Govt foils log smuggling attempt, detains vessels
Fitri Wulandari, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The government has managed to foil a log smuggling attempt in Pangkalan Bun, Central Kalimantan, and detained three foreign- flagged ships that were to have been used to transport the wood, Minister of Environment Nabiel Makarim said.
The three vessels were caught red-handed loading logs on Nov. 5 by the Navy, which was assisted by the Ministry of Forestry, the directorate general of sea transportation, the National Police, Tanjung Priok port authority and the directorate general of customs and excise, Nabiel said on Thursday.
He added that a total of 31,800 cubic meters of logs valued at US$4.7 million had been confiscated from the ships, MV Mandarin Sea of Singapore, MV Rong Cheng of Hong Kong and MV Von Cheng of China. The vessels were later sent to the Tanjung Priok port in Jakarta.
Nabiel said that his office would file charges against the ship's owners, whose identities were currently unknown. As for the problem of smugglers, he admitted it remained difficult to crack down on them as there was a complex system involved.
Illegal logging has grown uncontrollably over the past few years, resulting in extensive damage to the country's forests. The practice has contributed to the rapid deforestation rate of between two and 2.4 million hectares per year.
It has also resulted in losses to the state amounting to US$8.4 million a year.
Masnellyarti Hilman, deputy chief of law enforcement at the Environmental Impact Control Agency (Bapedal), confirmed that her office had yet to identify the owners of the ships.
Through a case exposure scheduled for Monday, it is expected that new information regarding the owners will be compiled.
She said that, based on previous experience, it was not easy to bring cases linked to environmental destruction to court.
"It will take about a year before a trial can begin. We are still in the process of compiling the evidence. Hopefully the prosecutor will not turn down the case," Masnellyarti said.
According to Masnellyarti, the Ministry of Forestry will also file a lawsuit against the perpetrators, on a charge of transporting logs without proper documentation.