Enforcement against illegal activities in forest areas risks merely changing who controls the land, rather than restoring the damage caused by mining.
BETAHITA.ID – Enforcement against the illegal use of forest areas for mining activities will only be meaningful if it is pursued against all parties involved, conducted transparently and accountably, and ultimately results in the restoration of the affected areas as forests, rather than turning them into new mining sites. This is the position of the Publish What You Pay (PWYP) Indonesia Coalition.
The coalition’s statement comes in response to recent actions by the Forest Area Enforcement Task Force (Satgas PKH), which has decided to crack down on the illegal control and use of forest areas by companies affiliated with and/or controlled by a businessman identified by the initials AK, including related corporate networks across Indonesia.
The Attorney General’s Office has confirmed that nickel is among the commodities targeted by the enforcement operation. However, to date, the Task Force has not announced the list of companies involved, the size of the affected areas, or details of the alleged violations. Such information is essential to enable the public to monitor whether enforcement efforts genuinely cover the entire network.
AK is a businessman previously profiled in a Bloomberg investigative report titled, “How a Reclusive Ex-Glencore Trader Became Indonesia’s Nickel King” (28 December 2025). The report described AK as one of the dominant players in Indonesia’s domestic nickel ore trade, with control over several nickel mining concessions across major production areas.
One company linked to him is PT Dua Delapan Resources, a shareholder of PT Tonia Mitra Sejahtera. Since 2025, civil society organization Satya Bumi has raised concerns about this company over alleged deforestation in the protected forests of Kabaena Island, a small island where mining activities should be prohibited.
In its study titled “Kabaena Volume II: Tracing the Entry Points of Environmental Destruction and the Politically Exposed Person Network,” Satya Bumi identified alleged links between AK and several politically exposed persons (PEPs), including the wife of the Governor of Southeast Sulawesi and several retired police generals. The PWYP Indonesia Coalition urges the Task Force to verify and publicly disclose whether these concessions, including those on Kabaena Island, are covered by the enforcement operation.
The coalition considers the resolution of illegal mining activities in forest areas an urgent priority that cannot be postponed. This is not merely a matter of combating corruption, but also of the pressing need to halt deforestation and the destruction of communities’ living spaces, which continue to characterize extractive sector governance in Indonesia.
Aryanto Nugroho, National Coordinator of PWYP Indonesia, stated that the success of this enforcement operation must be measured against the interests of environmental protection and the use of natural resources to the greatest possible benefit of the people, rather than a select few.
He said that amid the climate crisis and accelerating deforestation, Indonesia’s nickel wealth as a critical mineral is increasingly vulnerable to elite interests. Its presence must not be used to justify new extractivist practices, including those pursued under the pretext of National Strategic Projects (PSN) or critical mineral allocations.
“Therefore, every act of repossession must be absolutely oriented toward ecological restoration, not merely the takeover of assets or the transfer of concession management to state-owned enterprises (SOEs),” Aryanto said on Sunday (8 November 2026).
Aryanto added that the PWYP Indonesia Coalition also criticizes the repossession mechanism implemented by the Task Force under Presidential Regulation No. 5 of 2025 on Forest Area Enforcement. In practice, the resolution of violations tends to stop at asset takeovers and state revenue collection, while ecological restoration is not made a prerequisite.
This pattern was evident in previous enforcement operations, when confiscated oil palm plantations were transferred to PT Agrinas for management. According to Aryanto, this mechanism creates opportunities for the continued use and exploitation of these areas after control shifts from previous operators to SOEs, without requiring ecological restoration as a prerequisite.
“As a result, enforcement risks merely changing who controls the area, rather than restoring the damage caused by mining,” Aryanto said.
The significance of this case is also inseparable from the alleged involvement of Politically Exposed Persons (PEPs) and complex ownership structures, an issue also acknowledged by the Task Force itself. Law enforcement must reach all parties involved, including beneficial owners, those who facilitate or protect the operations (backers), and processing industries (smelters) that receive nickel ore from illegal mines. No party other than affected communities should benefit from the transfer of these areas.
Meanwhile, regarding the legal process outlined by the Task Force, Satgas PKH will collect administrative fines and repossess assets based on inspection findings and applicable laws and regulations. Where indications of criminal offenses are found, cases will be referred to law enforcement authorities for further proceedings in accordance with the law.
Adzkia Farirahman (Azil), a researcher at PWYP Indonesia, warned that the imposition of administrative fines must not be driven solely by the logic of safeguarding state revenue. Referring to Government Regulation No. 45 of 2024 on Procedures for Imposing Administrative Sanctions and Procedures for the Collection of Non-Tax State Revenue (PNBP) Derived from Administrative Fines in the Forestry Sector, fines collected by the Task Force are accounted for as PNBP from administrative fines in the relevant sectors, such as PNBP in the Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) sector for mining activities.
