Law About Indigenous People To Be Immediately Established

Jakarta, Oct 2 (Antara) - The forestry ministry is encouraging the local governments to immediately draft and adopt the law pertaining to indigenous people in line with the implementation of Constitutional Court Decision No.35/2012 on the management of customary forests. "The court decision is the constitutional right of all Indonesians and its implementation cannot be contested by anyone," Head of the Research and Development Ministry of Forestry San Afri Awang stated here on Thursday. In accordance with the court`s decision, customary forests are not owned by the state, and their management can be handed to the locals through regulations implemented by the local government. Awang highlighted the importance of the state`s recognition for the indigenous people, which is in line with the court`s decision. "They are the indigenous people of Indonesia who have been marginalized for a long time. The ministry does not have the capacity to resist or obstruct the implementation of the decision," he pointed out. Moreover, the Ministry of Forestry will help to formulate the local law by creating a precise map of the customary forests, whose area overlaps with the state. "Participatory mapping can be used as the initial data," he noted. The law should focus on specific aspects such as the willingness of the locals to wisely manage their forests. They can utilize the forests, but they should always adopt a firm approach towards preserving its natural resources. "There are many cases revealing that indigenous elders have sold their forest areas to investors," he remarked on the sidelines of the National Dialogue about Indigenous Forest in one of the hotels in Jakarta. The dialogue was initiated by the Association for Community and Ecology-Based Law Reform (HuMa) for the purpose of handing over the management of indigenous forests to the locals. "This multi-institutional dialogue involving the Ministry of Forestry, the Ministry of Home Affairs, National Defense Agency, local governments, and several related institutions is important to implement the Court Decision No.35/2012," Director of HuMa Andiko stated here on Thursday.