NRM News Archive
Issue 23, December 19, 2002
Ministry of Forestry Supports Expansion of Co-Management of Indonesia's National Parks: Bunaken National Park Management Advisory Board Provides Model
In a major boost of support for decentralized co-management of Indonesia's National Parks, the Ministry of Forestry recently announced its support for
the establishment of site-specific co-management forums for all the country's National Parks. In a letter 1633/N/KK.6.02, dated 20 November 2002 and
addressed to all National Park managers in Indonesia, the Ministry of Forestry expressed its appreciation to the Bunaken National Park Management
Advisory Board as an effective supporter contributing to strengthened conservation management of Bunaken National Park. The letter goes on to recognize
the Advisory Board's role in providing strategic support for the park by tapping into a broad range of locally-available technical and financial resources,
from government as well as civil society, in order to achieve a common vision of conservation of Bunaken National Park. Finally, the letter recognizes
the value of Bunaken National Park Management Advisory Board as a co-management model for other national parks, and directs all National Park managers
to adapt this model to site-specific conditions and characteristics of their parks.
This policy announcement is yet another indicator of the success of Bunaken National Park Management Advisory Board. The Bunaken National Park Management
Advisory Board (Dewan Pengalolaan Taman Nasional Bunaken) was established in 2000 as a decentralized approach to co-management for North Sulawesi's Bunaken
National park. Since then, the Park Management Advisory Board has contributed significantly to effective conservation management of Bunaken National Park in
a manner that reflects the aspirations of the many local government and community stakeholders. With its innovative self-financing mechanism, the Park Management
Advisory Board is able to collect and manage financial and technical resources in a way that makes a real difference. Increased patrolling and stepped-up
enforcement has led to a significant reduction in illegal fishing activities within the boundaries of the National Park. Live coral cover has increased by more
than eleven percent over the past two years. Park communities are enjoying community development support from conservation revenues. This success is only possible
through the commitment of Park Management Advisory Board members to good governance principles of transparency and accountability.
An essential Best Practice to effective decentralized co-management of Bunaken National Park is the codification of the roles and responsibilities of the Park
Management Advisory Board with regard to conservation of Bunaken National Park. The document, Basic Regulations for the Bunaken National Park Management
Advisory Board clarifies this effort. While it guides the day-to-day functioning of the Park Management Advisory Board, it is also of value to others
exploring decentralized co-management of protected areas in Indonesia.
This policy announcement is also an indication of the growing importance of iterative, field-driven policy reform for decentralized natural resources management.
Rather than relying on extensive academic studies and technical analysis, the Ministry of Forestry has taken on-going, Indonesian-based field initiatives
to support national policy. Over the past few years, Ministry of Forestry officials have been able to learn about and witness positive conservation management
changes in and around Bunaken National Park. Ministry officials were thus able to recognize the value of supportive co-management policy - not just for Bunaken
National Park, but for all other National Parks as well - in achieving their objectives of enhanced conservation management. This is a major, positive step
in ensuring responsible decentralization of Indonesia's protected areas and forest resources.
Reed Merrill
Protected Areas & Agriculture Advisor
NRM III - Jakarta
reedm@nrm.or.id
Issue 23, December 19, 2002
Chief of North Sulawesi Regional Police Committed to Bunaken National Park Joint Patrol System
New optimism has arisen about law enforcement in the management of Bunaken National Park after the Head of the Provincial Police Force in North Sulawesi committed
to engage fully in patrolling activities in the park area. This commitment was expressed by the Chief of North Sulawesi Regional Police Brigjen Drs. John Lalo at
an informal meeting with representatives from the Bunaken National Park Management Board (Maxi Wowiling, Jeane Manopo), the Bunaken National Park Office (Arief Tongkage),
the Bunaken Concerned Citizen's Forum (Andries Kakomore, Ismail Husen, Patries), the World Wildlife Fund (Boyke Lakaseru) and the NRM North Sulawesi Office (Sri Hardiyanti,
Roy Pangalila, Moudy Gerungan) held on November 28, 2002.
The Regional Chief of Police considers that Bunaken's participatory patrol system is a good model, and he committed to several specific action items to show his support.
In order to improve the quality and safety of the participatory patrol system, he will require the chief of the water police force to arm its members who join in
patrolling activities. For park violation cases that have happened in the past or are still being handled by the police, he has instructed the Head of Special Criminal
Case Unit, Arief Rachman, to investigate and follow them up.
The Kapolda (Regional Chief of Police) expressed his satisfaction with the discussion about Bunaken National Park management and enforcement, and even suggested that
he would like to personally join several patrols to better familiarize himself with the field conditions in the park.
Trying to accommodate this intention, Sri Hardiyanti, spokesperson from the NRM program, suggested some activities that could be undertaken. At the end of the meeting,
all parties agreed to conduct two activities. The first one was to conduct a patrol directly commanded by the Kapolda, followed by planting trees in the Bunaken area.
The Regional Chief of Police also promised to invite the regional heads of the army (regional command Danrem 131 Santiago) and navy (regional command Lantamal). The second
activity was a public hearing on the topic of integrated law enforcement patrol in the Bunaken area, to be held in the second week of December.
