Policing the Forest: State Resource Control in Java Indonesia

In 1870, the Dutch colonial government of Indonesia declared the nation’s forests as property of the colonial state. After Indonesia’s independence in 1945, the newly formed government maintained state control over the forests. Nearly a quarter of the Indonesian island Java is covered in forests, with nearly 20 million people living in forest communities. The State Forest Corporation (SFC) directly manages these forests and controls local peasants’ access to forest products. The SFC has viewed peasants as a direct threat to the management of valuable forests, including teak forests that contribute 92 percent of the SFC’s annual income. While the SFC benefits significantly from the forests, peasants gain very few financial benefits. They are only allowed legal access to deadwood for fuel and some non-timber forest products. As a result, peasants’ livelihoods are threatened by timber activities and forestry policies, which have created hostility between peasants and the SFC. In response, the SFC established repressive forest management measures that amount to policing the forest. In 1962, the government provided firearms to forest guards, placing them on par with the military and the police. These repressive measures have perpetuated social control on the island, as former military officers were infused into local village government positions.

Contributed by Tommy Smith
Course: Global Environmental History
Instructor: Andrew Stuhl, Ph.D.
Bucknell University, Lewisburg, US