Write an open letter to Jokowi, this river environmental activist demands a share of social welfare

MidLand, Jakarta – Environmental activists of River warrior Indonesia wrote an open letter to President Joko Widodo or Jokowi. The content requires a “breakdown” of social assistance or social careto donate to Indonesian rivers polluted by plastic waste.

An open letter written by the coordinator of River Warrior Indonesia, Thara Bening Sandrina, Tuesday 6 February 2024. Student at the Faculty of Fisheries and Maritime Affairs Airlangga UniversitySurabaya, expressed his sadness at seeing Indonesian leaders not caring about environmental issues, especially rivers.

Furthermore, in the current political year, Thara believes that concern for the environment will decrease. He gave an example of the focus of discussions on social care to attract electoral votes.

According to Thara, instead of draining the social welfare budget in this political year, the government would be better off improving the pollution level of 70,000 Indonesian rivers that already fall into the heavily polluted category. He has been accused of failing to take President Jokowi’s government seriously thus far, resulting in Indonesia’s 68 strategic national rivers becoming dumping grounds for the public and industry.

Thara is already focused on the matter River pollution since 2018. According to him, river pollution has greatly affected the activities of people living around large rivers in Indonesia. This condition can also cause flooding due to piles of waste settling into the river.

In addition to this, changes in the smell and color of rivers due to chemical contamination of plastic waste can lead to a decrease in water quality. “This condition makes Indonesia the second-fastest country in the world in the extinction of freshwater fish,” Thara said in the contents of the open letter.

Thara then cited survey data conducted by the Nusantara River Expedition Team regarding public perception of river management in Indonesia, with a total of 1148 respondents living in 166 Indonesian cities. As many as 92% of respondents said that river ecosystems are very important in supporting Indonesia’s development.

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“82% of respondents believe that the government is still neglecting the management of rivers in Indonesia,” Thara said of the survey results.

Rivers in Indonesia are polluted by plastic waste, River Warrior environmental activities sent the president an open letter asking for social assistance or social assistance for Indonesian rivers. Tuesday, February 6, 2024. Photo source: River Warrior

In fact, Thara added, the management of the river has been established in government regulation number 22/2021 relating to the implementation of environmental protection and management. Thara stressed that, in reference to this regulation, all Indonesian rivers must be cleaned of waste.

Unfortunately what he found in the field was very contradictory. “Indonesia has the second largest collection of plastic waste in the world’s seas, this is evidence that the government is incompetent in carrying out its duties in implementing regulations that protect rivers from waste,” Thara said.

There are four main points that Thara wrote in the open letter addressed to Jokowi. Each covers waste management, environmental restoration, environmental education and law enforcement monitoring. “I really hope that the government is serious about cleaning Indonesian rivers of waste, in accordance with the adopted regulations,” Thara said.

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