AMP -- After a protracted struggle, the Aceh Citizen Lawsuit Movement (GeRAM) left court disappointed today because Jakarta state court judges ruled against their case to protect the Leuser Ecosystem. The GeRAM plaintiffs had argued that the Aceh Governor and Aceh parliament wrongfully excluded the Leuser Ecosystem from the Aceh Spatial Plan 2013-2033 (Qanun Aceh No. 19/2013) and that the Minister of Home Affairs neglected his obligation to revoke the Aceh Spatial Plan for its legal infringements. Despite professing to agree with most of the plaintiffs’ arguments, and rejecting most of the defendants’, in a shock ruling the judges rejected GeRAM’s case based on two points. First, the judges asserted that the Leuser Ecosystem is already included in the Aceh Spatial Plan in the form of Protected Areas so it does not need to be explicitly named. Secondly, the judges ruled that a citizen lawsuit cannot be used as a means of cancelling a provincial law.
Nurul Ikhsan, the coordinating attorney for GeRAM, strongly countered both of the rulings, saying “Firstly we have presented ample evidence and expert witness testimony that the Leuser Ecosystem is more than a collection of Protected Areas and has been granted special status as a National Strategic Area for its Environmental Function (Government Regulation 26 Year 2008). Furthermore, the Leuser Ecosystem boundary was delineated in 2001 in the Minister of Forestry decree, No. 190/Kpts-II/2001. Secondly, we did not request that the judges cancel the Aceh Spatial Plan. The Aceh government ignored the Minister of Home Affairs’ recommendations to revise the plan, one of which was to include the Leuser Ecosystem. As such we argued that the judges should order the Minister of Home Affairs to fulfill his obligation to revoke the Aceh Spatial Plan”.
The lawsuit was registered by GeRAM at the Jakarta state court on the 21st January 2016 (33/Pdt.G/2016/PN.JKT.PST). Over the course of the case factual and expert witnesses for the plaintiffs presented strong testimony for why the Aceh Spatial Plan is legally flawed, including that of esteemed former environmental minister Professor Emil Salim. In his expert witness testimony he emphasised that the inception of the Leuser Ecosystem dates all the way back to 1925 when Aceh’s traditional leaders stopped the Dutch colonialists from opening their forests for plantations and mining . “The Leuser Ecosystem is regulated by the Indonesian President in national law which means it cannot be excluded from the Aceh Spatial Plan. It is the water source for millions of people in Sumatra and one of world’s 25 most important and unique ecosystems: It must be protected”, said Prof. Emil Salim.
The Leuser Ecosystem exists as a protected area in at least three legal regulations: Law No. 11 year 2006 on Governing Aceh, Law No. 26 Year 2007 on Spatial Planning, and its derivative Government Regulation 26 Year 2008 on the National Spatial Plan.
Nurul Ikhsan said “The facts are indisputable therefore we do not accept the verdict of the case and intend to appeal. We brought this case to court to urge the central and Aceh governments to fulfill their obligations to protect the lives and livelihoods of their people by protecting our environment. This is first ever citizen lawsuit to come out of Aceh and we are ready to continue the battle to see Indonesia’s law upheld for the Leuser Ecosystem”.
One of the plaintiffs, Efendi of Aceh Besar, said, “We expected our own government to work to turn the catastrophes around when they designed their new 20 year spatial plan, but instead of sound planning based on environmental realities; instead of listening to the aspirations of the communities who live around the Leuser Ecosystem, the Aceh government simply deleted the existence of the Leuser Ecosystem. We had no choice but to take them to court and we have no choice now but to appeal. We will take the case all the way to the supreme court if that is what it takes to achieve justice”.
Representative of the 9 plaintiffs , and founder of grassroots NGO, HAkA, Farwiza Farhan said, “We are shocked by today’s ruling. Acehnese community leaders and NGOs have been struggling for years to protect the Leuser Ecosystem against destruction by corporations. When our forests are burnt down to make way for mines and monocultures like oil palm, an elite few get very rich while the local people suffer from floods, landslides, droughts, poisoning and pollution. Greed has pushed iconic wildlife of the Leuser Ecosystem to the brink of extinction. Aceh’s communities wish to move forward on a path to sustainable development. Instead, while the Indonesian government looks the other way, the Aceh government is using their illegal spatial plan to sell out one of the world’s most irreplaceable protected areas and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. By doing so they will whitewash their environmental crimes of the past and pave the way for a new wave of catastrophic ecological destruction and manmade disasters. We won’t rest until this travesty is overturned, the rights of our people are respected, and the Leuser Ecosystem is protected”.
