Military, government, loggers 'destroying' forests
A number of representatives of environmental organizations recently investigated the construction of the Ladia Galaska highway, which starts on the west coast of southern Aceh and winds its way through Gayo and Alas before it ends on the east coast facing the Straits of Malacca, in North Sumatra. The Jakarta Post's Tarko Sudiarno joined the trip along the road that cuts through the world famous Gunung Leuser National Park.
"It gives me a headache and causes my blood pressure to shoot up," Johnson Panjaitan, secretary general of the Indonesian Legal Aid and Human Rights Association (PBHI) said as he surveyed the burnt out forest and scattered forest timber left behind by illegal loggers tearing apart Gunung Leuser National Park, North Sumatra.
"This situation calls for immediate advocacy and a lawsuit against the regional administrations because they have openly advocated the destruction of our forests," said Panjaitan, also chairman of the Indonesian Environmental Forum (Walhi).
Anybody, particularly those concerned with the environment, would be appalled at the sight of the damage that human beings have done to the protected forest areas in Bukit Barisan and in Gunung Leuser National Park. That afternoon, when we went through Tanah Karo, Langkat, North Sumatra, we found the two areas already connected by a new road.
The 35-km-long through road, which cuts through the Gunung Leuser protected forest and national park, was built in the 1980s by the military, probably illegally.
"As far as we know, this road has been constructed without any analysis on environmental impact (AMDAL) at all. The construction stopped at the border of Gunung Leuser protected forest and national park. Today, however, the road has been extended," said Denny Purba of the Leuser Management Unit.
The prevailing laws and regulations set strict requirements for the construction of a road in any protected area. This road, therefore, is said to have been illegally constructed.
It is feared it will speed up destruction of the forest ecosystem and encourage illegal logging. That damage done by the illegal road construction and illegal logging was evident when we entered the protected forest area from Kutarakyat.
The moment we entered the area, we saw here and there traces of illegal logging and forest burning. Surprisingly, in some parts of the side of the road, there are green notice boards reading "Forest Supervisor of Regreening Project of the Legion of Veterans of the Republic of Indonesia (LVRI) Karo Chapter."
These notice boards seem to indicate ownership of the areas concerned, therefore barring just anybody from entering the property.
The same notice boards carrying the name of LVRI (Indonesian Veterans Association) are also found in Gunung Leuser National Park.
"These boards are only a trick. Is it logical to regreen this green foliage? So, they have actually divided this forest area into lots for their own businesses," said Panjaitan.
Illegal logging that causes damage to the forest ecosystem has been committed not only by government departments and security forces but also, on a smaller scale, by the locals. Along the road we saw individuals carrying out illegal logging while in the border of Tanah Karo and Langkat, which is also the border of the protected forest and Gunung Leuser National Park, a number of bird poachers were calmly doing their job.
Nearby a board warning against entering the national park was simply staring uselessly at them. These bird catchers, just like the illegal loggers and their government backers, ignore all laws and regulations.
It is easy to imagine that once the Tanah Karo-Langkat through road is completed, more damage will be done to the Gunung Leuser ecosystem. When this happens, it signals the destruction of a forest area and our environmental ecosystem.
The construction of a through road cutting through Gunung Leuser National Park in North Sumatra is just one example of the conflict of interest between economic development and environmental conservation.
The same case has been identified in Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam and similar cases may continue to be found there. The local administration is greatly ambitious to realize its Ladia Galaska project after it was suspended for a few years. Today, under governor Abdullah Puteh, this mega project is to be resumed. The central government is reportedly ready to extend funds to finance the project.
Signs that the project will resume are easy to find, such as in the part of the through road connecting Lawe Palam in South- East Aceh and Bohorok in North Sumatra. When The Jakarta Post went along this 36-km segment of the road, several large trees or slabs of stone were marked to indicate that road segments would be constructed there.
At present the road is only a steep narrow trail that Lawe Pakam residents usually take to get into the forest. As we entered the protected forest area in Kampung Bhakti, we no longer saw marked trees up to the border of the protected forest and Gunung Leuser National Park.
It was a surprise that when we arrived at the monument marking the border of Gunung Leuser National Park, we found the forest area in this national park already turned into local residents' plantations. The border monument was accompanied by tomato, chili and violet eggplant plants.
Meanwhile, near this border monument, there is a thatched wooden hut belonging to a couple from Luwe Pakam.
"We have been here for three years and we clear the forest. We have felled large trees and in their place we grow macadamia nuts and coffee plants. These plants do not belong to us; they belong to a police officer. We work for him," said Syafrudin, who also taps palm sap.
"You won't get angry with us for staying here, will you?" asked Syafrudin's wife innocently. They did not know that there was a regulation prohibiting anybody from entering the national park, let alone staying there.
Syafrudin said he was only a farm laborer as the land was owned by someone else. He works on a production-sharing basis.
"The field down there has become narrower so when we were offered to till this forest land, we took it. A few years ago, there were still a lot of tigers in this area. We are sure if we do not disturb them, the tigers will not attack us," said Syafruddin, who gets down every week to the residential area in Luwe Pakam, an area he can reach after two hours' walk.
Not far from this hut, there will be a through road that travels along the river. When completed, this road, which cuts through the protected area and the national park, facilitates people accessing this area.
Perhaps they are not only common people like Syafrudin but capitalists backed up by powerful people. The forests of Gunung Leuser are rich in flora and fauna, an area alluring to those obsessed only with amassing wealth.
It is easy to imagine, therefore, the extent of the damage that the forest area and the national park will sustain later. The construction of Ladia Galaska road under various pretexts may be construed as an attempt ahead of others towards destruction. The destruction of the area spells the doom of our environmental ecosystem.