Benget Besalicto Tnb., Jakarta Post 15 Jun 10;
The old villager dispensed with the usual introductory formalities and niceties that normally kick off meetings between locals, government officials, NGOs and private companies, when addressing the crowd at the opening ceremony of an orangutan seminar in remote Central Kalimantan.
"My name is Janas. But first, I would like to remind you that you forgot to mention the name of our village, which is hosting our meeting today," said Acoi Janas, the 62-year old Dayak, jokingly.
His audience included his fellow villagers, as well as representatives of NGOs like Borneo Orangutan Survival (BOS), Orangutan Foundation International (OFI), World Wildlife Fund (WWF), Orangutan Conservation Services Program (OCSP), the Natural Resources Conservation Center (BKSDA), and palm oil company Agro Group.
The meeting, held on May 17, marked the start of a two-day orangutan seminar in Janas' village, which is also home to 32,000 orangutans, or more than 60 percent of the island's total population of the only great ape family in Asia.
Apparently the master of ceremony had mentioned in his speech the names of all the villages whose residents were invited to attend the meeting, except Janas'.
Before directing his eyes toward the stage, where all of the ceremony's prominent figures sat, Janas look around for a moment, as if he was wishing the trees surrounding the ceremony venue would inch closer to protect him from the blazing sun.
"BOS has been operating here for more than 10 years," he started. "But I think you haven't been paying enough attention to the local people. You have set up a special clinic for orangutans, but none of you care about our welfare."
According to Janas, NGOs should help empower locals by prioritizing them as potential workers, and think of them as partners who can provide goods and services for their programs. Foreign NGOs currently run the world's largest orangutan rehabilitation center in Nyaru Menteng, Central Kalimantan.
Another woman, who did not wished to be named, concurred with Janas. "We noticed that only *BOS* staff members are given the opportunity to supply goods and services needed by the orangutan rehabilitation center, not local people," she noted.
Rawan, a teacher at Senior High School VI, who lives in Tumbang Tahai village, complained environmental conservation programs sometimes worsened the plight of locals.
"We've noticed Sebangau National Park is being developed near where we live. But that development goes against our interests as locals. Its spatial planning is not clear yet," he said.
The forests of Sebangau were finally declared protected areas in 2004, after being logged unsustainably for years under forestry concessions handed out during president Soeharto's regime.
Consisting of 95 percent peat soil and spreading over an area of 569,000 hectares across several regencies - Katingan, Pulang Pisau and the city of Palangkaraya, the park is a combination of swampy forests, transitional forests, lowland canopy forests and granite forests, which are rich in various kinds of species, including birds, mammals, and primates.
Many locals who planted their crops in certain zones for generations, found they had to hand over their plots of land as those were now part of the Sebangau National Park, Rawan went on.
"Many of the locals had to surrender their land to the park management without receiving any compensation. We're worried we'll have the same experience," he said, adding that locals needed their land to make a living.
Guris, a villager who lives near the Tangkiling Hill forest sanctuary, expressed similar concerns, saying members of his community were worried they would lose their properties because of the Tangkiling sanctuary project.
As the only mountain in the low-land of Central Kalimantan, Tangkiling Hill is considered a treasure that should be conserved at all costs because of its rich and unique ecosystem.
"Many locals are afraid to grow crops on their land as they fear the government will seize their property. But we have to make a living from the land. So, please make sure that the sanctuary's spatial planning does not disadvantage locals," he said.
During the rest of the meeting, several other locals echoed more or less similar concerns resulting from a number of environmental conservation programs.
Representatives from local administrations, NGOs, and private companies operating in the area, took the opportunity presented by the meeting to defend their position.
To address Janas' complaint, Togu Manurung, the chairman of BOS, said locals should differentiate between NGOs, the government, and private companies.
"They are different in terms of functions. Our job as an NGO is to rehabilitate orangutans. That's our main task. So, it's not our job to improve people's health or empower locals. That's the government's job. Here, we're partnering with the government to help conserve orangutans," he said, "But we will take on board some of your feedback on prioritizing locals to source goods and services."
Anung Setiadi, the head of Central Kalimantan's forestry agency, who represented Governor Agustin Teras Narang during the meeting, reiterated that all conservation programs should be pursued with the interests of local people in mind.
"We'll urge them to do the best they can to empower locals while operating here," he said.
Janas only hoped all the promises made during the meeting would be held.
"They've paid serious attention to preserving the environment. They are spending billions of rupiah each month to save orangutans. But what about us, the locals? Our situation is also difficult. We hope we won't continue to be ignored."
