GREENPEACE ACTIVISTS LEAVE KAMPAR PENINSULA

Pekanbaru, Nov 14 (ANTARA) - Activists from environmental group Greenpeace finally left peatland swamps in Kampar Peninsula in Riau and vacated the Climate Protection Camp in the area.

"Greenpeace is in a position where it has to make a hard decision for the sake of the interest of the local people," Southeast Greenpeace forest campaigner Bustar Maitar said here on Saturday evening.

Earlier, the police gave them until 6pm on Saturday to leave the place.

However, according to latest negotiations the local police in Pelalawan had given them a security guarantee and until Sunday morning to leave.

"Fifteen of the volunteers have already left the camp while the other 35 are still packing their belongings," he said.

He said Greenpeace could not stay because the police's decision was final and not negotiable.

Tension between groups of local people who were for and against the activity had also increased although it was believed it was the company who had incited local sentiment against the environmental activists.

"We are at a loss about what to do," he said.

As an organization that shuns violence, he said, the organization did not want to see a communal conflict to happen after they had left.

"It is strongly believed that the company was behind all this and therefore we have asked the police to follow it up," he said.

He said Greenpeace would not stop its fight to protect forests in Riau and would continue to call for protection of Kampar Peninsula forest and exert pressures on the company that had cleared the natural forest.

"The license of PT Riau Andalan Pulp and Paper (RAPP) is not complete and therefore the company's action in clearing the forest is against the law. If the government acts as if it does not know it it means they are ignoring existing public norms," he said.

He said Greenpeace would also hand over the camp set up last month on the side of Kampar River to the local community.

Pelalawan police resort chief Adjunct Senior Commissioner Ari Rachman earlier gave Greenpeace until the evening to vacate the camp and leave the Kampar Peninsula peatland area.

He said the police would not risk allowing them to stay there after they had sealed heavy-duty equipment of PT RAPP two days ago.