PRESS RELEASE Indonesian Civil Society Organizations Urge EU to Take Papua Deforestation Crisis into Account in EUDR Benchmarking System
Jakarta – Twenty-two Indonesian civil society organisations have sent a letter to senior EU officials to express their concerns over the worsening condition of the rainforest in West Papua, with the threat of deforestation of 2 million hectares of forest and the increasing threats to the indigenous Malind and Yei peoples in the region.
The letter is addressed to Teresa Ribera, Executive Vice President for Clean, Just and Competitive Transition; Kaja Kallas, High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy and Vice-President of the European Commission; Jessica Roswall, Commissioner for Environment, Water Security and a Competitive Circular Economy; Jozef Síkela, Commissioner for International Partnerships; and Maroš Šefčovič, Commissioner for Trade and Economic Security, Inter-Institutional Relations and Transparency.
In the letter, the civil society organisations call on the European Commission to seriously consider the deforestation crisis and threats to the rights of indigenous peoples in Papua in its country risk assessment process and its parts in the European Union Deforestation Regulation (EUDR) Benchmarking scheme. Under the scheme, the EU will classify countries or territories as low, medium or high risk for deforestation and human rights violations. This determination must be made by June 30, 2025.
Article 29 of the EUDR states that risk assessments must take into account the extent of deforestation and agricultural expansion. Furthermore, Article 29(4)(d) requires the European Commission to take into account the existence of laws protecting human rights, indigenous peoples’ rights, tackling corruption, and the transparency of data required to comply with the EUDR requirements.
“We urge the European Commission to ensure that Article 29(4)(d) is applied consistently and strictly in all countries and territories, including West Papua. Without a strict approach to protecting forests and indigenous peoples, the EUDR scheme risks failing to achieve its goal of preventing deforestation and human rights violations in global supply chains,” said Andi Muttaqien, Executive Director of Satya Bumi.
A report previously submitted to the European Commission in 2024—supported by more than 30 civil society organisations in Indonesia—clarified how the expansion of large-scale plantation industries in Papua has threatened the sustainability of ecosystems and the rights of indigenous peoples who depend on forests. Papua is one of the holders of natural forest reserves for the plantation industry in Indonesia covering more than 2 million hectares—1.9 million of which are for palm oil and timber commodities alone.
Therefore, civil society organizations urge the European Union to ensure that the risk classification in the EUDR benchmarking scheme takes into account Papua’s vulnerability to deforestation, which reflects the reality on the ground.
Director of Yayasan Pusaka Bentala Rakyat, Franky Samperante, emphasized that the clearing of Papua’s forests clearly violates the rights of indigenous peoples around the concession, especially the Malind and Yei indigenous peoples.
“The European Union should be able to consider the conditions of destruction of life, deprivation of economic rights, and social divisions in several districts in South Papua, including intimidation by the army and police. Europe’s net consumption should not only be free from forest destruction, but also free from the destruction of human dignity,” he said.
This large mega deforestation project in Papua has designated 1.5 million hectares of land for rice fields and 500 thousand hectares for sugarcane plantations. Although these two commodities are not included in the EUDR, there is potential for wood from forest clearing to enter the European market. Furthermore, the potential for deforestation must be calculated from the total number of forest clearings—not only based on the seven commodities covered by the EUDR.
Research conducted by Satya Bumi and others shows that the upper limit of oil palm plantations in Indonesia, based on calculations of Environmental Carrying Capacity and Carrying Capacity, is 18.1 million hectares. Currently, oil palm plantations in Indonesia have reached 17.7 million hectares. With Prabowo Subianto's ambition to open 20 million hectares of food and energy plantations, Papua—as the last largest natural forest in Indonesia—is at risk of massive deforestation.
The European Commission must be able to maximize the use of the EUDR to halt the rate of deforestation and protect indigenous peoples. The letter specifically asks the EU to:
Give special focus to the potential for deforestation in Papua linked to food and energy plantations, including the lack of community involvement as a potential human rights violation.
Request the UN Human Rights Council and other relevant bodies to investigate whether the situation in West Papua constitutes a violation of Indonesia's international human rights obligations.
Supporting Indonesia in finding sustainable ways to improve food and energy security, including increasing agricultural productivity on existing land, reducing food waste, and prioritizing the use of degraded land for expansion.
Contact, Link Terkait :
