Authorities Prepare Legal Action Against Forest Burners

KOMPAS/DIONISIUS REYNALDO TRIWIBOWO

A boy rides a bicycle past a gas truck on Monday (5/8/2019) along Jl. Mahir-Mahar in Palangkaraya, Central Kalimantan, where a fire has been burning for the past month. Fires have been burning near residential areas and along major roads in Palangkaraya, flaring up again even after they have been extinguished.

The National Police supports law enforcement in incidents of forest fires across the country, including directly tackling specific cases. So far in 2019, around 30,000 hectares of peatland have been burned.

PANGKALAN KERINCI, KOMPAS — Investigations into forest fires in the past two months have entered a new stage, as the police and civil service investigators at the Environment and Forestry Ministry prepare legal action against individuals and companies involved in forest fires.