Aman Jarum, a Gayo Lues traditional leader and one of the plaintiffs said, “Today, standing as representatives of our adat communities from all around Aceh, we are dismayed by the judges decision. The Leuser Ecosystem is a legacy from my grandparents. If I don’t take care of it, it means I’m betraying the next generation. This is why I must keep fighting to protect the Leuser Ecosystem”.****
Further info on Leuser Ecosystem:
The Leuser Ecosystem spans 2.6 million hectares and is one of the most valuable conservation areas left in Southeast Asia. Ranked as one of the world’s most irreplaceable protected areas , the Leuser Ecosystem is the last place on earth where rhinos, elephants, orangutans and tigers co-exist in the wild. Protected as a National Strategic Area for Environmental Function, it is worth hundreds of millions of dollars each year through the clean water, flood mitigation and other ecosystem services it provides to Aceh’s communities. Its forests and peat soil are safely storing millions of tonnes of the planet’s carbon. (Rill)
Nurul Ikhsan, the coordinating attorney for GeRAM, strongly countered both of the rulings, saying “Firstly we have presented ample evidence and expert witness testimony that the Leuser Ecosystem is more than a collection of Protected Areas and has been granted special status as a National Strategic Area for its Environmental Function (Government Regulation 26 Year 2008). Furthermore, the Leuser Ecosystem boundary was delineated in 2001 in the Minister of Forestry decree, No. 190/Kpts-II/2001. Secondly, we did not request that the judges cancel the Aceh Spatial Plan. The Aceh government ignored the Minister of Home Affairs’ recommendations to revise the plan, one of which was to include the Leuser Ecosystem. As such we argued that the judges should order the Minister of Home Affairs to fulfill his obligation to revoke the Aceh Spatial Plan”.
The lawsuit was registered by GeRAM at the Jakarta state court on the 21st January 2016 (33/Pdt.G/2016/PN.JKT.PST). Over the course of the case factual and expert witnesses for the plaintiffs presented strong testimony for why the Aceh Spatial Plan is legally flawed, including that of esteemed former environmental minister Professor Emil Salim. In his expert witness testimony he emphasised that the inception of the Leuser Ecosystem dates all the way back to 1925 when Aceh’s traditional leaders stopped the Dutch colonialists from opening their forests for plantations and mining . “The Leuser Ecosystem is regulated by the Indonesian President in national law which means it cannot be excluded from the Aceh Spatial Plan. It is the water source for millions of people in Sumatra and one of world’s 25 most important and unique ecosystems: It must be protected”, said Prof. Emil Salim.
The Leuser Ecosystem exists as a protected area in at least three legal regulations: Law No. 11 year 2006 on Governing Aceh, Law No. 26 Year 2007 on Spatial Planning, and its derivative Government Regulation 26 Year 2008 on the National Spatial Plan.
Nurul Ikhsan said “The facts are indisputable therefore we do not accept the verdict of the case and intend to appeal. We brought this case to court to urge the central and Aceh governments to fulfill their obligations to protect the lives and livelihoods of their people by protecting our environment. This is first ever citizen lawsuit to come out of Aceh and we are ready to continue the battle to see Indonesia’s law upheld for the Leuser Ecosystem”.
One of the plaintiffs, Efendi of Aceh Besar, said, “We expected our own government to work to turn the catastrophes around when they designed their new 20 year spatial plan, but instead of sound planning based on environmental realities; instead of listening to the aspirations of the communities who live around the Leuser Ecosystem, the Aceh government simply deleted the existence of the Leuser Ecosystem. We had no choice but to take them to court and we have no choice now but to appeal. We will take the case all the way to the supreme court if that is what it takes to achieve justice”.
Representative of the 9 plaintiffs , and founder of grassroots NGO, HAkA, Farwiza Farhan said, “We are shocked by today’s ruling. Acehnese community leaders and NGOs have been struggling for years to protect the Leuser Ecosystem against destruction by corporations. When our forests are burnt down to make way for mines and monocultures like oil palm, an elite few get very rich while the local people suffer from floods, landslides, droughts, poisoning and pollution. Greed has pushed iconic wildlife of the Leuser Ecosystem to the brink of extinction. Aceh’s communities wish to move forward on a path to sustainable development. Instead, while the Indonesian government looks the other way, the Aceh government is using their illegal spatial plan to sell out one of the world’s most irreplaceable protected areas and a UNESCO World Heritage Site. By doing so they will whitewash their environmental crimes of the past and pave the way for a new wave of catastrophic ecological destruction and manmade disasters. We won’t rest until this travesty is overturned, the rights of our people are respected, and the Leuser Ecosystem is protected”.
Aman Jarum, a Gayo Lues traditional leader and one of the plaintiffs said, “Today, standing as representatives of our adat communities from all around Aceh, we are dismayed by the judges decision. The Leuser Ecosystem is a legacy from my grandparents. If I don’t take care of it, it means I’m betraying the next generation. This is why I must keep fighting to protect the Leuser Ecosystem”.****
Further info on Leuser Ecosystem:
The Leuser Ecosystem spans 2.6 million hectares and is one of the most valuable conservation areas left in Southeast Asia. Ranked as one of the world’s most irreplaceable protected areas , the Leuser Ecosystem is the last place on earth where rhinos, elephants, orangutans and tigers co-exist in the wild. Protected as a National Strategic Area for Environmental Function, it is worth hundreds of millions of dollars each year through the clean water, flood mitigation and other ecosystem services it provides to Aceh’s communities. Its forests and peat soil are safely storing millions of tonnes of the planet’s carbon. (Rill)
loading...
Post a Comment