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Newsletter articles

DTE's quarterly newsletter provides information on ecological justice in Indonesia.

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DTE publications

After Bali…

Down to Earth No 55  November 2002

editorial

military clamp-down is bad news for communities struggling to defend rights

October's bomb atrocity in Bali, which killed nearly 200 people and injured hundreds more, is an appalling tragedy - for the victims and their families as well as the wider Balinese community. There will be a huge impact on local people who depend upon tourism for their livelihoods.

Forest fires

Down to Earth No. 55, November 2002


Smoke from forest fires and land clearance has choked Central Kalimantan for three months, causing serious health, transport and economic problems. West Kalimantan and Riau have also been badly affected.

The problems have been worst in Central Kalimantan, which has been hit even harder than in 1997. Palangkaraya has suffered from thick smog continuously since mid-August. By October there were 400 to 500 hot spots (clusters of fires) around the provincial capital.

Peasants demand right to livelihood

Down to Earth No 55  November 2002


Peasant farmers across Indonesia are protesting against government policies which deprive them of land and livelihood. They are demanding a new, pro-poor approach to national development which promotes peasants' rights. In the meantime, violence and intimidation of peasants involved in land disputes continues.

Hundreds of peasant farmers from West Java tore down the gates to Indonesia's national parliament in Jakarta in September, during a protest to mark Farmers Day 2002.

Aceh pushes Leuser road plan

Down to Earth No 55  November 2002


A new road system will cut across the northern tip of the island of Sumatra, despite fears that it will increase forest destruction in the Leuser Ecosystem.

Nanggroe Aceh Darussalam governor, Abdullah Puteh, revived plans for a network of roads in October 2001 (See DTE 52). The Rp1.5 trillion (US$150 million) project is called the Ladia Galaska: an acronym of the route from the Indian Ocean to the Malacca Straits (Lautan Hindia Gayo Alas Selat Malaka).

In Brief... DTE 55 - November 2002

Down to Earth No 55  November 2002



Kalimantan border oil palm?

East Kalimantan governor Abdul Fatah said his administration is looking into the possibility of developing oil palm plantations near the province's border with Sabah, Malaysia, to create jobs for a million migrant workers expelled from Malaysia.

Fires bring "haze" to Sumatra and Kalimantan

Down to Earth No 53-54  August 2002


Choking smoke from fires in Sumatra and Kalimantan has caused respiratory health problems and disrupted transport services in several cities in western Indonesia over the past weeks.

Legal action on forest fires

Down to Earth No 53-54  August 2002

The following is a summary of recent legal action against companies accused of setting fires in their concessions.

 

Only 5 of the 176 plantation and timber companies accused of burning to clear concession land in 1997 were ever taken to court and only one was found guilty, according to former environment minister Sonny Keraf, speaking in March 2000.1

A coalition of 13 NGOs and community groups from North Sumatra took legal action against a number of national timber industry associations and thei