Stop forest fires

The state minister of environment has said that 65 percent of the fires now burning in East Kalimantan are the responsibility of timber and plantation companies. These fires are illegal. The rich company owners know it, the public knows it and the government knows it, as they have given the rules. The fires have now gone on for a year, and the government has not canceled the concessions or penalized the concessionaires.

Further, we are told that about 300 people are working daily on the ground in order to stop the fires. In addition, the government has deployed two water bombers. This is the total national input to stop fires which are destroying large areas of primary rain forest, fires which also cause big economic losses to the local people and to the nation, but not to the concessionaires.

Nations and people all over the world are worried because of the magnitude and the consequences of these huge fires. And only 300 people are engaged to stop the fires. This is the number of people even a small village would be able to mobilize itself if its environment were really threatened.

Based on the above information, people can only conclude that the government, or rather the powerful part of the government, is not, in reality, interested in stopping the forest fires of East Kalimantan.

I shall not elaborate on the reasons for this reality, it is up to the readers to think for themselves.

But the forest fires must be stopped, and this must happen before the last tree of the rain forest is burned down. I suggest that an attempt be made to utilize local expertise in fighting the forest fires.

If we consider who has lit the fires, and are told that 65 percent of the fires are the responsibility of owners of timber and plantation companies, then these are people coming from outside Kalimantan.

Concerning the remaining 35 percent, they are lit by what is called local farmers. These farmers also come from outside Kalimantan. They are transmigrants from Java and Madura, frustrated over the poor soil condition in the planned or free transmigration sites, and, therefore, they are chasing for better soil.

In addition to the people who lit the fires, there exists a Dayak population of about three million people, who live in the forest areas of Kalimantan. They are known as the indigenous population of the area. These people have, for hundreds of years, grown rice and vegetables on their ladang in the forest areas, using shifting cultivation or a slash-and-burn method. Of course, they have selected the best, most fertile land for their farming.

If they need a new land, they know how to start a fire and keep it going exactly to the areas they wish to clear. And they also know how to stop the fires, leaving the rest of the forest intact.

I would like to suggest that the Dayaks be mobilized to fight the forest fires, and, thus, they would feel respected. They should be paid a reasonable wage, provided with boots, gloves and chain saws in addition to their traditional axes and knives. Five thousand to 10,000 people should be a reasonable number to do the job. Why not give them a fair chance to fight the forest fires on their own land?

ARIF FATHUR RAHMAN

Banjarmasin, South Kalimantan