20 suspects named over Jambi forest fires

JAMBI. The Jambi Police have named 20 suspects in their investigation of the causes of numerous forest and land fires that have burned over the last few months.

According to Jambi Police chief spokesman Comr. Wirmanto, the suspects were named following the investigation of eight separate cases between January and September.

One of the cases has been handed over to the Attorney General's Office (AGO), while others are still under investigation by the precinct police (Polres) in West Tanjung Jabung, Tebo, East Tanjung Jabung and Muarojambi.

The motive for lighting the fires, as reported by Antara news agency, was to clear land, particularly before the end of dry season.

Law and Human Rights Minister Yasonna Laoly had requested that the National Police (Polri) investigate the perpetrators of the forest fires, especially in Riau.

According to Yasonna, the fires in Riau have been an annual issue, affecting not only Indonesians but also citizens and governments of neighboring countries.

He also stressed the importance of coordination between relevant institutions – such as Polri, the AGO, the Law and Human Rights Ministry and the Environment and Forestry Ministry – to tackle the issues surrounding forest fires in Riau and other regions. Regional governments, he suggested, could also take part by placing sanctions on rogue companies such as by revoking their operational licenses.

"Regional governments could revoke [rogue companies'] licenses. And, in future, we should also consider administrative fines; substantial fines," said Yasonna on Tuesday as quoted by kompas.com.

Separately, Environment and Forestry Minister Siti Nurbaya Bakar said that the ministry has recently issued decree No. 367/2015 on the establishment of a national taskforce and emergency operations for forest and land fires. The ministry will also create a working group to clarify permit violations committed in the lighting of the fires.

"We have classified the sanctions for permit violations as either light, moderate or severe," said Siti on Tuesday as quoted by kompas.com.

The sanctions include responsibility for rehabilitating and restoring damaged areas, suspension or revocation of licenses and criminal sanctions.

"Usually, even after perpetrators have been charged, they are still able to operate their businesses," said Siti.