Indonesia to Revoke Land Rights of 8 Firms Over Wildfires on 42,000 Hectares
The government is pulling permits after more than half of some concessions burned, with 3 more firms under review and owners linked to South Korean, Malaysian, and Singaporean investors.
JAKARTA, Nov 10 (Reuters) - Indonesia will revoke land rights covering a total of more than 42,000 hectares (103,784 acres) from eight companies allegedly involved in forest fires, while three other firms remain under review, the government said.
• Agrarian Affairs Minister Nusron Wahid said on Monday that the land use permits of three companies, known as HGU, would be fully revoked after more than 50% of their concessions were burned amid repeated fire outbreaks and inadequate prevention measures
• Another company's land use rights will be partially revoked, while another will not be able to renew its already expired HGU, he added
• Three other companies with plantation permits will not be granted land use rights after outbreaks of fire on their concessions, Nusron said
• Another three firms with total concessions covering more than 11,000 hectares are still under review
• "Based on the beneficial ownership of the 11 companies, some are linked to investors from South Korea, Malaysia, and Singapore," he said without elaborating
• The government did not disclose the types of plantation held by the companies whose permits will be revoked
• Singapore summoned representatives of SGX-listed companies suspected of having fires on their plantations in Indonesia following a spike in pollution caused by intensifying smoke and haze drifting into the city-state from Indonesia's wildfires
• Indonesia has been battling its most intense wildfires in 11 years, with large swathes of land scorched, mainly on the islands of Sumatra, Borneo and Papua
• Fire and haze have caused more than 400,000 cases of acute respiratory infections in seven Indonesian provinces as of November 2, Health Ministry data showed
(Reporting by Bernadette Christina; Editing by David Stanway)
