Newsletter articles

DTE's quarterly newsletter provides information on ecological justice in Indonesia.

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DTE publications

Poverty and the price of rice

Down to Earth No. 76-77 May 2008

Concerns about food security worldwide are growing as rice prices have more than doubled in many countries over the last year and global rice stocks are the lowest for decades. Meanwhile the Indonesian government needs to consider how to increase rice production and to protect the food supplies of the poor.

The United Nations Food and Agriculture Organization voiced concern when international rice prices rocketed to a 20-year high in late March with the global benchmark price at over US$500 per tonne.

Is the Forestry Ministry serious about the new legality standard?

Down to Earth No. 76-77 May 2008

It is well over a year since the draft Indonesian Timber Legality Verification Standard was handed over to Indonesia's Forestry Department for approval.

Another year spent waiting

Down to Earth No. 76-77 May 2008

A year after we reported on Indonesian government plans to launch agrarian reform based on the Basic Agrarian Law 1960 (BAL), the regulation on how the reform will be implemented remains a draft. The non-action reflects the fate of the BAL itself. This law, championed mainly by peasants and nationalist groups, has been dormant since its birth.

Suharto's Legacy

Down to Earth No.76-77, May 2008

This May marks the tenth anniversary of Suharto's fall from power. The former president, who headed a military regime which ruled Indonesia for 32 years, died in January this year aged 86.

MSM mine: community opposition continues as investor backs out

Down to Earth No. 76-77 May 2008

The Australia and UK - listed company, Archipelago Resources, is continuing preparations to mine gold in North Sulawesi, despite strong local opposition - both from communities and the provincial governor.

Bali and beyond - struggles for climate justice

Down to Earth No.76-77, May 2008

Climate Change and the Adat Rituals of the Meratus Dayak community

Down to Earth No. 76-77 May 2008

This report is based on information from a field visit by DTE staff to Meratus in 2008, and from the South Kalimantan based NGO, LPMA

For indigenous peoples like the Meratus Dayak of South Kalimantan, farming is not only a means to obtain food, but also forms part of the customary (adat) rituals that have been passed down the generations.