COP16: Indigenous peoples of Indonesia’s Aru Islands call for biodiversity protection

TEMPO.CO, Jakarta – The indigenous peoples of the Aru Islands, Maluku, Indonesia, are calling for the protection of biodiversity on their ancestral lands. The peaceful protest coincides with global conversations on biodiversity conservation COP16 CBD in Cali, Colombia.

Monika Maritjie Kailey represents the Aru community and is present in Cali to advocate the urgency of protecting biodiversity in her home country. Meanwhile, indigenous leaders and youth on Kumareri Island are holding a peaceful demonstration in support of global efforts to protect biodiversity, especially in Maluku.

In Indonesia the Aru Islands are among the richest in biodiversity. The area includes 823 island clusters with 800,000 hectares of land and 4 million hectares of surrounding waters. The Aru Sea alone accounts for 21 percent of Indonesia’s national fishing potential, with 771,600 tonnes per year.

The Aru Islands face major threats to biodiversity as much of their territory is classified as conversion production forest. Since the 1970s, at least four waves of permits have been issued in Aru, including forest exploitation, sugar cane exploitation, overexploitation of marine areas and other forest use permits.

Presentation by Monika Maritjie Kailey. Photo FWI

“Indigenous communities have demonstrated their ability to conserve natural resources and biodiversity through traditional practices and local wisdom,” said Monika Maritjie Kailey, an indigenous advocate from Aru who attended COP16, as quoted from the Monday, October 28, 2024 press release.

According to Monika, indigenous communities have repeatedly defended their forests and seas against threats from the extractive industry. “It is time for the Indonesian government and the global community to recognize the role of indigenous communities in protecting biodiversity by ensuring equitable resource mobilization,” she added.

The call for the protection of biodiversity on the Aru Islands also comes from the indigenous youth on the islands through peaceful action. They demand a serious commitment from the government to protect biodiversity, including withdrawing extraction permits that threaten biodiversity and accelerating the implementation of local regulations that recognize the rights of indigenous people.

Johan Djamanmona, coordinator of peaceful action in the Aru Islands, said being a resident of Aru is both a duty and a right. According to him, protecting Aru means protecting the lives of the Aru people.

“Today’s action is a statement by the indigenous communities and youth of Aru to reject environmentally damaging investments in Aru and urge the central government to revoke all existing forest exploitation permits in the Aru Islands,” he said.

During COP16 CBD, discussions on the recognition of indigenous contributions to biodiversity conservation have become complex, especially regarding the respect for indigenous and local community rights, which are crucial in the Kunming-Montreal Global Biodiversity Framework (KM-GBF), which is two years in the making agreement was reached ago.

Indigenous communities at COP16 are urging countries to fully recognize their contributions to biodiversity conservation and establish a permanent subsidiary body focused on traditional knowledge, innovation and practices in biodiversity conservation. However, some countries, including the Indonesian delegation, have opposed this proposal, despite the significant contributions of indigenous peoples and local communities to the KM-GBF’s objectives.

“The two key policies to protect biodiversity in Indonesia – Presidential Instruction No. 1 of 2023 and Law No. 32 of 2024 – still do not address the needs and rights of indigenous communities. The presidential instruction lacks a legally binding authority, and therefore a presidential regulation would be a stronger instrument,” said Bimantara, researcher at Perkumpulan HuMA Indonesia.

“In the future, it would also be useful to revise this policy to align with the structure and responsibilities for biodiversity policy after the new government comes to power,” he added.

In addition to their crucial role in conserving biodiversity, indigenous communities are highly vulnerable to the direct impacts of climate change climate change.

“Government policies on biodiversity, such as IBSAP (Indonesian Biodiversity Strategy and Action Plan) and climate commitments such as the NDC (Nationally Determined Contribution), must respect and protect the rights of indigenous communities,” said Salma Zakiyah, Program Officer for Forest and Climate at MADANI Berkelanjutan .

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