Save our forests

Save our forests

For three days starting yesterday (Tuesday), the environmental
ministers of ASEAN will be meeting in Jakarta to discuss matters
in this region. Ironically, even as they are meeting huge forest
fires are raging in Sulawesi, Kalimantan and Sumatra. It is
highly probable that this problem will be one of the main
subjects of discussion.

The sad thing about all this is that the probability of fires
ravaging our forests had been anticipated long before they became
reality. Similarly, the long dry season which we are now
experiencing as a result of El Nino was anticipated as early as
last year. As it turned out this knowledge did not enable us to
prevent the destruction of our natural wealth. According to our
State Minister of Environment Sarwono Kusumaatmadja, as reported
by AFP, more than 300,000 hectares of our forests have gone up in
smoke so far this year.

The long dry season, which is expected to end only in
December, is meanwhile rendering even more forests vulnerable to
fire. We must therefore be united in our efforts and take the
necessary preventive measures to protect our country's forests.
The government, and the Ministry of Forestry in particular, must
act with greater vigor and be more proactive in taking the
measures that are necessary to protect our national forests.

The press, too, must focus more on this issue in the hope that
by doing so it can help improve transparency in the management of
our forests.

-- Media Indonesia, Jakarta