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Human rights

Behind the Central Kalimantan violence

Down to Earth No 49 May 2001

The appalling ethnic violence in Central Kalimantan is rooted in the decades-long violation of indigenous rights and the wholesale destruction of natural resources in the province.

Tension remains high in Central Kalimantan following several weeks of ethnic violence in which an estimated 500 people have been killed and up to 80,000 have been forced to leave their homes. This is the latest bout in a long history of violence in Central and West Kalimantan.

Oil and globalisation

Down to Earth No.

Rights & environmental disputes flare

Down to Earth No. 48, February 2001


As huge oil and gas developments continue in Indonesia, communities in areas where these industries operate are becoming more vocal in demanding a stop to pollution and fair compensation.

Communities in Riau, East Kalimantan, Aceh, and Java are engaged in an unequal struggle with some of the world's most powerful transnational companies.

Moronene people forced out of national park

Down to Earth No. 48, February 2001


Indigenous people living on ancestral lands in Rawa Aopa Watumohai National Park, Southeast Sulawesi, were forcibly evicted from their homes in November by a security team including police and military personnel.

In Brief... DTE 48 - February 2001

Down to Earth No 48 February 2001

CIFOR researcher's body found in Aceh mass grave

A mass grave, containing 14 bodies was uncovered in Terbangan, Kluet Selatan, South Aceh in January. One has been identified as a researcher with the Centre for International Forestry Research (CIFOR) Bandung.

Three young researchers from CIFOR and a member of the Gunung Leuser national park management, disappeared in September 1999. The corpses of three women from Medan in neighbouring North Sumatra province were also found in the grave.

Freeport: still getting away with it

Down to Earth No. 47, November 2000

A series of official investigations into Freeport Indonesia, operators of the huge Grasberg gold and copper mine in West Papua, has done nothing as yet to curb the excessive environmental damage caused by the company.

Resource exploitation continues as tension mounts

Down to Earth No. 47, November 2000

Indonesian and foreign companies continue to profit from West Papua's resources as the military resumes its tough line with the independence movement.

Signs of a new get-tough policy in West Papua were confirmed when an estimated 3,700 additional troops were dispatched to the territory in early August. These included 1,700 troops from the mobile brigade police force, notorious for its brutal suppression of dissent. Most troops have been sent to Jayapura, Merauke and Timika regions.