Indonesian Ministers are due to take a decision approving plans for a
70,000 hectare oil palm plantation and transmigration project in the
buffer zone of Siberut National Park in early 1997. With advice from
Indonesian environmental NGOs, Down to Earth has sent the following
letter to the Indonesian authorities urging them to withhold
permission. IT IS IMPORTANT TO TAKE ACTION NOW AS THE INDONESIAN
AUTHORITIES WILL SOON BE TOO BUSY WITH THE MAY ELECTIONS. IF YOU WANT
TO EXPRESS YOUR CONCERN , WRITE IMMEDIATELY TO THE DECISION-MAKERS
LISTED BELOW (with a copy to Down to Earth)
FEEL FREE TO USE THE INFORMATION IN OUR LETTER, BUT PLEASE DO NOT COPY
IT WORD FOR WORD
There is more information about this oil palm plantation scheme in
Down to Earth's newsletter issues No29/30 and 31. Issue 32 also
includes a shorter version of this letter.
1. Minister of Manpower Affairs, Drs Abdul Latief, (an major investor
in one of the companies), Jl. Gatot Subroto Kav. 51, Jakarta 12950,
Indonesia
2. Minister of Forestry, Djamaludin Soerjohadikoesoemo, Gedung
Manggala Wanabakti Blok I Lt. IV, Jl. Gatot Subroto, Senayan, Jakarta
Pusat, Indonesia
3. Governor of West Sumatra, Dr Hasan Basri Durin, Jl. Jend. Sudirman
No. 51, Padang 25113, Sumatera Barat, Indonesia
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STOP PRESS
The Australian Broadcasting Corporation reported 18th March 1997 that the
Indonesian authorities are to relocate 20,000 families to the Mentawai
chain. More than four thousand families have already been sent to the
Mentawais through the transmigration programme, mainly to the islands
south of Siberut. Local Indonesian groups have no definite information on
the destination of this new wave of transmigants as yet, but have informed
Down to Earth that all the villages in South Siberut have refused consent
for the oil palm plantation project for which much migrant labour will be
required. For this reason, the plantation scheme has not yet been given
official approval from central government. However, if the transmigration
scheme goes ahead this will increase pressure on Ministers in Jakarta to
sanction the plantation to provide employment for thousands of migrant
families. We also have new evidence that the local authorities have
falsified documents in order to acquire land rights from indigenous people
on Siberut.
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Sirs,
As an international organisation focusing on environment and
development issues in Indonesia, Down to Earth recognises the steps
already taken by the Indonesian government towards protecting the
unique lifestyles of the indigeous people and the ecosystems of the
island of Siberut. However, we are very concerned that the Governor of
West Sumatra has agreed in principle to the establishment of an oil
palm plantation and associated transmigration scheme covering 70,000ha
in the buffer zone of the National Park (letters 525.26/2032 and
525.26/2033, August 25th 1995).
These plans are not compatible with the National Park Integrated
Conservation and Development Programme or the Park's status as a World
Biodiversity Reserve. If this plantation and the associated
transmigration project goes ahead it will damage the fragile ecology
of the whole island; create social tension between communities on
Siberut; marginalise the indigenous people; fail to fulfil
transmigrants' hopes for a better life and prove an expensive
disappointment for investors and the Indonesian government. We
therefore ask you to refuse to endorse Hasan Basri Durin's
recommendation and to excert all your influence to stop this and
similar schemes on Siberut for the following reasons:
1. Environmental impacts
a) The National Park which occupies nearly half the island was
created to conserve Siberut's rich flora and fauna. Any large-scale
extractive development in the buffer zone will seriously affect its
vital role in protecting the Park bearing in mind the relatively small
size of the island. An oil palm plantation will replace the high
biodiversity of the existing forest with one introduced species.
b) The large-scale clearance of forest from Siberut's watershed
will have a detrimental effect on the hydrology of the island. The
microhabitats of endemic species will be reduced and communities
downstream will be treatened by water shortages and flooding.
c) The construction and use of the infrastructure required to
support the oil palm plantation and transmigration scheme, including
roads, drainage, housing and offices will damage the natural ecology
of the island directly and indirectly.
d) Soil erosion resulting from forest clearance and construction
will result in sediment being deposited along the coast, killing coral
reefs in an area designated to become a Marine Reserve.
e) The liming of the soil necessary to establish the oil palm
plantation and the pesticides and fertilisers required to maintain
this monoculture will pollute waters flowing to the National Park and
the Marine Reserve, including the land used for traditional
agricultural practices.
f) The transmigration site will introduce new, alien species for
agriculture and as domestic animals and unintentionally as pests.
These will threaten endemic species and endanger local environments.
The delicate ecology of the island cannot withstand the sudden
introduction of several thousand transmigrants and the demands for
water, firewood and waste disposal.
2 Social impacts
a) As the culture of the indigenous people is intimately
connected to the forests of Siberut, large-scale forest clearance will
destroy their whole way of life.
b) The type of education and economy of the Mentawai people has
not prepared them for the sudden dramatic changes asociated with the
introduction of a large commercial plantation. Few indigenous people
will be able to gain employment there.
c) The plantation and transmigration sites will be established on
land traditionally used by the indigenous people. Conflicts over
whether or not to give up land rights and the levels of compensation
are fragmenting the Mentawai community.
d) Once the indigenous people have lost their land rights they
will be marginalised in their homeland. This could lead to social
tensions such as those in Sanggau Ledo recently.
e) As it will take at least five years between land clearence and
palm oil production, transmigrants will have no source of income or
support when the standard support package ends after the first two
years.
f) If transmigrants cannot make a living from the plantation or
cultivate the acid, waterlogged soils, they will either return home or
encroach on the traditional lands of Mentawai communities, including
the National Park, to meet their needs.
3 Economic factors
a) The high transportation costs between Siberut and mainland
Sumatra will make the cost of establishing and maintaining the
plantation and transmigration site infrastructure very high.
b) This part of Siberut is swampy. The costs of draining the land
and liming to raise the very low soil pH will be considerable.
c) The high costs of importing food and other basic commodities
to support transmigrants for the first two years will add to the
project's costs.
d) This is a high cost, high risk investment as the productivity
of oil palms on Siberut is unproven.
Before considering any further development plans for Siberut, we ask
you to insist that:
1. The potential environmental and social impacts on the National
Park are thoroughly studied and the results made public.
2. Participative mapping of the whole of Siberut is carried out
to determine the extent of indigenous people's land rights.
3. Feasibility studies and research are carried out on the
potential for small-scale cultivation of crops based on the rich
biodiversity of the indigenous flora of Siberut.
4. Mechanisms are established to enable genuine consultation with
all Siberut people.
Finally, we must emphasise that Down to Earth is not anti-development.
We share the vision of those within the Indonesian government and the
broader community who seek development which is environmentally
sustainable and socially equitable. The proposed oil palm plantation
and transmigration scheme for Siberut is neither.
Yours sincerely
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Down to Earth is the Campaign for Ecological Justice in Indonesia
For further information about this and other issues, contact us at:
dte@gn.apc.org or dtecampaign@gn.apc.org
tel and fax 044 171 732 7984; tel (no fax) 044 1508 471413
The DtE quarterly newsletter subscription is 10 pounds sterling
(plus 1.5 pounds sterling if paying by non-sterling cheque) payable
to Down to Earth, 59 Athenlay Rd, London SE15 3EN, England.
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