Seribu Islands needs clear regulations and authority

Seribu Islands needs clear regulations and authority

JAKARTA (JP): A marine expert and a businessman said on Tuesday that the city administration's plan to elevate the status of Seribu Islands from a district to a regency next year would not enhance the people's welfare unless there are clear regulations and authority for the new regency.

Chairman of the National Bina Samudra Foundation Ismu Sutanto Suwelo and chairman of the Association of Marine Tourism Businessmen in Thousand Islands Djafar Tirtosentono said that as long as the government issued inconsistent regulations, elevating the status of the islands will not do any good for its people.

"There is no clear regulation on who is really in charge of the islands. There are two oil refineries in these islands but only the central government is authorized to collect the revenue," Djafar said while addressing a three-day seminar at the Bidakara Complex in South Jakarta on the planning of the Thousand Islands.

He said many of the government's decisions turned out to be disadvantages for the locals.

"Some of the islands have been declared as national parks, so the locals cannot do anything with their lands because as they are prohibited from doing so. They cannot do anything to improve the quality of their lives but they have to pay taxes for the land and buildings," Djafar said.

"If the government wants to maintain the land as national parks, it should provide some compensation for these people so that they can improve their lives," he added.

Djafar stressed that elevating the status was less important than taking an integrated and concrete action to help improve the life of the locals.

"Probably, the government should establish an agency to take care of the Thousand Islands," he said.

The city administration's decision to elevate the status of the Thousand Islands is an implementation of Law No. 34/1999 on the New Status of the Thousand Islands.

The Thousand Islands, an area of 69,976 square kilometers (some 9,214 square kilometers of which are land), is a popular marine resort. It is currently a district under the North Jakarta mayoralty.

The House of Representatives approved in 1998 a draft law on regional administrations which stipulates that the Thousand Islands will be upgraded from a district to an administrative mayoralty.

At least 28 of the 108 islands are individually owned, while 34 others are owned by private companies and used as resorts. Only 11 islands are permanently inhabited.

Currently, the State Secretariat has the power to sell these islands. It remains unclear if with the implementation of Law No. 22/1999 on regional autonomy in January next year, this authority would be shifted to the city administration.

Addressing the same seminar, Ismu said a large area of the Thousand Islands had been declared a national park which therefore have to be preserved and used in accordance to the regulation.

"However, in reality the city administration often issued different land permits for these islands," he said.

"For example, the Sebaru Kecil island, which has been declared a natural conservatory, is categorized as a recreational area by the city administration. But there are many cottages found in the islands now," Ismu cited.

Expressing his discontent, Ismu said the inconsistency between regulations issued by the city administration and the central government would probably never be sorted out because the government had yet to discuss on the administrative authority for the islands after the implementation of regional autonomy. (dja)