House Blasts Indonesia Climate Change Summit Results

Jakarta Globe 19 Jan 10;

Adding to public criticism of the Indonesian delegation’s achievements at the December Climate Change summit in Copenhagen, the House of Representatives on Monday said it was not satisfied with the delegation’s report.

The Copenhagen summit was deemed a failure by environmentalists, including Indonesian green groups, because its final outcome — the Copenhagen Accord — was not a binding agreement, nor was it ratified by all parties.

Members of the delegation have praised the country’s contribution to the accord, including President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s demands for a stronger commitment from all countries to reduce carbon emissions, significant funding from developed countries and the continuation of the Reduced Emission from Deforestation and Degradation (REDD) scheme.

Satya W. Yudha, a Golkar lawmaker who is a member of House Commission VII overseeing environmental issues, said the Indonesian delegation should have consulted with the House before engaging in international negotiations because they could have important consequences.

“The government should not work alone in these kinds of issues, they need to cooperate with the legislature because we could help lobby the other countries’ parliaments, such as in Southeast Asia, to push developed countries to get deeper emission cuts,” Satya said.

As a result, he added, there were no specific indicators to determine the negotiations as a failure or a success for Indonesian interests.

“The legislature needs to be involved because we could use our networks in other developing countries so that we can push developed countries to really commit to set up emission targets,” Satya said.

The Commission invited a number of major Indonesia environmental groups, who had been critical of the outcome of the talks in Copenhagen, to the hearing to discuss the performance of the Indonesian delegation. The groups included the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi), the World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Indonesian Center for Environmental Law (ICEL) and the Center for International Forestry Research (CIFOR).

Ahmad Farial Husein, deputy chair of the Commission from the United Development Party (PPP), said the House was unsatisfied with the delegation’s report because there was no specific breakdown on how emission cuts would be achieved.

“We have set the target of a 26 percent cut in emissions but we have never been informed officially from the government how they will achieve that,” he said.

Rachmat Witoelar, head of the Indonesian delegation to the Copenhagen meeting, blamed the failure on the host country, Denmark, and a grouping of countries known as ALBA, a Venezuelan-inspired club of five socialist Latin American nations.

Climate Council Budget Questioned by Lawmaker
Fidelis E Satriastanti, Jakarta Globe 19 Jan 10;

A day after the House of Representatives criticized the nation’s achievements at the December climate change summit in Copenhagen, a lawmaker on Tuesday questioned the establishment of the National Council on Climate Change.

“The president has the right to form any kind of council to help him do his job, however, we should be informed if it concerns the use of the state budget,” said Effendi Simbolon, deputy chair of House Commission VII, which oversees environmental issues. “We’ve heard about this council but we weren’t aware they were using the state budget.”

The council, also known as the DNPI, was established in 2008 through a presidential decree and is responsible for tackling climate change in the country. President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono acts as head of the body, which includes as its members the head of the Climatology, Meteorology and Geophysics Agency (BKMG) and 17 ministers whose areas of responsibility include the environment, fisheries, forestry, finance, foreign affairs, home affairs and health.

Effendi, who is also a member of the budgetary committee, said he did not know about the state budget allocation for the DNPI and said the committee planned to summon the council to explain the issue.

Arief Yuwono, secretary of the State Ministry of Environment, told the Jakarta Globe that the budget allocation for the council was on the right track and that the situation was already being communicated to the budgetary committee.

“When the council was being formed in 2008, the budget for that year had already been established. However, based on procedures, in a situation like this we can propose a new budget for emergency use, known as Post 99, which is under the direct supervision of the Finance Ministry,” Arief said.

He said to disburse the money, the fledgling council was placed under the State Ministry of Environment, given the executive head of the council and the environment minister were the same person, Rachmat Witoelar.

“However, for this year, the Council has already been allocated Rp 30 billion [$3.24 million] from the state budget. It will be used for council activities, such as sending delegations to international [climate change] negotiations,” he said.

Rhino Subagyo, executive director of the Indonesian Center for Environmental Law, said the DNPI could be a leader for climate change policies in the country and a strong presence at the international level.

“However, the council is still institutionally weak because it is only based on a presidential decree and its responsibilities and functions have not been clearly elaborated on. While it’s not a full ministry or even a state ministry, last year its budget was still being supported by the State Ministry of Environment,” he said. “As a result, it was not being fully supported, either from the budget and other institutions, even though its role is crucial.”

Rhino said the DNPI should be re-evaluated but not to weaken it but to make it stronger.