President Prabowo Subianto Orders Early Prevention Measures Against Forest and Land Fires
President Prabowo Subianto has ordered his administration to respond early to forest-fire hotspots by taking swift preventive measures, including drilling water wells at identified locations.
“Do not wait until it turns into a fire. Go directly to the hotspot locations and take immediate preventive action. Water wells can be drilled there,” the President said during a limited meeting on forest and land fire management at the Riau Province Forward Command Post in Pekanbaru city, Monday (08/24).
Beyond on-the-ground technical measures, the President urged all government personnel to strengthen prevention through village-level education, stressing that land clearing by burning is strictly prohibited due to its severe and far-reaching consequences.
The President also ordered regional governments, along with the Indonesian National Defense Forces (TNI) and the National Police (Polri) to educate the public on the proper procedures for land clearing.
“If they need to clear land, they can report it to the village head, sub-district head, or regent. The Government will provide assistance, while the TNI and Polri will support regional governments and communities. The process will be organized by farmer group, and financing can be accessed through People’s Business Credit (KUR) available through cooperatives. However, they must not act recklessly,” he stated.
The President also ordered Polri, the Prosecutor’s Office, and intelligence agencies to thoroughly investigate any indication of corporate involvement in land burning. He added that if evidence is found, the Government will not hesitate to take firm action, including revoking business licenses of the corporations.
“Any corporation, regardless of they are, will have its licenses revoked if there is even the slightest indication that it ordered land burning. All of that corporation’s permits will be revoked. I am serious about it. I believe the police have a very important role to play,” he said.
The Head of State also underscored that prevention and law enforcement must work in tandem. The Government must not only ensure that fires are extinguished quickly, but also establish a system to prevent them at the earliest signs and ensure that no party deliberately clears land by burning. (BPMI of Presidential Secretariat) (FI/EP)
