PRIME NEWS POST 

The INDONESIAN, JAKARTA – The Indonesian Customary Council (MAI), through its Supreme Spiritual Council member Abuya Tubagus Mulyadi Mawahib Alqodim Albantany (popularly known as Abah Alam), has raised its voice again to demand that corporate companies responsible for forest destruction and triggering nationwide scale floods in three major provinces of Sumatra Island (Aceh, North Sumatra, and West Sumatra) pay compensation amounting to Rp100 trillion.

The disaster was the first and largest in history, claiming lives and causing severe damage that has been declared a national disaster by various parties.

This call is reinforced by the earlier directive from the Forest Area Enforcement Task Force (Satgas PKH) for 71 palm oil and mining companies to pay fines totaling Rp38.6 trillion over forest damage. As announced by Satgas PKH Spokesperson Barita Simanjuntak on Tuesday (December 9, 2025), the breakdown includes Rp9.4 trillion from 49 palm oil corporations and approximately Rp29.2 trillion from 22 illegal mining firms. However, MAI emphasized that these fines are insufficient to cover losses suffered by the people and to ensure deterrence against illegal natural resource exploitation.

Illegal logging and other unlawful natural resource exploitation activities including unpermitted tree felling, exceeding permit limits, or damaging ecosystems, along with unofficial supply chains have been the root cause of environmental destruction with far-reaching impacts on the lives of indigenous communities and the nation as a whole.

Abuya Tubagus Mulyadi Mawahib Alqodim Albantany stressed that addressing this issue is the duty and responsibility of all citizens and indigenous communities. “This nation stands on customary land, built on the wisdom of our ancestors. If this land is destroyed, it is not just the ecosystem that will collapse, but the very foundations of our nationhood. The state must act as a protector, not a bystander,” he stated firmly.

He added that damage to customary territories stems from the erosion of civilized values in natural resource management, where capital power has overpowered conscience and customary law.

In a communication forum between MAI and kings, sultans, datuks, queens, and indigenous leaders across the archipelago, DYMM Maharaja Kutai Mulawarman a founding member of MAI stated that MAI was established as the last bastion of Nusantara’s civilizational dignity. “Restoring the dignity and honor of Nusantara’s royal cultures means upholding justice for the people. A king without justice is empty, and power without concern for the weak is a betrayal of our ancestors’ mandate,” he said.

He also emphasized that all indigenous elements across Nusantara have a sacred responsibility to restore cultural honor and the dignity of indigenous communities through concrete action. MAI will not be intimidated by political pressure or capital power, as it fights for the future of Nusantara’s generations.

MAI emphasized that the Rp100 trillion compensation demand aims not only to cover existing damage but also to serve as a deterrent, preventing reckless natural resource exploitation that could trigger similar major disasters in other Indonesian provinces. As the national platform for indigenous stakeholders, the Indonesian Customary Council is committed to safeguarding the values, dignity, local wisdom, and constitutional rights of Indonesia’s indigenous communities.

This matter was the main topic of discussion at the Indonesian Customary Council’s communication forum, attended by kings, sultans, datuks, queens, and indigenous leaders from across Nusantara.

Editor: Bar.S, Prime News Post / Reported from various sources / Photos: Google Documents / Courtesy