New Districts Threaten Siberut National Park: Sumatra

The management of Siberut National Park, on Siberut Island, West Sumatra, has warned of the threat posed by the emergence of new districts. The park, located in Mentawai Islands regency, has raised concerns over the regency administration’s decision to form new districts.

Head of the Siberut National Park Center, Rusmaharmidi Chamli, said his office was never invited to discuss the matter with the Mentawai Islands administration prior to the establishment of the new districts.

“The park is located in the Traditional Beneficial Zone (TBZ), and we are concerned that the emergence of new districts, which would involve the construction of administrative, public and residential facilities and roads, could be detrimental to the preservation of the national park.

“The Mentawai Islands regency administration should have discussed the matter with us,” Chamli said.

The Mentawai Islands Legislative Council approved the division of four districts on Dec. 26, 2002, including two districts on Siberut Island that were divided into five districts.

The decree took effect along with the construction of facilities funded by the 2006 and 2007 provincial budget.

Large sections of both the West Siberut and Southwest Siberut districts include the traditional villages of the Mentawai tribe, which are in the national park’s TBZ.

Betaet village, in the center of West Siberut district, lies in the TBZ, where official homes of the district chief and his deputy are currently being constructed.

Chamli said the presence of districts within the area could pose an environmental threat to the national park.

“Population growth will spur construction of additional buildings, despite the fact that only the traditional community is allowed to utilize the TBZ to meet the needs of ritual purposes,” said Chamli.

Chamli said he sent letters to the Provincial Development Planning Board (Bappeda) and the Mentawai Islands regency administration last year, informing them that some of the new districts were located within the national park.

“We asked Bappeda to discuss the district autonomy issue with us…the park is protected by Law No. 41/1999 and the law should not be breached,” he said.

The Directorate General of Nature Conservation and Forest Protection, said Chamli, had asked Mentawai Islands Regent Edison Saleleubaja about the district separation policy in October last year.

“The regent and Bappeda have still not responded, so I plan to sent them another letter,” said Chamli.

In 1993, the forestry minister affirmed that Siberut National Park, which spans 190,500 hectares, or half of the western part of Siberut Island; a protected area. In 1981, UNESCO declared the park a World Biosphere Heritage area.

Since a number of traditional villages of the Mentawai tribe are located within the national park, they too have been turned into TBZs.

Mentawai Islands regency legislative speaker Kortanius Sabeleakek said the main objective in forming the new districts was to assist with administrative procedures.

“It takes days for people to arrange administrative matters on the east coast. Traveling from one village to another can take several days and even a week by motorboat, especially during bad weather,” he said.

He said the Siberut National Park management had been excluded from earlier discussions due to the lack of awareness of the issue by previous councillors.

“The rumors were that a logging company had backed the formation of new districts by facilitating a road project from the east to west coast, bisecting the national park…but I assure you the construction of these facilities will not harm the core and forest zones,” he said.

He said the council is struggling to complete an outer ring road project, which will run from the east to the west coast of Siberut, to open up isolated areas.

Syofiardi Bachyul Jb.