Soeharto renews appeal on forest protection

Soeharto renews appeal on forest protection

JAKARTA (JP): President Soeharto renewed his appeal to help
protect the nation's forests, warning everyone that failure to do
so would constitute a grave sin to future generations and to
mankind.

"We have an obligation to pass on our abundance of forestry
wealth in well preserved form to future generations. We'll bear a
big sin if we leave behind forests which are damaged because of
our own doing," Soeharto said when launching a major expedition
to take stock of the flora resources in Sumatra.

He said the nation's abundance of natural resources should be
looked at not only as national assets but also as belonging to
mankind as a whole. "By preserving the flora resources, we're
preserving national assets as well as mankind's assets."

The expedition, sponsored by the Bogor Botanical Garden, will
involve nearly 100 scientists who will visit Sumatran forests
from Jambi to Bengkulu through the Barisan range. Particular
attention will be given to the Kerinci Seblat National Park.

The expedition is conducted every year as part of the
Botanical Garden's anniversary which falls on May 18. The garden,
which is adjacent to the Presidential Palace and a major Bogor
landmark, turned 178 years last week.

Soeharto in his speech focused his appeal on two groups of
people: nomadic people who still practice slash and burn farming
and forestry concession holders.

"They (The farmers) need guidance to learn a better way of
farming, one that does not harm the environment.

Obligation

"We must also stop the irresponsible felling of trees, which
will gradually upset nature's ecological balance," he said. "From
this place, for the umpteenth time, I'm appealing to every
forestry concession holders to abide by their obligation to help
preserve the forests."

Indonesia's immense tropical rain forests are home to some of
the world's largest collections of rare plants and animals.

Presently there are four botanical gardens and 374 forest
conservation sites where some of the rare species are kept and
preserved.

Soefjan Tsauri, the chairman of the Indonesian Institute of
Sciences, said at the launching ceremony that previous
expeditions conducted by the Bogor Botanical Gardens managed to
save more than 10,000 forest specimens across the country.

Soefjan argued for increasing need to learn about the
application of plant knowledge. "With the gradual increase of the
utility (of plant knowledge), we need to start steps in the area
of intellectual property rights."

The expedition will be held in conjunction with the country's
50th anniversary. It is also being sponsored by Japan's Forestry
and Forest Product Research Institute, whose expert, Maria Nunez,
is also on the expedition team. Other sponsors include the
Indonesian Forestry Society and the Mitsubishi Corporation. (anr)