Enviro News Asia, Jakarta — Beneath the lush green canopy of North Sumatra’s forests, traces of illegal logging have once again come to light. The Ministry of Forestry is tracing, one by one, the links in forestry-related crimes believed to be intertwined with flash floods and landslides in the region. The target is not merely loggers on the ground, but the networks that allow illegally harvested timber to be transformed into seemingly legitimate commodities in the marketplace.
Through its Directorate General of Forestry Law Enforcement, the Ministry of Forestry has intensified investigations into several land-rights holders (PHAT). The probes are aimed at dismantling modes of forest destruction—including the practice of timber laundering—that have long been suspected as key loopholes enabling forestry crimes.
Director General of Forestry Law Enforcement Dwi Januanto Nugroho described the case development as an effort to enforce the law comprehensively. “We are not stopping at field-level perpetrators; we are uncovering criminal schemes that allow illegal forest products to enter the formal trading system,” he said. Law enforcement, Dwi added, is being carried out within the framework of prevailing laws and regulations.
The Civil Servant Investigator (PPNS) team at the Directorate General of Forestry Law Enforcement is currently assembling pieces of evidence, including witness testimonies, expert opinions, and coordination with other law enforcement agencies, among them the Forest Area Control Task Force. All efforts are directed at strengthening the investigation dossiers.
The initial investigation has ensnared one legal subject identified by the initials JAM. According to the Director of Forestry Complaint Prevention and Handling, Yazid Nurhuda, JAM is suspected of harvesting forest products without a permit. If proven, the offense carries serious penalties: up to five years’ imprisonment and a maximum fine of Rp3.5 billion, as stipulated under the Forestry Law.
The thread of the case then extended to two other PHATs, identified as M and AR. M is suspected of receiving illegal logs from unlicensed logging activities, while AR is believed to have carried out logging outside the boundaries of his land rights. Satellite imagery analysis shows signs of forest clearing in the upper reaches of the Batangtoru River, covering an area of approximately 33 hectares—an area crucial for watershed protection.
Most striking, Yazid noted, is the alleged practice of timber laundering. AR is suspected of mixing illegally sourced timber from outside the PHAT area with legally harvested wood from licensed land in order to gain access to the formal market. “This timber laundering scheme is the main focus of our ongoing investigation,” he said.
The case in North Sumatra adds to the growing list of forest governance challenges in Indonesia. In the river headwaters, the sound of chainsaws may have fallen silent long ago. Yet their impacts—floods, landslides, and the degradation of landscapes—continue to flow downstream. (*)
