The decision of the Supreme Court (MA) case number 460 K / Pdt / 2016 dated August 18, 2016 has won an appeal from the Ministry of Environment and Forestry (KLHK) for PT Merbau Pelalawan Lestari (APRIL group) operating in Pelalawan Regency, Riau Province. The ruling stated that the defendant, PT Merbau Pelalawan Lestari (MPL) was proven to have cut down the forest outside the location of the Timber Forest Product Utilization Business License (IUPHHK-HT).
The company was also declared to have cleared forests in the location of the IUPHHK-HT by violating the provisions of the applicable legislation. Furthermore, the Supreme Court’s decision also stated that PT MPL must pay environmental losses to the state through KLHK in the amount of Rp16,244,574,805,000.00 (sixteen trillion two hundred forty four billion five hundred seventy four million eight hundred and five thousand rupiahs).
On the issuance of this Supreme Court ruling the Independent Forest Monitoring Network (JPIK) on 21 November 2016 has submitted a complaint report regarding the Sustainable Production Forest Management Certificate (S-PHPL) obtained by PT MPL Number: 026 / EQC-PHPL / I / 2016. PT MPL in Pelalawan Regency, Riau Province has received an S-PHPL from LPPHPL PT EQUALITY Indonesia on January 19, 2016 and is valid until January 18, 2021.
In a complaint report addressed to PT EQUALITY Indonesia, JPIK requested that the S-PHPL issued be revoked.
“For this complaint report, requested that PT Equality follow up by revoking the PT Merbau Pelalawan Lestari PHPL certificate for violations of law committed and strengthened by the Supreme Court’s decision Number 460 K / Pdt / 2016,” M. Kosar, JPIK Dynamicator wrote in a letter complaint report.
Regulation of the Director General of Forestry Business Development Number: P.14 / VI-BPPHH / 2014 concerning Standards and Guidelines for Implementing Performance Assessment of Sustainable Production Forest Management and Verification of Timber Legality. Mentioning the things that caused the S-PHPL and S-LK to be revoked, one of which was legally proven to have committed a violation, including logging outside the designated block, human rights violations, buying, receiving, storing, processing, selling illegal timber, and burning the forest in his working area.
Furthermore, PT EQUALITY Indonesia told JPIK that it had revoked the S-PHPL of PT Merbau Pelalawan Lestari as of November 23, 2016. Thus the S-PHPL of PT Merbau Pelalawan Lestari is declared null and void.
The issuance of the certificate revocation letter must be accompanied by law enforcement by the Ministry of Environment and Forestry. For this reason, JPIK urged KLHK to immediately revoke the forest utilization permit owned by PT MPL and ensure that the wood products produced by the company are not included in the forest industry supply chain that already has a timber legality certificate.