<\/p>\n
Many of the flora and fauna are protected, such as a native
\nplant called pelalar (dipterocarpus littoralis) which can only be
\nfound on the island. There also rare plants like bunga
\nwijayakusuma (pisonia grandis) and bunga bangkai (raflesia
\npadma), a giant plant with flower that oozes putrid odor when it
\nblooms.<\/p>\n
However, the rich forests are disappearing as the island is
\nfacing a serious threat from unscrupulous illegal loggers.<\/p>\n
The Yogyakarta-based Silvagama Foundation of Nature Lovers,
\nwhich has done intensive research on the island since 1999
\npredicted that if the illegal logging was not halted, by 2010
\nNusakambangan island would be completely denuded.<\/p>\n
Thousands of people living on the island's coastal areas will
\nface water crises following the destruction of the forests.<\/p>\n
Silvagama recorded that since 1999, nearly 13,000 trees were
\nchopped down annually by illegal loggers.<\/p>\n
"The environmental impact is very serious. One of the most
\nserious impacts is that some 14,000 people living in Kampung Laut
\nin a coastal area of Nusakambangan will suffer due to the lack of
\nclean water sources. Even today, they have started to experience
\na problem as it is difficult to get clean water because a part
\nmuch of the forests have been destroyed," Timer Manurung,
\nchairman of the foundation, told The Jakarta Post here recently.<\/p>\n
Timer lamented the fact that the local administration did not
\ncare enough to do anything to stop illegal logging. He said that
\nthe loggers use not only traditional tools like axes, but also
\nlarge chain saws.<\/p>\n
"What's more, is that they also chop down trees that are
\nlocated in the conservation area," he said.<\/p>\n
He said that due to the illegal logging that started in 1999,
\naround 50,000 trees in Nusakambangan had been cut down. Now there
\nare only around 80,000 trees that remain.<\/p>\n
"The illegal loggers are people who live outside Kampung Laut.
\nIf there are local residents who are involved in the activities,
\nthe number is very small," Timer said.<\/p>\n
He said he witnessed the illegal logging activities conducted
\nby people from other areas who came in groups.<\/p>\n
"Some were from Wonosobo and from Purbalingga (both in Central
\nJava) but some from Ciamis (West Java)," he said.<\/p>\n
He said that a group of illegal loggers usually consisted of
\nat least 30 people, who would later transport the timber from the
\nisland to another place. Timer suspects that this illegal
\nbehavior goes on without a hitch because the loggers are backed
\nby corrupt state officials, most likely the prison officers.<\/p>\n
"We talked to the loggers. They said that they had secured a
\npermit, which they obtained after paying a sum of money," Timer
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
Timer said that the rampant practice of illegal logging was
\npossible because it was not clear who has the right to manage
\nNusakambangan island.<\/p>\n
Both the Ministry of Justice and Human Rights and the Cilacap
\nadministration claim the right to manage the island.<\/p>\n
Based on the law on regional autonomy, the Cilacap regency
\nissued two bylaws, No. 6 and No. 23, in 2000, stipulating that
\nNusakambangan is part of the Segara Anakan region that is under
\nthe jurisdiction of the regency.<\/p>\n
The Ministry of Justice and Human Rights, however, argued that
\nNusakambangan is under its authority, as stated by Minister
\nYusril Ihza Mahendra in his visit to Cilacap last year.<\/p>\n
Due to the dispute, there is a lack of coordination in the
\nmanagement of the island and the control over the island is
\nineffective, at best. As a result, Nusakambangan now has open
\naccess and anyone can enter the island.<\/p>\n
"Certain officials are making use of this unclear status to
\ndestroy the forests in Nusakambangan without taking into
\nconsideration the fate of people who are threatened by a loss of
\nclean water," said Timer.<\/p>",
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