September 13, 2024
PALEMBANG – Marda Ellius is always stressed out and worried about her and her children’s health whenever flames engulfs a forest located near her house in Bangsal village, Ogan Komering Ilir regency, South Sumatra.
When the haze from forest and land fires hits the village, she always feels the air temperature getting hotter and suffers from coughing due to a lack of clean air. The fires also disrupt the family’s income because she, a farmer, cannot go to the plantation to tap and harvest rubber.
She has grown tired of such conditions, prompting her to become one of the plaintiffs who are suing three corporations with histories of causing wildfires in the area.
“I became a plaintiff to push for the companies and the government to think more about the environment,” Marda said on Aug. 28, when she and other plaintiffs filed their petitions with the Palembang district court in South Sumatra.
With the support of a coalition of environmental and civil groups, several villagers across Ogan Komering Ilir joined forces in the lawsuit against three companies, all of which are subsidiaries of giant paper producer Asia Pulp and Paper (APP): PT Bumi Mekar Hijau, PT Bumi Andalas Permai and PT Sebangun Bumi Andalas Wood Industries.
The first hearing on the lawsuit was held on Thursday.
The 12 plaintiffs—composed of farmers, homemakers, rubber tappers and environmentalists—accuse the three companies of being responsible for the wildfires that triggered haze in South Sumatra and other surrounding areas in 2015, 2019 and 2023.
During the three years, El Niño occurred in the Pacific Ocean and triggered hotter, drier and more prolonged dry seasons in many parts of Indonesia, which fueled forest and land fires in high-risk areas such as South Sumatra. A total of 1.1 million hectares of land, equal to nearly 1,700 soccer pitches, were burned in the province during those three hot years.
Read also: Malaysia blames Indonesian fires for haze, poor air quality
Female villagers led the lawsuit as they often face the highest risks whenever wildfires occur, said Mutia Maharani who leads the Palembang Female Solidarity Community, which is one of the plaintiffs.
Women, especially pregnant mothers and their children, are among the groups most vulnerable to the health impacts of forest and land fires, with people often suffering from respiratory infections and other health complaints due to the haze and heat.
Women in the village, most of whom work as farmers, also rely on the natural resources in the forest for their livelihood. The wildfires may destroy their land and directly impact their economic resilience, Mutia added.
Environmental groups recorded fires engulfing around 254,787 ha of land in the concessions held by the three companies between 2015 and 2020, an area equal to four Jakartas. Authorities punished the three pulp and paper companies for the repeated fires, but wildfires were still detected in their concessions last year, according to the civil groups.
Included in their concessions is peatland, which is rich in carbon, said forest campaigner Belgis Habiba with Greenpeace Indonesia. Human activities, such as land clearing or peatland drainage, often cause the wetland to dry, making it more prone to fires that trigger haze.
The drainage and burning of peatland also releases the carbon held inside the wetland, worsening the climate crisis caused by the emission of carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases.
“It even halts Indonesia’s efforts to achieve its climate target,” Belgis said, referring to the government’s target to reach net-zero emissions by 2060.
In order to achieve the goal, Indonesia is aiming to reduce its greenhouse gas emissions by 31.89 percent independently, or 43.2 percent with international support, by 2030. Forest and land use are among the most emitting sectors due to the rampant forest and land fires, as well as deforestation across the archipelago.
Read also: Indonesia’s forest fires decline by 30 percent despite El Niño: Ministry
The lawsuit is the first time citizens have demanded strict liability from legal or business entities for the losses they suffered from environmentally damaging acts, said Ipan Widodo of the Palembang Legal Aid Institute (LBH Palembang).
“This fight is a new chapter in the development of environmental law in Indonesia,” he said. “This is the new style of the people’s climate fight.”
Spokesperson for the three companies Iwan Setiawan did not respond to a request for comment on the lawsuit.