Walhi and its concerns

Walhi and its concerns

From Republika

When I heard the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi)'s "research" on Jakarta's vulnerable clean water supply on one of the private TV stations, I didn't feel proud of its effort. Instead I felt it was using this merely as a camouflage so as not to be labeled a non-governmental organization (NGO) that seeks overseas funds. This organization has, up to now, only been clamoring on environmental issues that concern big companies.

To date, as we know, Walhi has always been sharply criticized by the general public for not caring about environmental problems in all areas. It only cares about environmental issues directly related to big enterprises (eg. mining). Therefore, the public at large is under the impression that Walhi is always using environmental issues (in this case Jakarta's water supply) not only to shed its negative image, but also to obtain offshore funds.

There were no brilliant ideas from Walhi on how to address the alarming problems as mentioned in the news report. In its publication, Walhi only revealed the gravity of the problem and the nonavailability of clean water due to industrial wastes and ground water exploitation.

In my opinion, if Walhi wants to be an NGO that is really concerned about the environment, it should take the steps below:

1. Be transparent about the funds it receives.

2. Do not only raise environmental issues, but also give solutions.

AIDI JADRI

Jakarta