Indonesia

Eight activists of Robin Wood, a grassroots group in Germany, were sued in October 2013 for taking part in a peaceful demonstration to protect Indonesian rain-forests. In September, the activists hung a banner at Wilmar‘s palm oil refinery plant in Germany saying "Wilmar's refined destruction - No palm oil from deforestation". They were convicted for "assault".

On 16 May, 2013, the Indonesian Constitutional Court issued a decision confirming that Customary Forests are forests located in Indigenous territories, and should no longer be considered as State Forests. Indigenous Peoples throughout Indonesia welcomed the Constitutional Court's decision and started rehabilitating their territories which have been damaged by the activities of companies who were given licenses to operate by the State.

Photo: E. Benjamin Skinner Malaysia Malaysiahas become a destination for migrant workers from other Southeast Asian countries– mainly Indonesia, Thailand, andBangladesh – who usually occupy low-wage unskilled jobs in different sectors including the labor-intensivepalm oil industry.

Sumatra Copper Ltd.

  Here in Indonesia, ever since a child entered the school, he/she has been familiar with “Merauke” through a patriotic song entitled “Dari Sabang Sampai Merauke” (lit. from Sabang to Merauke – from the westernmost to the easternmost part of Indonesia). The song talks about the unity and glory of Indonesia across its large and small islands reaching from Sabang, the westernmost part, to Merauke, the easternmost.

Solo disponible en inglés - Agribusiness large-scale land acquisitions and human rights in Southeast Asia - Updates from Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Malaysia, Cambodia, Timor-Leste and Burma Forest Peoples Programme, August 2013 By Marcus Colchester, Sophie Chao, Jonas Dalliner, Su Mei Toh, Chan Kiev, Indriaswati Saptaningrum, Mark Anthony Ramirez and Juan Pulhin Ed: Sophie Chao, Forest Peoples Programme

Agribusiness large-scale land acquisitions and human rights in Southeast Asia - Updates from Indonesia, Thailand, Philippines, Malaysia, Cambodia, Timor-Leste and Burma Forest Peoples Programme, August 2013 By Marcus Colchester, Sophie Chao, Jonas Dalliner, Su Mei Toh, Chan Kiev, Indriaswati Saptaningrum, Mark Anthony Ramirez and Juan Pulhin Ed: Sophie Chao, Forest Peoples Programme

According to The World's Mangroves 1980-2005 (FAO 2007), Indonesia has the largest mangrove area in the world in terms of the extent of the region. However, the condition of mangroves has declined both in quality and quantity from year to year. In 1982, Indonesia's mangrove forests covered an area of 4,25 million ha, while in 2009 it was estimated to be less than 1,9 million ha (KIARA, 2010).

The People’s Coalition for Fisheries Justice Indonesia (KIARA) celebrated the World Mangrove Day issuing a press release where it “urged the government to immediately conduct a revocation of the business license and or development projects (oil palm plantations, shrimp farms, coastal reclamation, and so on) that causes the loss of mangrove forests.

The emergence of “Paper Dragons”. (Available in Indonesian).

On January 29, 2013, at about 4:30pm, a protest of peasants was violently repressed in South Sumatra by the Regional Police. About 25 people were beaten and arrested, peasants and also three activists including Anwar Sadat, Director of WALHI South Sumatra, the main environmental NGO of the country. Please help release Anwar and the other arrested people by signing the On Line Petition: www.change.org/ReleaseAnwar

Elimination of customary laws through regulations In 1950, Indonesia’s forests spanned over 162,290,000 hectares, covering 80% of the country’s 192,257,000-hectare land area. According to the 1999 Forestry Law, the forest area owned by the state accounted for 133,876,645.68 hectares.