RI, Malaysia to cooperate in forestry projects

RI, Malaysia to cooperate in forestry projects

YOGYAKARTA (JP): Indonesia and Malaysia yesterday agreed to
cooperate in fighting international campaigns against tropical
timber and to conduct joint forestry projects with a view to
increasing cost-efficiency and productivity.

Officials of the two countries also agreed yesterday, at the
conclusion of the eighth ministerial meeting of the Indonesia-
Malaysia Joint Working Committee on Forestry, to work against the
unilateral bans imposed on the use of tropical timber by a number
of regional administrations of member-countries of the European
Union.

Indonesia's 40-member delegation to the two-day workshop was
led by Minister of Forestry Djamaludin Suryohadikusumo, while the
35-member Malaysian delegation was led by Minister of Primary
Industries Lim Keng Yaik.

"The ASEAN-Brussels Committee will discuss with the EU the
possibility of eliminating the unilateral actions and bans
imposed by the local governments. We will also ask the EU to
encourage those governments to abide by EU regulations as well as
the commitments reached through the World Trade Organization
(WTO) and the International Tropical Timber Organization (ITTO),"
Djamaludin told a press conference.

Djamaludin, who was accompanied by his Malaysian counterpart,
said both countries would explore the possibility of resolving
the matter through the WTO.

"Although the ITTO has set the year 2000 as the starting-point
for the introduction of eco-labeling requirements,
environmentalists and non-governmental organizations in Europe
have already embarked on their boycotts," he said.

Lim contended that anti-tropical timber campaigns have caused
Malaysia to lose about 50 percent of its market share in Europe,
particularly in Germany and the Netherlands.

"The governments of these countries do not ban the use of
tropical timber, but local administrations do," he said.

Indonesia and Malaysia agreed to work together to meet the
ITTO's target for the year 2000, emphasizing that both producer
countries and countries consuming tropical timber must carry an
equal amount of responsibility in achieving sustainable forest
management.

Vice chairmanship

Malaysia also pledged its support yesterday for the nomination
of Indonesia's Wisber Loeis as vice chairman of the ITTO for
1996.

Both expressed the view that close cooperation should be
maintained and strengthened to ensure that the Intergovernmental
Panel on Forests focuses on critical forestry issues and provides
clear recommendations for concrete actions.

Such issues include the establishment of rules applicable to
all types of forests, thereby avoiding double standards,
discriminatory practices and bans on the sale of products of a
particular type of forest, the countries' representatives said.

Djamaludin emphasized that developed countries, which mostly
had boreal and temperate forests, should also implement
sustainable forest management practices.

Malaysia and Indonesia also agreed yesterday to collaborate in
implementing the Forest Principles established during the Earth
Summit in Rio de Janeiro in 1992.

On the issue of the illegal trans-border timber trade between
the two countries, it was agreed that Indonesia would step up its
monitoring of the movement of timber within its jurisdiction.

The Malaysian Timber Industry Board, for its part, will
provide accurate information on the certification and origin of
imported timber.

A joint committee will be established to monitor the
situation.

The next ministerial meeting of the Indonesia-Malaysia Joint
Working Committee on Forestry will be held in Miri, Sarawak, at
the end of next year. (mun/pwn)