Conservation a gruesome affair

Conservation a gruesome affair

Jim Jarvie, Ecologist, Jakarta

Autopsies have just been completed confirming that two guards
whose bodies were found in the Kampar River in Riau recently were
murdered. Others remain hospitalized. None of the mob, shooters
or their backers, although identified and reported to police, has
been arrested. The office of the Worldwide Fund for Nature (WWF)
in the capital, Pekanbaru, accused by a legislator of stirring up
the trouble leading to this no longer needs police protection,
yet the atmosphere is still tense. This was all to do with
stopping traffic in illegal wood and enforcing the law. Yet those
supporting law are the victims. The murders and beatings are
unpunished and the entire incident has barely been reported. What
went wrong?

Until 20 years ago Riau had the last great expanses of lowland
dry and swamp forests in Sumatra. In 1983, 75 percent of the
province was under forest cover. Today this is reduced to 40
percent with much of the remaining forests under increasing
pressure. Uncontrolled logging, conversion to Acacia plantation
to feed the huge APRIL and Indah Kiat pulp mills, and by others
to oil palm, have been responsible for decimating natural forest.
Soil and water quality have been seriously degraded. Local
communities have rarely benefited. Large animals like tiger and
elephant have little space left to range, increasing conflict
between them and humans, usually to the detriment of the animals.

As the forests of Riau have dwindled, the fight to exploit
remaining patches is intensifying. Now there is only one
remaining large stand of dry forest, Tesso Nilo. Its 150,000
hectares provide the last large landscape for elephants in the
province and its importance has led to much media coverage.

APRIL and others had plans to log and convert much of this
habitat, but working with WWF and other non government
organizations (NGOs), the opportunity arose to change business
practices, leave natural forest and plant Acacia elsewhere. At
last, an alliance of the private sector with the government and
NGOs was working to benefit conservation, a rarity in Indonesia
today.

Following APRIL's bold decision to improve its field practices
and image, a decision was taken to temporarily close a ferry for
repairs. Vehicles travel this ferry to the mill over the Kampar
River. Security was established to control and prepare for the
ferry reopening to ensure that no truck with illegal timber would
pass. Yet during construction a local councilor called for any
truck to be allowed access to the ferry, no matter what it
carried. This was to be refused.

On Sept. 29, shortly before the ferry was to re-open, six
Rangers were looking after the guard post construction site. That
day a mob tried to dislodge the ferry prematurely from its dry
dock and failed. Upset, between 30 and 50 gathered, attacked the
Rangers and set fire to their post. Overwhelmed, the guards
withdrew and word was sent for backup.

It was reported that one of them, Hendra Vicar was missing.
His body was later found beaten to death and floating in the
river. Later, another of the rangers, Markus Johannes, stood his
ground by the water while ensuring the safe withdrawal of his
men. He was attacked, killed and later thrown into the river.
When his colleagues tried to retrieve his body into a boat, shots
rang out from the bank from both a rifle and handgun. His body
was left.

A member of the Riau council was quick to lay the blame for
this incident at the door of WWF, saying their pressure to stop
illegal logging had closed a major transport route for local
communities, whose rage had led to the killings and beatings. The
WWF office in Pekanbaru was closed and police provided
protection.

Police are conducting investigations and the names of four
murder suspects have been provided to them. Yet as is
increasingly usual, the backers appear untouchable.

What can be learned from this? First of all, some badly needed
good news. Private sector companies with poor histories in
natural resource exploitation can make positive improvements and
work with NGOs in ways that benefit conservation and profit. Then
the bad news -- poor governance and the use of terror can easily
stymie reforms, and can kill and maim, while remaining safe from
prosecution and punishment. And finally, those trying to
encourage good corporate behavior are blamed for negative
outcomes. Indeed, some in the Riau legislative council seem to
prefer the status quo that benefits short-term profits while
committing remaining forests to destruction, and with them the
communities and diversity they nurture.

The ramifications make the prospects for conservation in Riau
darker, particularly for Tesso Nilo. Yet given the unusual
cooperation between a pulp and paper giant and NGOs, there has
arisen a strong role for one more set of actors to become
involved, making it clear to industry and government that they do
not want the blood of forest guards or the destruction of forests
on their hands; consumers.

In Indonesia and beyond in Asia, the paper mills of APRIL and
Indah Kiat dominate the photocopy and other paper markets. The
chances are high that any paper you slip into the printer today
will come from Riau. Think about that. Write to the companies and
write to the provincial and district governments of Riau. Make it
clear to all of them that you want to read and write with a clean
conscience.

Dr. Jim Jarvie has worked with conservation, forestry and pulp
and paper sectors in Indonesia.