On public debate

On public debate

Barring unforeseeable circumstances, a public hearing on
forestry will be held on March 2. The meeting will take place at
the Sahid Jaya hotel in Jakarta and many members of the community
-- either people with a direct interest in the subject to be
discussed or those without such an interest but with a deep
concern regarding forest conservation matters -- are expected to
be present.

The involvement of two prominent personalities in the meeting
-- Minister of Forestry Djamaloedin Soeryohadikoesoemo, who will
open the meeting, and former environmental minister Emil Salim,
who will preside over the debate -- is an indication that this
will be a serious event. The debate, according to Emil, is
designed to find a consensus among the parties concerned
regarding the matter of forest management and utilization.

Any open debate such as this deserves welcome provided that it
truly involves community participation and absorbs the views that
actually prevail in society. As an idea, this debate may be
viewed as an effort to lift the discussion of forestry affairs
out of the confinements of specialized groups, such as forestry
businesses, the forestry ministry and forestry experts.

Considering its impact on the community, the management of our
forests is too great an issue to be left to the discretion of
logging concessionaires. Indiscriminate logging, for example,
benefits the logger but has huge negative effects on the
community.

-- Republika, Jakarta