Govt sued for environmental crime

Tony Hotland, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

A network of non-governmental organizations (NGOs) reported Minister of Settlement and Regional Infrastructure Soenarno to the police on Thursday for "a crime of environmental destruction" for proposing the controversial Ladia Galaska highway project.

The Indonesian NGOs Network for Forest Conservation (SKEPHI) is considering filing a lawsuit against President Megawati Soekarnopoetri if she inaugurates the project.

The network claims that the project has contributed much to the destruction of forests and the Leuser conservation area, located mostly in Aceh.

"We just submitted evidence, such as the Ladia Galaska road map, maps of conservation areas, and maps of flood-prone areas," SKEPHI'S coordinator, Indro Tjahyono, said.

The maps shows that the road would slash through conservation areas, and likely cause floods.

The project would provide no economic advantage because the road cuts through empty areas, instead of connecting business centers in the resource-rich province, he added.

"Another impact would be rampant illegal logging because nobody will control the area," he said.

Construction of the Ladia Galaska road project began in 2002. The 500-kilometer road, linking the west and east coasts of the war-torn province, will pass through southern Aceh and the only virgin forest left on Sumatra, the Leuser ecosystem.

Indro said that the project was a violation of Law No. 23/1997 on environmental management, which carries a maximum 10-year prison sentence, or a Rp 500 million fine.

SKEPHI also suspects corruption and "fictitious elements" of the road project.

"The government allocated Rp 100 billion last year to build parts of the highway, but the projects never materialized," said Indro.

Along with Soenarno, Aceh Governor Abdullah Puteh, whom according to the network had initiated the project, was also reported to the police.

The governor is currently facing a civil trial against the Indonesian Environmental Forum (Walhi) in Aceh for the project's improper environmental impact analysis.

The President is slated to visit Aceh on Sunday, but it remains uncertain whether her schedule will include the inauguration of the project.

"If she officiates it, she will be involved in the environmental crime, since we presume she is aware of the bad conditions at the site," Indro affirmed.

Many NGOs have opposed the project, in the belief that it has caused disasters, such as floods and landslides in the surrounding areas.

Both the Office of the State Minister of the Environment and the Ministry of Forestry have challenged the project, suggesting that the government build an alternative highway which doesn't cut through the conservation area.