- It was reported just last month that the Mentawai peoples, who live on Indonesia’s Mentawai Islands about 150 kilometres (93 miles) off the west coast of Sumatra, were facing a new threat to their traditional territories.
- Biomas Andalan Energi had received a principle approval letter to create timber plantations on a total of 200 square kilometers (77 square miles) of primary rainforest and indigenous lands on the biggest island of the Mentawai archipelago, Siberut.
- A petition started by local NGO Yayasan Citra Mandiri Mentawai collected over 135,000 signatures, demonstrating not just local but international support for the rights of the Mentawai people to protect their islands against exploitation.
First they staved off the palm plantations, now they’ve fought off the timber companies.
It was reported just last month that the Mentawai peoples, who live on Indonesia’s Mentawai Islands about 150 kilometres (93 miles) off the west coast of Sumatra, were facing a new threat to their traditional territories: a company called Biomas Andalan Energi had received a principle approval letter to create timber plantations on a total of 200 square kilometers (77 square miles) of primary rainforest and indigenous lands on the biggest island of the Mentawai archipelago, Siberut.
But Indonesian authorities have now cancelled the licenses altogether, citing problems with the environmental impact assessment prepared by Biomas Andalan Energi, the Rainforest Foundation Norway (RFN) reports. By the time that decision was handed down, RFN adds, the initial permit had expired, making it impossible for the company to obtain the necessary permits to start operating.
Student protests reportedly helped add to the pressure on Indonesian officials to cancel the timber licenses. Mentawai students held demonstrations in opposition to the timber company’s plans in order to show that they would not accept the destruction of their forests or the leasing of their ancestral lands.
Local NGO Yayasan Citra Mandiri Mentawai (YCMM) played a major role in pointing out the flaws in Biomas Andalan Energi’s environmental impact assessment. “We were able to persuade the different authorities to jointly reject the plantation plans, and we continue an intense communication with provincial government officials,” Rifai Lubis, director of YCCM, said in a statement. “The Mentawai students were also of great help to show the Mentawai people’s will to defend their islands from company exploitation.”
Additionally, a petition started by YCMM collected over 135,000 signatures, which helped demonstrate not just local but international support for the rights of the Mentawai people to protect their islands against exploitation.
This was not the first threat to their islands that the Mentawai have faced down. In 2014, after years of protest, they convinced local officials to scrap plans for industrial palm plantations on 1,000 square kilometers (about 386 square miles) of forests and indigenous territories.
Lorelou Desjardins, program coordinator at Rainforest Foundation Norway said that while it’s undoubtedly a success that these timber plantation have been cancelled, the Mentawai people have won the battle, not the war.
“Most of the Mentawai islands are still classified as production forest by the central government, which means other licenses can be issued, and exploitation of the natural resources continues and can increase,” Desjardins told Mongabay.
“What we need is for the Mentawai islands to be included in a moratorium for all exploitative activities of its natural resources to stop. It would also give time to the communities to map their lands and claim back their rights over their indigenous and ancestral territories.”