Indonesia

An Indonesian court has upheld a government decision to curb the expansion of a multibillion-dollar oil palm plantation project in the country’s easternmost region of Papua.

Witnesses in an environmental lawsuit taken by members of the Auyu People of West Papua against a Malaysian-owned palm oil company’s plan to clear tens of thousands of hectares of their forest homeland describes that intimidations are directed towards opponents of the company plans.

the story of a women group in Kalimantan called “Hurung Hapakat”, which means “Working Together”. Collectively, and against serious repression, they have reclaimed some land from oil palm plantations in order to also reclaim their food sovereignty, dignity and wisdom. And they are not alone.

Setelah tiga bulan mendaftarkan gugatan di PTUN Jayapura, sidang gugatan izin lingkungan Suku Awyu kepada perusahaan sawit PT Indo Asiana Lestari (IAL) memasuki tahap pemeriksaan bukti 6 Juli lalu.

A growing list of global household brands, from PepsiCo to L’Oréal to Hershey’s, have suspended their purchases from Astra Agro Lestari (AAL), Indonesia’s second- largest palm oil producer, in the wake of reports of land grabbing, environmental degradation and criminal persecution of human rights defenders by AAL and its subsidiaries operating in Central Sulawesi province.

The seizure of ancestral land belonging to Sakai Indigenous People has again caused casualties in Riau province, Indonesia. One person from the Sakai community died after suffering head injuries due to the repressive action by palm oil plantation company PT Panahatan on June 27.

Indonesia’s decision to revoke plantation permits across the country is marred with irregularities including companies continuing to operate or engage in conflicts with Indigenous and local communities.

The Korean corporation aims to secure 850,000 ha of arable land and produce grain through joint ventures in major farming countries such as Australia, North America and South America.

Illegal oil palm plantations spanning an area one and a half times the size of London have been amnestied under an Indonesian government program that critics say incentivizes corporations over small farmers.

PT Kenertec Power Systems, a company belonging to the Korindo group has agreed to end a long-running lawsuit intended to silence a civil society campaign to protect rainforest, in Indonesia’s Papua province, threatened by Korindo’s extensive palm oil operations after a judge in Germany set to dismiss the case.

Indigenous leader of the Awyu people filed an environmental and land rights lawsuit challenging the plan by a Malaysian-owned palm oil company that will clear tens of thousands of hectares of West Papuan forest.

An investigation by Mongabay, The Gecko Project and BBC News found villagers across Indonesia gave up their land to corporations in exchange for a share of the palm oil boom but have been left with empty promises. Tom Walker, head of research at The Gecko Project, argues that increasing transparency, accountability and investigations of errant companies are critical steps that could be taken to solve the problem.