OIKN Takes Firm Steps to Enforce the Law on Forest Destruction

Penajam Paser Utara - The Nusantara Capital Authority (OIKN) is committed to taking firm steps to enforce the law against forest destruction in the IKN delineation area to safeguard the new Indonesian capital in parts of Penajam Paser Utara Regency and Kutai Kartanegara Regency, East Kalimantan Province. “Firm steps to enforce the law against various illegal activities that damage the environment,” said the Head of the Legal and Compliance Working Unit (UKHK) of the IKN Authority, Agung Dodit Muliawan, on Sunday, when conveying the commitment to strictly address all illegal activities in the IKN delineation area in Sepaku, Penajam Paser Utara. The Chairman of the Task Force for Combating Illegal Activities in the IKN Area stated that they are also carrying out land restoration and educating community elements to preserve the forest areas in the IKN region. The IKN Illegal Activities Task Force is taking firm steps to halt all forms of illegal activities in the IKN area and installing prohibition signs to prevent any parties from conducting mining activities in protected forest areas. The Bukit Soeharto People’s Forest Park (Tahura) area in East Kalimantan Province, he said, is a conservation forest area that legally cannot be used for any form of mining activities. “That area is protected from all forms of encroachment and illegal mining activities, with law enforcement carried out continuously without exception,” he stated. The OIKN is also actively conducting outreach to the public and opening dialogue spaces to find solutions for activities that already existed before the establishment of IKN. The public is urged to report any suspected violations or illegal activities in the Tahura area and other forest areas in the IKN region through the official OIKN complaint number at +62 811 5999 767. He mentioned that in 2023, a cross-ministry and agency task force was formed to conduct supervision, enforcement, and law enforcement against various illegal activities in the IKN area, including in Tahura Bukit Soeharto. “Various steps since 2023 to eradicate illegal activities in the IKN area have been taken, including enforcement against illegal activities in the Tahura area and other forest areas in IKN,” he said. These activities include handling cases of illegal coal transportation that have reached P21 status, closing illegal mines in Bukit Tengkorak, handling illegal mining behind Samboja Hospital by the East Kalimantan Police, and handling mining and illegal coal sales cases in Samboja by the National Police Criminal Investigation Agency. The Task Force also enforced actions against the transportation of illegal coal using seven trucks and illegal coal transportation to a jetty, which has been handed over to the relevant law enforcement authorities.