Global Environment.com |
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Saturday, 11 January, 2003.
'Corruption' in Indonesia
logging war
Rampant corruption in Indonesia is hampering
attempts to tackle the problem of illegal logging, according to a
report.
Indonesia's forests, home to endangered species, such as the orang-utan
and Clouded Leopard, are being stripped.
Campaigners claim up to 70% of Indonesia's timber comes from illegal
sources.
The report comes ahead of a donors' meeting in Bali next week, at
which the issue of sustainable forest management is due to be discussed.
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GM crops 'will help wildlife'
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Climate change disrupt birds |
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Corruption in Indonesia
logging war |
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Rare birds fall prey to botulism |
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Red alert over rare species |
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National
scourge
Indonesia's forests are disappearing at an alarming rate. Even in protected
areas, such as national parks, huge swathes of unique tropical habitat
are being destroyed by illegal logging. |
Huge swathes of
forest have been destroyed
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According
to the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA), government efforts
to tackle the problem are being undermined by widespread corruption.
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In
its report, the EIA said officials from the police and judiciary are
being bribed or intimidated by powerful timber barons who are continuing
to exploit Indonesia's natural resources with impunity. |
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'Out of control'
The director of the agency, David Curry,
said the situation had reached a critical point.
"It's completely out of control," he said. "If you go
out into any forested area, you will see illegal saw mills, you will
see illegal loggers.
"It's not difficult. They're absolutely
everywhere. They're walking through police posts.
"No one's doing anything about this, other than taking their backhanders
and letting business go on as usual."
The EIA is calling for greater international pressure to force the Indonesian
Government to confront the issue.
It wants to see an independent forest crimes unit established, with
the power to arrest and prosecute anyone found to be involved in illegal
logging operations.
Sustainable management of Indonesia's forests is on the agenda of a
meeting of international donors in Bali, next week.
The message from environmentalists is that without a genuine commitment
to root out corruption, all promises of help are doomed to failure.
source: http://news.bbc.co.uk
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