Law Enforcement
Alleged macaque-smuggling ring exposed as U.S. indicts Cambodian officials
PHNOM PENH — Eight people, including two Cambodian Forestry Administration officials, have been charged by U.S. federal prosecutors for their alleged involvement in an international monkey smuggling ring. One of the officials charged, Kry Masphal, was arrested at New York City’s John F. Kennedy International Airport, en route to Panama, where he was to have […]
EU ‘moving the goal posts’ with new timber requirement, Indonesia says
BERLIN — Indonesian officials have slammed the European Union’s proposal of a regulation that they say negates more than a decade of progress by the Southeast Asian country to comply with EU sustainable timber rules. Under a voluntary partnership agreement, or VPA, signed in 2011, Indonesia developed a system, known as the SVLK, to verify […]
In revising its criminal code, Indonesia risks unraveling environmental laws
JAKARTA — An ambitious and long-anticipated plan by Indonesian lawmakers to revise the country’s criminal code, inherited from the Dutch colonial era, could make it much more difficult to prosecute polluting companies, experts warn. The latest draft of the revised penal code, known as the RKUHP, was only recently made publicly available after an uproar […]
No permit? No problem for palm oil company still clearing forest in Papua
JAKARTA — More than 100 Indigenous people in Indonesia’s Papua region are calling on the local government to revoke all the permits of a palm oil company that’s continuing to clear land despite being ordered to halt all activities by officials. The order was issued after the company, PT Permata Nusa Mandiri (PNM), had one […]
As Jakarta chokes on toxic air, Indonesian government stalls on taking action
JAKARTA — Jakarta’s recent episode of world-beating air pollution has highlighted what activists describe as belligerent inaction by the Indonesian government to address the source of the problem, even in the face of a ruling by the nation’s top court ordering it to act. On June 20, readings for PM2.5, a class of airborne pollutants […]
Indonesia’s Sangihe islanders score legal victory over mining company
JAKARTA — Residents of a remote island in eastern Indonesia have won a lawsuit against a company planning to mine gold on their island, after having an earlier legal challenge thrown out on a technicality. In the latest ruling, handed down May 22 and publicized only recently, a court in Manado, North Sulawesi province, ruled […]
Legal defeats pile up for palm oil companies stripped of permits in Papua
JAKARTA — A court in Indonesia has dismissed lawsuits filed by two palm oil companies against a district head who revoked their permits over various violations. The May 23 rulings mark the latest in a string of legal defeats for palm oil companies who lost their licenses to operate in Indonesia’s West Papua province. PT […]
Court setback doesn’t sway Indonesian villagers fighting a mining firm
JAKARTA — A court in Jakarta has rejected a lawsuit by a remote island community against a gold-mining operation that overlaps onto their villages, in a ruling deemed “problematic” by anti-mining activists. In its April 20 ruling, the Jakarta State Administrative Court said it had no jurisdiction to decide the case, which it characterized as […]
Coal miner Bayan sues Indonesian investment chief over loss of land
JAKARTA — Indonesian coal mining company Bayan Resources has challenged the government’s decision to revoke its permits and effectively shrink its concession area. The legal challenge is the latest in an ongoing battle over mining concessions in Indonesian Borneo between Bayan and another mining company, PT Senyiur Sukses Pratama (SSP). On April 8, five Bayan […]
When Indonesia retook land from developers, it gave them a solid case to sue
JAKARTA — The Indonesian government has opened itself up to litigation by unilaterally revoking hundreds of permits for logging concessions, plantations and mines, according to environmental law experts. The revocations were ordered in early January by President Joko Widodo, and include permits issued by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry for 192 logging, plantation, mining and ecotourism […]