18 May 2012

Call for Indonesian local government to protect Papua citizens

6:50 pm on 18 May 2012

An international environmental group is calling on the local government in Indonesia's Papua region to do more to protect the interests of its citizens.

The London based Environmental Investigation Agency made the call after a Hong Kong based oil palm developer paid local clans in Papua less than 1000 US dollars for nearly 15 square kilometres of forest.

A senior forest campaigner with the group, Jago Wadley, says the local government often fails to ensure that landowners are adequately compensated.

"In other parts of Indonesia there are basic compensation rates per hectare, in Papua that doesn't seem to be happening, so the government in Papua can do a lot more to protect the interests of its citizens, the government in Jakarta can support the West Papuan government in that role."

A senior forest campaigner with the Environmental Investigation Agency, Jago Wadley.

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