To implement one commitment is very difficult and now we have this other problem such as illegal logging. Fires caused by illegal loggers and land clearing on Borneo also contribute to a haze that hits neighbouring Singapore and Malaysia each dry season. Last October, donors demanded Jakarta deal with 12 issues concerning forest protection, including stopping deforestation, restructuring forestry-based industry and closing timber companies heavily in debt. Indonesia's tropical forests are the world's largest outside Brazil. Over the next two days, donors from the CGI will assess the progress of the commitment on forestry as part of their review ahead of a formal summit later this year.
Environmentalists say little progress has been made.
President Abdurrahman Wahid issued an order over the weekend to crack down on illegal loggers, including military-backed companies, in the Mount Leuser National Park in northern Aceh province and also the Tanjung Puting National Park. In a bid to protect the park, the government last week banned the sale and cutting of ramin trees. An aerial view shows much of it has been flattened, with piles of logs clogging winding creeks. Suhertin, head of the national park, said 40 percent of the park had been destroyed, mostly through illegal logging. Several illegal logging camps were seen in the park, which is in the southern part of Borneo.