Indonesia's failure to host global environment day regretted

Antara 5 Mar 11;

Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Indonesia`s failure to be named host of World Environment Day (WED) 2011 is regrettable because the nation has lost a good opportunity to show the global community its commitment to environmental protection, a parliamentarian and activist said on Friday.

"I`m really disappointed by Indonesia`s elimination from the candidacy. This is the result of the government`s unpreparedness, something that could have been prevented," Nurhayati Assegaf, a member of the House of Representatives` Commission I, said in response to a question from ANTARA.

Assegaf was asked to comment after the United Nations selected India, instead of Indonesia, for the first ever global host of WED on June 5, 2011. UNEP had actually first approached Indonesia on hosting WED.

Assegaf, currently President of IPU Coordinating Committee of Women Parliamentarians, added that she had directly questioned the matter to the Foreign Affairs Ministry but the replies had been unsatisfactory and normatively diplomatic.

She said that hosting WED would be a very important occasion for Indonesia because the country would be on a global spotlight attended by many world leaders. "Indonesia would actually be able to take an advantage of the event by approaching leaders from other countries."

Assegaf said she could not understand it that the government, in this case Foreign Affairs Ministry and Environment Ministry, seemed to have lacked seriousness in the effort to grab the opportunity.

"Soft diplomacy approach taken by Indonesia seems to have been comprehended as giving in easily," said Assegaf who added that the country will find it hard to be able to host a global scale event like WED should such an approach remain.

Speaking on similar regretting notes, Teguh Surya, head of the Indonesian Environment Forum (Walhi), who was interviewed on Friday (March 4), said that if Indonesia had been successful in the candidacy and selected to host WED 2011, the country would be able to take advantage of the important event.

"The failure really is a great loss. Indonesia would actually be able in the event to ask major countries and investors of their seriousness in tackling environmental issues," said Surya.

Surya said that Indonesia would also be able to ask for supports from major countries in the efforts to tackle environmental problems or for more environmentally friendly investments.

He expressed a hope in the future the government should be more active in the approaches and follow ups to any chances for hosting major international events. "Indonesia has a real good opportunity form such events," Surya said.


India, the Host

Nick Nuttall, UNEP spokesperson, in a press release received by ANTARA on February 23, has confirmed that the world environmental body had selected India as the host of WED 2011.

"India, one of the fastest growing economies in the world that is embracing the process of a transition to a Green Economy, will be for the first time ever the global host of World Environment Day 2011 (WED) on 5 June," he says.

This year`s theme "Forests: Nature at Your Service" underscores the intrinsic link between quality of life and the health of forests and forest ecosystems. The WED theme also supports this year`s UN International Year of Forests.

India is a country of 1.2 billion people who continue to put pressure on forests especially in densely populated areas where people are cultivating on marginal lands and where overgrazing is contributing to desertification.

But the Indian Government has also found solutions. While the socio-economic pressures on the country`s forests are tremendous, India has instituted a tree-planting system to combat land-degradation and desertification, including windbreaks and shelterbelts to protect agricultural land.

Achim Steiner, UN Under-Secretary General and UNEP Executive Director, said: "Over close to the 40-year history of WED, India`s cities and communities have been among the most active with a myriad of events undertaken across the country each and every year so it is only fitting that this rapidly developing economy is the host in 2011."

"India is famous for its culture, arts, movies and world-beating Information Technology industries. Increasingly it is at the forefront of some of the "green shoots" of a Green Economy that are emerging across the globe," he said.

"From its manufacturing of solar and wind turbines to its Rural Employment Guarantee Act which underwrites paid work for millions of households via investments in areas ranging from water conservation to sustainable land management, foundations are being laid towards a fundamental and far reaching new development path," added Steiner.

Dr. T. Chatterjee, Secretary for Environment and Forests of the Government of India was quoted as saying that India`s offer to host WED is another expression of India`s strong commitment to work with the global community for sustainable development.

This event will serve as the inauguration of a series of events leading up to the hosting of the 11th Conference of Parties to the Convention on Biological Diversity. It will also flag off the celebrations of the international decade for biodiversity.

"This will in addition signal India`s commitment to the biomass economy so dependent on the sustainability of our natural resources," he said.

Two of India`s most prominent cities - Mumbai and Delhi - will be the venue for this year`s global celebration of the environment, with a myriad of activities over several days to inspire Indians and people around the world to take action for the environment. (*)

Editor: B Kunto Wibisono

Greens Are Blue Over the Loss of Environment Day
Jakarta Globe 10 Mar 11;

An environmental activist and a legislator have bemoaned last week’s announcement that Indonesia had been passed over in favor of India to host this year’s World Environment Day.

Teguh Surya, head of the Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi), said the decision by the United Nations last month had cost Indonesia a prime opportunity to show the global community its commitment to environmental protection.

“The failure [to host it] really is a great loss,” he said on Friday.

“Indonesia would actually have been able at the event to ask major countries and investors to help tackle pressing environmental issues.”

He was speaking after the UN Environmental Program announced its decision to name India as the global host of this year’s WED, which falls on June 5. UNEP had initially approached Indonesia to host the event.

Surya expressed hope that in the future, the government would be more active in its approach to such events and would work hard for other chances to host major international events.

“Indonesia has a real good opportunity to benefit from such events,” he said.

Nurhayati Ali Assegaf, a member of House of Representatives Commission I, which oversees foreign affairs, agreed that if Indonesia had been selected to host WED 2011, the country would have been able to take advantage of the important event.

“I’m really disappointed,” she said. “This is the result of government unpreparedness, something that could have been prevented.”

Nurhayati, who is also the president of the Inter-Parliamentary Union’s Coordinating Committee of Women Parliamentarians, said she had brought the matter up with the Foreign Ministry but had received unsatisfactory and characteristically diplomatic answers for Indonesia’s failure to secure the event.

She added that hosting the WED ceremony could have been important for Indonesia because the country would have been in the global spotlight.

“Indonesia would actually have been able to take advantage of the event by approaching leaders from other countries to attend,” she said.

Nurhayati also said she could not understand why the government, in this case the Foreign Ministry and the Environment Ministry, seemed to have lacked seriousness in campaigning for the chance to host the event.

“The soft diplomacy approach taken by Indonesia seems to have been interpreted as giving in easily,” she said, adding that the country would find it hard to win the right to host other global events should the current method of diplomacy persist.

Nick Nuttall, a UNEP spokesman, said in a press release the world environmental body had selected India as the WED host.

“India, one of the fastest-growing economies in the world that is embracing the process of a transition to a green economy, will be for the first time ever the global host of World Environment Day 2011 on June 5,” he said.

The theme for this year’s WED is, “Forests: Nature at Your Service,” which goes with the UN’s designation of 2011 as the International Year of Forests.

Antara