Officials dissent over Pemuda forest conversion

Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The opinions of Jakarta administration officials differed on Thursday over the legality of the conversion of the Pemuda city forest in Cibubur, East Jakarta, into a sports hall.

City Spatial Agency head Nurfakih Wirawan insisted that the construction of the sports hall on the 10-hectare city forest was legal, as the administration had produced a building permit.

"The permit to build the hall, which will become a training hall for Korean martial art tae kwon do, certainly exists" he told The Jakarta Post.

However, the newly installed head of the City Agriculture and Forestry Agency, Mauritz Napitupulu, told the Post that the city forest should not have been cleared to make way for the hall.

"The spatial agency must not allow construction on an area that is designated as a green space. If that (conversion) occurs, then, the gubernatorial decree regulating city forests must be revised," Mauritz said.

According to a book produced by the forestry agency, the 10- hectare city forest in Cibubur is categorized as one of three city forests for tourism, aside from Ragunan Zoo and Kemayoran forest in Central Jakarta.

Nurfakih claimed that the land actually belonged to the Ministry of National Education, not the city administration.

"In the past, the land was set aside as a water catchment area. If the landowner wants to use the land for another purpose, that's understandable," he said.

The Ministry of National Education's director general of sports, Toho Kholik, who is managing the site, said the correct procedure had been followed in implementing the project, including the provision of monetary compensation for the trees felled.

Head of the City Construction Supervisory and Regulatory Agency, Djumhana Tjakrawirja, confirmed the issuance of a building permit for the sports hall.

"(But) that's not a city forest, it is a green area, meaning that 20 percent of its total area is occupied by a low building. The stadium will become a facility for the camping ground nearby ... we wouldn't issue a building permit without the recommendation of the spatial agency."

East Jakarta Mayor Koesnan Abdul Halim said that he did not know about the project, but promised to check it out.