Jakarta police still pursuing mangrove case: Prasetyo

Jakarta police still pursuing mangrove case: Prasetyo

Evi Mariani, Jakarta

Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Prasetyo said on Friday that
their investigation was moving along well and they would soon
find the suspects in the illegal felling of about 240 mangrove
trees adjacent to the Sedyatmo toll road in Kapuk, North Jakarta.

"So far, we have questioned 11 witnesses, and will question
one witness later on Monday," he said.

The witnesses were from the National Land Agency, an official
with the Ministry of Settlement and Infrastructure, an official
with the city's Forestry Agency, two expert witnesses from
universities and an official with PT Jasa Marga.

The police have not yet questioned officials from the
advertising company PT Rainbow Cipta Utama, who are possibly the
key witnesses in the case as the mangrove forest -- which is part
of the Angke conservation zone -- may have been cut down in order
to make the company's billboards more visible to drivers on the
toll road.

The PT Rainbow billboards did not have any advertisements on
them.

The progress of the police investigation into the case has
moved quite slow, even though the police had stated that they
would summon PT Rainbow officials on April 28.

However, without explaining the reason, police delayed the
questioning for weeks.

PT Jasa Marga, the state toll road company, insisted that the
area where the trees were, actually belonged to the company and
not the city administration.

In the middle of April, Governor Sutiyoso, upset by the
illegal felling, ordered the billboards to be taken down, saying
that they were unlicensed.