Dear citizens of the world,

Anti Corruption International (ACI) is a youth-led, international NGO that empowers the youth from all around the world to fight against corruption. It is nothing new, that corruption is frequently intertwined with other fields and involves much more than illegal money flows. Corruption has nowadays become a phenomenon that literally kills people. The case that ACI wants to present is about the burning of the tropical forests in Indonesia – a phenomenon that takes place every year in Indonesia and directly affects over 280 million living in Indonesia, Singapore, Malaysia, and Thailand.     

Indonesia’s forestland comprises 60 % of the country’s land area, which makes it the third largest area of tropical rainforest in the world. Indonesia’s forest is therefore important not only for the national economy and local livelihoods, but also for the global environment. The Indonesian rainforests are also among the world’s richest in terms of biodiversity, and cover a significant proportion of the planet’s tropical deep peat. However, according to a map released by Google Earth in November 2014, two million hectares (20,000 km2) of forests are lost in Indonesia annually, the equivalent of 10,000 football fields every day.

The forests are burnt in order to free space for palm oil plantations. Production of palm oil in Indonesia has, since 1964, recorded a phenomenal increase from 157, 000 tonnes to 33.5 million tonnes in 2014. Palm oil accounts for 11% of Indonesia's export earnings of $5.7bn. Maintaining its status as the world’s largest producer of palm oil, Indonesia has projected a figure of 40 million tonnes a year by 2020. At first sight a legal act is however wrapped up in corrupt practices, which are known for the Ministry of Environment and Forestry, which, according to a 2012 survey by the country's respected Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), is considered the most corrupt ministry in the country. Moreover, corruption levels in Indonesia are amongst the highest within ASEAN region taking 6th place out of 10 (according to TI CPI 2014). 

Some important facts to bear in mind about these particular forest fires:

-       Greenpeace warns fires raging across forest and peat lands, will match the worst year ever and exceed the total annual carbon output of the UK or Germany.

-       Greenhouse gas emissions from peat fires in Borneo and Sumatra are currently exceeding emissions from the entire U.S. economy. This is putting Indonesia on track to be one of the world's largest carbon polluters this year. 

-       The record forest and peat fires of 1997 produced huge carbon emissions, estimated by scientists at between 0.81 and 2.57 gigatonnes (Gt), equivalent to 13-40% of the entire world’s annual fossil fuel emissions. Indonesia’s carbon bomb goes off, with emissions from peat and forest fires reaching their highest levels in 1997-1998.

-       In the worst affected parts, on Sumatra and Kalimantan, ten people have died from haze-related illnesses and more than 500,000 cases of acute respiratory tract infections have been reported since July 1. Moreover, people in neighbouring Singapore and Malaysia suffer from haze, which disrupts air traffic; schools have been shut down; events have been cancelled and Indonesian products boycotted, as millions try to avoid the intense smoke.

-       Timber companies in Indonesia are legally obliged to comply with strict guidelines before being granted permits, however, even governmental data shows that only 16 % of such permits have gone through legal accreditation processes. Indonesian Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK) found that permits have been bought from officials with bribe money.

-       Indonesia and Malaysia are the largest palm oil producers in the world, producing around 90% of total palm oil production. A lack of clear regulations, as well as transparency in land allocation leads to deforestation and burning of forests and deep peat. 

ACI demands world leaders:

-       to pressure Indonesian government to guarantee transparent allocation of land.

-       to guarantee that palm oil producers receive certification that the land they use has received SVLK (Sistem Verifikasi Legalitas Kayu, Timber Legality Verification System), which would reduce illegal deforestation.

-       to encourage all major palm oil producers to sign an agreement  to promote fair and transparent palm oil production. This would guarantee less damage for the environment and ecosystems, and pledge not to push national interests and regulations onto other major palm oil producers as currently planned by establishing Council of Palm Oil Producer Countries, initiated by Malaysia and Indonesia.

-           to require to bring back ‘no deforestation’ policy which was dropped this year by Council of Palm Oil Producer Countries (initiated by Malaysia and Indonesia).

-       to pressure the Malaysian and Singaporean governments to impose stricter controls on their companies producing palm oil in Indonesia.

-       to demand that Indonesia guarantees transparent and fair investigation of 200 companies (a number of them are Singaporean and Malaysian) that are linked with forest fires. Indonesia should guarantee that those responsible for the environmental damage should be punished according to the Indonesian law.

 ACI is preparing a report, condemning the corrupt and pressuring Jakarta to solve corruption problems in the forestry sector. The corrupt practices cause the perennial haze that menaces the whole ASEAN region, as well as damages permanently the ecosystem of Indonesia. Moreover, an open letter will be sent, along with the signatures under this petition, to the world leaders.

Sincerely,

Edgaras Katinas

Co-Founder of ACI

edgaras(at)anticorruption-intl.org