Illegal logging: Indonesia's forest folk speak out
7 April 2008
“The forest, the trees - we think of them as our mother. It really breaks our
heart watching the trees felled by outsiders.” These were the words of Frederick
Sagisolo, the leader of the Knasaimos tribe from West Papua, Indonesia, as he
stood before the European Parliament to explain how illegal logging was
affecting
his people.
Thousands of rural communities in Indonesia depend on forests for their livelihoods. But rampant illegal logging and the international trade in stolen timber are robbing these communities of their most precious resources.
The problem is a large and complicated web of weak governance, criminal networks, social disintegration and violence. In Frederick's village, for example, gangs seeking the valuable merbau tree have the backing of the military police. So, not only are the locals impoverished by the logging, they're powerless to do anything about it.
Giving civil society a voice
Frederick travelled to Brussels as part of a DFID-funded project to increase understanding between the key groups with an interest in stopping this crime. In the past, there was little dialogue between Indonesia's Government, the European Union and the charities and organisations of ordinary people that make up Indonesian civil society. As a result, the concerns of poor people were rarely heard.
"My trip to Europe really opened my eyes," says Frederick. "It showed me how differently government treats civil society. In Europe, they work together, while Indonesian governments often regard civil society as the enemy."
Making governments listen
As well as sending delegates to address the Parliament in Europe, the project also set up
a network of civil society organisations that took part in workshops throughout Indonesia.
These were designed to encourage conversation and break down
mistrust between civil society and the Government. Voices that previously were ignored
were given a hearing, and channels for new policies were opened up.
The network also helped inform the Government's position on an important EU initiative, the Forest Law Enforcement, Governance and Trade (FLEGT), which hopes to ensure that only legally verified Indonesian timber is allowed into EU markets. Having consulted with the civil society network, the Government will take up some of its suggestions as it negotiates on the initiative.
Learning into the future
If the voices and concerns of civil society are to go on being heard, the network set up by the project needs to be maintained. Encouragingly, those who attended workshops are confident they are better equipped to make decisions based on their own experiences. They also feel they have the courage to face new challenges.
As Frederick explains: "Now, almost all the people in the village are aware of the problem of illegal logging and vow not to be involved in it. But I must find ways to build the capacity of our people to be able to manage our resources for our benefit - to get rid of poverty while still protecting our forests."
Key facts
- DFID provided the Environmental Investigation Agency (EIA) and Telapak with £384,000 through the Civil Society Challenge Fund over a period of three years (2004-2007) to implement the project.
- During the project, delegations from Indonesian civil society visited the EU on four occasions, and held meetings in Belgium, the UK, Germany, Denmark, Finland, Spain, Portugal and the Netherlands.
- The EIA initiative was a follow on from the Multi-Stakeholder Forestry Programme (MFP), to which DFID committed £25 million between 2001 and 2006. MFP supported the first and second phase of EIA's work in Indonesia.
- Around 70-80% of Indonesia's timber is extracted illegally, and the annual loss to the state from the crime is estimated to be between $600 million to $3 billion.
Links
- Find out more about how DFID works with Civil Society
- Find out about the Multi-Stakeholder Forestry Programme: A brighter future for Indonesia's forests (22 May 2007)
Illegal-logging.info - the low-down on illegal logging