“The fundamental problem is the absence of a clear link between fine revenues and the financing of environmental restoration,” Azil said.
Azil explained that PNBP derived from administrative fines risks being absorbed into general state revenue, as the PNBP framework does not provide a binding earmarking mechanism to ensure that the funds are allocated to specific locations and restoration plans. The government must secure these funds through the Environmental Fund Management Agency (BPDLH) to ensure that sanctions revenue is actually disbursed for the rehabilitation of damaged ecosystems.
Azil added that the fine calculation formula also needs to be reformed to ensure that it can genuinely restore forests and the environment to their original condition. Calculations must take into account the ecological characteristics and value of the affected areas, their level of vulnerability, and the total cost of restoration, in accordance with the polluter pays principle.
In light of these concerns, the PWYP Indonesia Coalition has issued the following demands:
- Urge the Task Force to regularly disclose verification results, including lists of companies and their beneficial owners, permits and locations, the size of affected areas, the amount of fines collected, and the status and management plans for every area subject to enforcement.
- Urge the Task Force and law enforcement authorities to pursue comprehensive legal action against all parties involved, without exception. This must include business operators, beneficial owners, officials responsible for issuing permits and conducting oversight, parties who facilitate or protect illegal activities, and smelters receiving ore from illegal mines within the supply chain. This must also involve tracing financial flows through a follow-the-money approach.
- Urge the government to revise the repossession mechanism to prevent it from becoming a gateway for transferring forest areas to SOEs for renewed operations before binding ecological restoration obligations have been fulfilled, independently verified, and publicly disclosed.
- Urge the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources and the Ministry of Forestry to impose a moratorium on new mining permits and operations in all locations currently undergoing enforcement proceedings, until their legal status and ecological restoration requirements have been determined. There must be no exceptions under the pretext of National Strategic Projects (PSN) or critical mineral allocations.
- Urge the Ministry of Forestry to designate repossessed areas as forest areas subject to mandatory rehabilitation, involving affected communities in determining their status and restoration plans, and publicly disclosing restoration plans and progress.
- Urge the Ministry of Finance to implement earmarking for PNBP derived from administrative forestry fines, securing these funds specifically to finance the rehabilitation and restoration of ecosystems in forest areas affected by illegal mining.
- Urge the government to improve the administrative fine calculation formula by taking into account the characteristics of the affected areas, the extent of environmental damage, biodiversity value, and the total cost of ecosystem restoration, in accordance with the polluter pays principle.
Crackdown on Mining Companies Affiliated with AK
Previously, the Task Force held a Leadership Meeting on Wednesday, 4 November 2026, at 4:00 p.m. Western Indonesia Time (WIB), chaired directly by the Head of the Task Force’s Steering Committee, Indonesian Minister of Defense Sjafrie Sjamsoeddin.
In its official statement, the Task Force announced that, based on the meeting’s findings, its leadership had decided to take firm, comprehensive, and coordinated enforcement measures against companies illegally controlling and using forest areas that are affiliated with and/or under the control of AK, including by tracing related corporate networks across Indonesia.
The decision follows an initial review that identified indications of irregularities in mining governance, licensing processes, and the control and use of forest areas.
As a concrete measure, the Task Force has begun inventorying and verifying business activities and forest area control by companies identified as part of the affiliated network, with enforcement action to follow.
The enforcement operation will be carried out through the Forest Area Repossession mechanism as stipulated in Article 3 of Presidential Regulation No. 5 of 2025 on Forest Area Enforcement, as well as the collection of administrative fines and/or asset recovery in forest areas, in accordance with the criteria for enforcement targets, inspection findings, and applicable laws and regulations.
The repossession of forest areas constitutes government action to ensure that forest areas controlled or used in violation of the law are returned to state control.
The Task Force also emphasized that forest area enforcement does not eliminate criminal liability. This is explicitly stipulated in Article 7 of Presidential Regulation No. 5 of 2025, which states that forest area enforcement as referred to in Article 3 does not remove criminal liability under applicable laws and regulations.
Accordingly, the implementation of forest area repossession or the fulfillment of administrative obligations does not preclude criminal proceedings against any individual who, based on the results of an investigation, is proven to have fulfilled the elements of a criminal offense.
The Task Force stressed that the state will not tolerate the unlawful control and use of forest areas, including when such activities are carried out through corporate networks or complex business control structures.
All enforcement measures will be carried out professionally, proportionately, and accountably, ensuring that every action has a clear legal basis and is implemented within the respective authorities of the relevant institutions.
This initiative forms part of the government’s commitment to strengthening natural resource governance, restoring state control over forest areas, safeguarding national wealth, and ensuring that natural resources are utilized to the greatest possible benefit and prosperity of the people.
Source: Betahita