Update on Tanjung Puting National Park: A Report to the CGI Meeting, Jakarta,
December 2003
Illegal logging in Tanjung Puting National Park, Central Kalimantan, has been adopted by the Consultative Group on Indonesia (CGI) as a test case of the political will of the Indonesian government to tackle massive timber test occurring across the country.
In January 2003 a joint operation was launched to eradicate logging within the park. This unprecedented enforcement sweep has led to a steep decline in logging activities in the west of the park, the dismantling of logging infrastructure, and the seizure of stolen timber. Yet in the more remote eastern area of the park logging activities continue unabated, beyond the reach of the enforcement operation. Latest information from the area indicates that following a lull during Ramadan, logging is increasing in the east and timber is flowing down the river systems again.
The Indonesian government deserves appreciation for the initial success of the operation in Tanjung Puting, but once again the powerful local timber bosses behind the destruction of the park have not been touched. EIA/Telapak have repeatedly provided information to the government exposing the link behind the Tanjung Lingga Group of companies and the illegal logging of Tanjung Puting. In August the company sent a shipment of illegal bengkirai timber from the park area to Vietnam, yet no action has been taken against the company or its directors. While the government continues to fail to tackle serial offenders like Tanjung Lingga, the prospects for Tanjung Puting and rest of Indonesia’s forests remain bleak.
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