Closing the more-than-two hour meeting, the Regional Chief of Police said that the police force will continue to coordinate with the Bunaken National Park Management
Board and Park Office to protect Bunaken National Park. This comes as good news for all the concerned stakeholders in Bunaken who are working to stop destructive
activities such as blast and cyanide fishing and other forms of illegal fishing in the park.
Moudy Gerungan
Multi Media Campaign Coordinator
NRM III - North Sulawesi
moudy@cbn.net.id
Issue 23, December 19, 2002
Proposed Shipping Port Near Bunaken: 2nd Public Hearing Held
A second public hearing was held recently to discuss the relative merits of a container port proposed for construction by a business consortium of North Sulawesi.
The proposed port would displace several dive operations, fishing operations, and pose a threat to the nearby Bunaken National Park. The following article provides
both a brief history of the issue, along with a report on the outcome of this second hearing.
In October 2001 local company in North Sulawesi, PT Virca Jaya, representing a consortium of investors, proposed to construction of a container port along the coast
just southwest of Manado. The proposal, submitted to the Minahasa District Government, was first disclosed to the public six months later, only after the April 2002,
after the Head of the District (the Bupati) received a letter of protest from the North Sulawesi Watersport Association (NSWA), citing the many risks such a port would
pose to both the coastal environment and to Bunaken National Park (BNP).
In response to these protests and its own concerns, the Vice Governor of North Sulawesi Province instigated a public hearing on 1 May 2002 to examine the issue,
requesting USAID's NRM and CRMP programs to assist in mobilizing the event. The public hearing was in itself a landmark, as it represented the first government-initiated
public hearing in memory on a local controversial natural resource management issue. The public debate was attended by all stakeholders in the area from the provincial to
the district/city level concluded that all construction activities in said areas should be called off.
Unfortunately, the NSWA's protests, and the conclusion of the highly publicized public debate failed to deter the container port project. Only a few days after the
public debate was held, the District Head, Bapak Dolfie Tanor, communicated to the local mass media that he had issued a principle permit to PT Virca Jaya to
build the container port. The District Head emphasized that even though Bunaken National Park is recognized as a tourism asset that provides benefits to the region,
it should not become a reason or constraint for other investors who have plans to empower other potentials in the areas located adjacent or in the surrounding areas
of Bunaken National Park.
As a follow-up of the public debate in May 2002, the Vice Governor ordered a technical review of the construction plans. Results showed that the plan to build a
container port in Koha area cannot be continued, on environmental, economic, and jurisdictional grounds. Based on inputs and results from the technical review
and the team of environmental experts, the Governor of North Sulawesi submitted a letter to the Ministers of Transportation and Environment on 24 July 2002
recommended that the construction permit, previously issued by the Minahasan District, should be revoked.
The governor's recommendation was based on 10 considerations, including that the proposed Minahasan container port construction was never included in the development
plan at the provincial and national levels and was not based on PP69/2001 concerning harbor affairs nor the Minahasan District or Manado City's contributions to the
provincial spatial plan. Another consideration is that the planned location is located within BNP's buffer zone, and that this area is already zoned for tourism development.
Also, from an economic perspective, the plan will jeopardize the government's and private sector's investment arrangements to expand Bitung port.
However, as of this writing, it appears that the Minahasan District government has elected to ignore the concerns and protests raised by the North Sulawesi Provincial
government and the stakeholders present at the May 2002 public debate. There are now reports that the Minahasan District Government has already awarded a Rp 300
million contract to a local consulting firm to conduct an environmental impact analysis (AMDAL) for the proposed port. In fact, it was already awarded to one of
the AMDAL consultancy institutions with a budget of 300 million rupiahs. Simultaneously, the consortium of firms supporting the port's development, including PT
Virca Jaya and PT Tanjung Koha Terminal, has begun to solicit support from various community members in the form of a petition supporting the construction of
the container port, with signatures from various village heads (Kepala Desa), the head of the Village Representatives Association (Badan Perwakilan Desa),
and the heads of the Religious Group Associations (Badan Kerja Sama Umat beragama) from the five villages located adjacent to the area where the port was planned
to be constructed. This new petition was made public on 13 October 2002.
These latest actions by both the District Government and the investor consortium have compelled North Sulawesi's Yayasan Kelola to initiate a second public forum
on the proposed container port. In this second debate, presentations were given by the experts familiar with AMDAL regulatory process, one member of the Minahasa
parliament (who is also the chairman for DPRD's Special Working group for Minahasa district Integrated Coastal Regulation development, and representatives from the
fishing community. The debate was attended by all manner of stakeholders, including representatives from the provincial and district governments, the investment
consortium, other private sector firms, community members, environmental experts, environmental institutions and the media.
AMDAL expert Dr. Ir. Bobby Polii, who is also the Head of the Environmental Study Center at Sam Ratulangi University (UNSRAT), stated that the AMDAL implemented by
the Minahasa District was not legal because it contradicted the existing Spatial Plan (RUTR) of Minahasa District, North Sulawesi Province and the Government of
Indonesia. He also indicted that the existing construction permit (PP27/1999) was issued prior to the conduct of an AMDAL, which is a violation of national law.
