Government submits forestry bill to House

JAKARTA (JP): The government submitted a draft bill on forestry to the House of Representatives on Monday despite appeals for its postponement until the new legislature is sworn in.

Minister of Forestry and Plantations Muslimin Nasution said the draft legislation, designed to replace the 1967 law, would allow for greater participation of cooperatives and provincial administration-owned companies in managing forest resources.

Under its stipulations, concession holders will be obliged to provide a performance bond or bank guarantee in an amount commensurate with the potential yield of each concession area in order to ensure that forest areas are managed in a sustainable manner.

The bill also recognizes class actions against companies and parties charged with damaging forests and causing losses to local people.

It stipulates that any parties found responsible for damaging forests and involvement in the illegal timber trade are liable to a maximum criminal penalty of a 10-year imprisonment and a fine up to Rp 1 billion.

The bill also rules that concession holders shall be held responsible for forest fires in their concession areas, meaning they will be considered culpable unless they can provide evidence proving their innocence.

"Based on experience, we could not adopt the presumption of innocence in the case of forest fires. So the onus will lie with timber companies in the event of forest fires in their concession areas," Muslimin said.

The bill also specifically outlines the rights of local people living near forest concessions, including their participation in logging activities.

"The bill also stipulates that the government shall seriously consider the rights of local people before granting forest concessions," Muslimin said.

"Section VIII of the bill specially recognizes the existence of local tribes and their rights in managing the forest."

However, he said that the bill did not specifically provide guidelines for the granting of concession rights, which was addressed in Government Regulation No. 6/1999.

"This regulation has set a maximum limit for concession areas that can be awarded to a company and a business group in particular provinces and the term of concession rights."

The bill also does not stipulate specific provisions on the decentralization of licensing related to forest management. It states that the central government will delegate the administration of "several aspects of forest management to local administrations".

Legislator Umbu Mehang Kunda, who chairs House Commission III for agriculture, forestry and plantations, transmigration and food affairs, said he was optimistic the bill could be passed into law before the end of the current legislative term in late August.

"I think we can finish the debates before the recess period because the bill has addressed almost all issues in forestry sector."

He said the government and the House would not accede to the calls to postpone or cancel the bill's deliberation.

"We are open to input from any parties for improving the forestry bill. But nobody can force us to cancel deliberating the bill."

Umbu said legislators did not intend to automatically pass the bill, adding that newly elected House members would have to take up its deliberation if it could not be completed next month.

Former environmental ministers, analysts and environmentalists have urged the government to revise the bill because it focuses on aspects of forest exploitation and not forest preservation.

They argued that pushing the bill through the House would not produce legislation required to ensure sustainable forest management.

They recommended that the new House resulting from the June 7 general election be entrusted to deliberate the bill.(gis)