Dialogue and Regulatory Certainty Key to Tanamalia Block Management
The management of the Tanamalia Block area in East Luwu, South Sulawesi, is considered to require support from open dialogue, mapping of field conditions, and legal certainty. This approach is important to maintain the smooth running of exploration activities while ensuring attention to the communities around the area.
Soeryo Adiwibowo, a political ecology expert and lecturer in the Agricultural and Rural Development Communication Study Programme at IPB, said that managing an area with diverse social, economic, and environmental interests requires a comprehensive understanding of conditions on the ground. Therefore, communication between companies, communities, and the government needs to be continuously built.
“If we enter into matters like this, our experience so far is that we must be honest. With ourselves, with both parties. I think honesty is an important weapon for peace, because that way trust can be built,” Soeryo said in a statement received on Monday (17/8/2026).
According to Soeryo, companies need to open communication channels with communities consistently. Central and regional governments can also play a role as mediators by understanding the conditions, actors, interests, and dynamics around the area.
“Regional and central governments are important to be present as mediators. But before that, all parties must understand the terrain of the problem in depth. The key is dialogue above all else, even though it is tiring and takes time,” he said.
Soeryo added that mapping field conditions is necessary so that policies and communication built can adapt to community needs. Consistency of messaging and approach within the company is also important so that communication with the community runs consistently.
Meanwhile, Abrar Saleng, Professor of Mining Law at Hasanuddin University, said that the Forest Area Use Approval (PPKH) issued by the government provides a legal basis for permit holders to carry out exploration activities in the Tanamalia Block.
Abrar assessed that legal certainty needs to go hand in hand with a social approach. Central and regional governments, he said, can play a role in ensuring that activities with a legal basis proceed while still paying attention to community interests.
“The government cannot wash its hands of this. Central and regional governments must help resolve this issue so that activities that already have a legal basis can proceed, but community interests remain protected,” he said.
He added that the management of activities in the area needs to be carried out in an orderly and proportionate manner. Legal certainty must be maintained, while communication and attention to community conditions continue to be strengthened so that exploration activities can run well.
The approach of dialogue, field mapping, and legal certainty is expected to support the management of the Tanamalia Block in a more measured way and maintain good relations between business activities, the government, and surrounding communities.