KOMPAS.com - The Indonesian chapter of environmental conservationist group Greenpeace has on Monday petitioned President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono to issue a policy that would temporarily ban deforestation and other forest conservation policies. Greenpeace Southeast Asia campaigner Joko Arif told Antara news agency that the petition, signed by 60,000 forest conservation sympathizers, was handed over to State Secretary Correspondence chief Sri Haryati.
According to Arif, the petition urges the government to make swift actions against further destruction of forests so as to ease climate change and safeguard biodiversity. "The destruction of Indonesian forests occur up to five times the size of a soccer field at each given minute," Arif said, adding that Indonesia's forest make up 120.35 million hectares of land or close to the size of the UK, Germany, France and Finland altogether.
The environmental activist argued that the organization has actively lobbied the government to halt all deforestation activities since two years ago but to no avail. (amr)