Similarly, Drs. E.M. Ering, head of the for DPRD's Special Working group for Minahasa district Integrated Coastal Regulation development stated that the proposed
container port plan is in contradiction with Perda Minahasa No. 2/2002 for integrated coastal management, as the site of the proposed port, Pasir Panjang Bulo,
is already zoned as fishing grounds for local fishermen. Moreover, ongoing participation from community stakeholders in this public debate suggested that the
investor-led petition was questionable, and that it may not fairly reflect the concerns and opinions of the majority of the area's community.
The container port's investors also spoke at the hearing, focusing on the theoretical benefits of the proposed port, particularly in terms of employment opportunities
for the local people and improvements to the local economy. They suggested the port's existence would improve access to imported goods as well, reducing costs of several
imported goods by as much as 20%. Lastly the investors commented that a local port for Minahasa would promote pride among the Minahasan people, such that they would no longer have to depend on the port in neighboring Bitung.
This second public debate on the container port succeeded in enlarging the discussion of on the benefits, opportunities, costs, threats associated with this proposed
project. Several additional observations and recommendations emerged from the debate, including the following:
Renewed appeal from many stakeholders that the proposed container port project be canceled
Since the initiative construction permits appear to have been issued illegally, they should be revoked, with possible legal action directed towards the government official(s) who issued these permits illegally.
An analysis of the environmental impact cannot be implemented.
The community petition supporting the investor's project is questionable and appears not to reflect the wishes of the area's local community, as they in fact largely appear to be opposed to proposed port.
Development projects should not be allowed to violate existing spatial plans.
All of those recommendations were consensus of all attendees including the port construction consultant. Indeed, recommendation #2 above was provided by one of the investor s
consultants. Representatives from the Minahasa District government were somewhat non-committal on the substance of hearing, although they confirmed that all input and issues
raised during the debate would be forwarded to the of the district (the Bupati). They also expressed enthusiasm and the value and importance of this type of public debate for
improving regional autonomy and promoting local democratic process.
At this point, it is the impression of several participants of this second debate that Minahasan District government intends to proceed with the port, and that the best chances
for preventing this from happening rests with the provincial government, as well as its ability to work in tandem with the Ministry of Transportation in Jakarta to stop the port.
There remains a reasonably good chance this may happen, as regulation PP69/2001 concerning harbor affairs requires that harbors constructed for provincial area transport needs
needs permit from the Governor, while ports which caters to national/international transport needs requires a permit from the Minister of Transportation. Since the Minahasan District
Government has yet to secure either type of permit, the Governor of North Sulawesi and the Minister of Transportation have a legal basis for preventing the port from going forward.
At the same time, working groups of concerned citizens and stakeholders formed and expanded during these two debates will bring the recommendations of the second debate to the
Head of the Minahasan District Government, with the condition that, if the recommendations are not fulfilled within three months, the working groups will implement recommendation #2
above, taking legal action against district officials responsible for issuing the illegal permits.
Sri Hardiyanti Gunadi
Outreach & Education Officer
NRM III - North Sulawesi
gyanti@nrm.or.id
Kim J. DeRidder
Regional Governance Advisor
NRM III - North Sulawesi
kjderidder@nrm.or.id
Issue 23, December 19, 2002
Navy Chief Warns Foreign Fishing Vessels not to Poach in RI Waters
Source: Jakarta Post, December 14, 2002
Navy chief Adm. Bernard Kent Sondakh threatened on Friday to sink any foreign fishing vessel caught poaching in Indonesian waters. "I would like to warn businesspeople operating
foreign fishing vessels to stop their poaching in our waters because the Navy is determined to take strong action against them," he told the official Antara news agency.
Sondakh made the threat while speaking to journalists in the East Java capital of Surabaya on the sidelines of an inspection of the Chinese fishing vessel, the MV Sun Flower.
The ship, 6,220 GT in deadweight, had been caught poaching in the waters off Manado, North Sulawesi, by Navy patrol officers. The MV Sun Flower was this year's biggest catch.
When intercepted by patrol officers, it was carrying 4,036 tons of fish with an estimated value of Rp 40 billion (US$4.5 million).
Sondakh said poaching in Indonesian waters was still rampant, although the practice had somewhat decreased this year compared to 2001. The four-star admiral said the ships arrested
for poaching would be brought to justice and prosecuted to the full extent of the law to prevent them from committing the same offense in the future and to deter others. "Lenient
sentences would only encourage them to poach again," Sondakh said. The admiral also said that the Navy would intensify security next year, by, among other things, deploying
ex-German warships, which had been repaired. "In addition, the Navy will also put into operation three 36-meter fast patrol ships from the domestic fleet," Sondakh said.
The Indonesian Navy has 116 ships, which is far short of the 300 that is considered ideal for serving the vast archipelago. ":Not all ships can be used because some of them are
being repaired. However, with 138 ships, the Navy can provide reasonable enforcement," he said. He said some areas were extremely vulnerable to poaching, such as the area nearby
Arafuru island, the Malacca Straits and the South China Sea.
