Walhi pledges to maintain stance on the environment

JAKARTA (JP): Prominent environmental group Walhi celebrates its 16th birthday today. It has pledged to continue its current work despite growing criticism that it has deviated from its original mission.

Walhi, an Indonesian acronym for the Indonesian Forum for the Environment, is entering its "adolescence" and is becoming naughtier and more difficult to control than ever, said the organization's executive director, Emmy Hafild, yesterday.

She said Walhi had deviated slightly from its original mission to better serve society.

It has become more outspoken. Instead of just striving to raise public awareness on environmental issues, Walhi has begun pushing for reform of the government policies which it considers hurt people and the environment, she said.

"Environmental destruction has increased significantly. The public has become better aware of the issues. It's now time for us to be more of an organization advocating people's rights and obligations in environmental affairs," Emmy told The Jakarta Post.

Emmy said good environmental management could only happen if people aware of their rights, obligations and responsibilities control it.

Emmy was responding to a recent remark by State Minister of Environment Sarwono Kusumaatmadja that Walhi had "deviated from its original purpose".

"Walhi was established as an umbrella organization to foster and support other environmental groups, rather than as an advocacy group," Sarwono said last week.

Sarwono cited a lawsuit filed by Walhi and other groups against President Soeharto over his decree granting Rp 400 billion (US$183 million) intended for reforestation programs to the state-owned aircraft company IPTN. The funds were used to finance the development of the N-250 aircraft.

The Jakarta State Administrative Court rejected the lawsuit, saying it did not have the jurisdiction to handle the case.

In 1994, Walhi sued the Ministry of Mines and Energy and the American mining company PT Freeport Indonesia for environmental destruction in Timika, Irian Jaya.

Walhi leaders admitted yesterday that one of the many shortcomings they had to overcome was the poor skill of its personnel, something which hampers its ventures into the political side of environmental issues.

Members of Walhi's central board in Jakarta agreed yesterday that many regional chapters were unable to confront the authorities or mediate in disputes.

Lili Hasanuddin, a forest campaign coordinator, said that many non-governmental organizations (NGOs) in other parts of the country were unprepared for the political risks that accompany their advocacy work.

"We have no intention of stealing the show away from other groups. On the contrary, we hope that other NGOs will be more vocal in expressing their views," Emmy said.

There are 267 environmental groups across the country.

Walhi is striving to achieve financial independence within the next six years, Lili added. He said the organization was hoping to find local donors soon.

Walhi's successes include the introduction of environmental- impact analyses in development projects. The government now refuses to grant businesses operation permits unless they conduct environmental assessment programs. (14)