BioTani Indonesia Foundation

 

 

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Organization Name: Biotani Indonesia Foundation

Mailing Address: Jl. Persada Raya No. 1 Menteng Dalam Jakarta 12870

Country: Indonesia

Primary Contact Person:  Riza V. Tjahjadi, Mr,

Telephone Number(s): +62-21-8296545

Fax Number(s): +62-21-8296545

Email(s): biotani@rad.net.id, biotani2004a@yahoo.com

Web Site: www.biotani.org

 

 

 

 

Brief Summary of the Purpose of your Organization

List of Organizational Programmes and Activities:

 

 

UN agencies accredited record to PAN Indonesia/ Biotani PAN Indonesia Foundation

 

· Accredited by UNEP for COP II CBD November Jakarta Indonesia 1995

· Accredited by FAO for ITC PGR in Leipzig Germany June 1996, and the World Food Summit: five year later Rome Italy June 2002.

· Accredited by UNTACD for tenth conference in Bangkok Thailand February 2000.

· Accredited by UNFCCC Bonn for COP 6 Climate Change The Hague The Netherlands November 2000.

· Officially invited by the Assistant DG FAO for RAP, as one of participant, included speaker for NGOs consultation for the World Food Summit –five year later (WSF:fyl) for Asia and Pacific region, twice: end of August 2001 Bangkok Thailand, and (incoming) Katmandu Nepal mid of May 2002, and Accredited by FAO for the WFS: fyl.

· Observer to FAO negotiation on the Right of Adequate Food in the Context national Food Security, FAO Headquarter Rome Italy, twice: October 2003, July 2004.

 

 

· A member of SEA Council for Food Security and Fair Trade; also one of founders of this council.

· A member of the national commission on Hazardous substances of the ministry on environment (2000-now).

· A member of the national Technical Committee on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs). April 2003.

 

 

 

Activities carried out

 

International Level

 

Supporting/ participating, at international level, within CSO efforts to empower/ re-strengthen UN agencies both in policies and conventions in making development sustainable and reforming the narrow framework of trade.

 

Direct participation:

  1. Participated in the UNEP for COP II Convention on Biological Diversity November Jakarta Indonesia 1995.
  2. Participated in the FAO for ITC Plant Genetic Rseources in Leipzig Germany June 1996.
  3. Participated in the UNTACD for tenth conference in Bangkok Thailand February 2000.
  4. Participated in the UNFCCC Bonn for COP 6 Climate Change The Hague in the Netherlands November 2000.
  5. Participated in a Multi-Stakeholder Dialogue on Trade, Intellectual Property and Biological Resources in Asia held in BRAC Rajendrapur Bangladesh, April 19, 2002.

 

PAN Indonesia via Biotani Indonesia Foundation is also member of IFOAM, the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movement, whose advocate recently in series of PrepCom WSSD for Bali early June 2002.

 

 

International/Regional Level

 

Supporting/ participating, at regional level, within CSO efforts to empower/ re-strengthen UN agencies both in policies and conventions in making development sustainable and reforming narrow framework of trade.

 

Direct participation:

  1. Participating as observer to the FAO negotiation on the Voluntary Guideline of the Right to Adequate Food, Rome Italy, October 2003, July 2004, and November 2006
  2. Team leader of Indonesia delegation to the World Food Community meeting in Turin Italy:  20-23 October 2004, and 25-27 October 2006.
  3. Campaign participation Against Patenting Life Forms or struggle to reform TRIPs-WTO within SEA region and Asia wide: series of collaborative researches, public debates, public hearing, and street rallies (1997-now).
  4. Part of steering council member of NGOs in organizing four countries program on Alternative Pest Management: rice and vegetables (1996-1998).
  5. Hosting the Fact Finding Mission on Food Crisis in Indonesia; carried out by SEA Council on Food Security and Fair Trade, February 1999.
  6. Participating, to the officially invited by the Assistant DG FAO for RAP, as one of participant, included speaker for NGOs consultation for the World Food Summit –five year later (WSF:fyl) for Asia and Pacific region - three times: May 1996, end of August 2001; both in Bangkok Thailand, and  Katmandu Nepal mid of May 2002.

 

 

National Level

 

Supporting/ participating, at national level, within CSO efforts to empower/ re-strengthen UN agencies both in policies and conventions in making development sustainable and reforming narrow framework of trade.

 

Secretary Executive of Jaringan Aksi Pangan Indonesia (JAP) Indonesia, a national network of NGOs-farmers-fisherfolks pursuing right to food (11 December 2004).

 

Initiator of an NGO-based certification organic farming, now, namely BioCert (2001).

 

One of Initiators of Jaker PO is a national network for organic farming movements in Indonesia (1998).

 

 

 

On-going campaign

Promote Rights-based approaches to food security (Right to Food) January until now (with limited or short-short-short financial support); currently finalising report on Fact Finding of Silent Hunger in a small island in northwest Jakarta (April-now), but a-two year project proposal available as to contribute intervention to FAO' IWG process on implementing Code of Conduct voluntary on Right to Adequate Food.

 

Campaign against Bio-piracy: the case of Shiseido (mid 1999-March 2002), and FRIM-Malaysia-MIT, and Asahi company Japan on biopirating Eurycoma longifolia (12 May - now).

 

Campaign against transgenic/genetic modified organism (GMOs). Investigation on Bt cotton in South Sulawesi (1997-199),  together with other 3 NGOs in Jakarta filed suit at PTUN Jakarta Timur against minister of agriculture decree on limited releasing Bt cotton in 7 regencies in South Sulawesi (2001 –now), monitoring possible inclusion of GMOs within food aid to Aceh’s Tsunami areas (February 2005-now), etc. just few examples.

 

 

Direct participation:

  1. Participate in the national process to PrepComs WSSD since 2001 until now.
  2. Encouraged the state minister on environment to set up position on patenting life forms regime – from no position into No Patent on Life Forms - whilst advocate parliament members as against patenting life forms/ the need reviewing TRIPs-WTO.
  3. Strengthen the state minister on environment in setting up position on POPs and PIC Convention, also in her interim project (2002).
  4. Reviewed and recommended to the Agreement on Agriculture of WTO to the government of Indonesia, August 2000-January 2001.
  5. Reviewed, and filed sue the minister-level decree on transgenic/ GMOs, as well as public campaign on moratorium to transgenic, etc.
  6. Comments and critics in developing national-level Agenda 21, with emphasis to Chapter 14: SARD.
  7. Campaign Demise the Dirty Dozens pesticides.

 

 

Local Level

 

Supporting/ participation of farmers and artisanal fishers, at local level, within CSO efforts to empower/ re-strengthen UN agencies both in policies and conventions in making development sustainable and reforming narrow framework of trade.

 

Direct participation:

  1. Promote community seed banking both on-farm trials and produced popular education media, whilst advocate the needs of Farmers’ Rights since mid of 1980 until now.
  2. Promote organic agriculture movement in most part of Indonesia (1990-now).
  3. Assessing potential values and opportunity of local communities campaigning against biopiracy.
  4. Promoting local initiates of poor communities in small islands.

 

 

 

 

 

BioTani Indonesia and PAN Indonesia

 

 

Pesticide Action Network (PAN) Indonesia has set up in 6 September 1982, as a national networking of citizen coalition against the misuse of pesticides, pursue agricultural policy reformation on food crops whilst educating the rights of consumers to consume safe foods, and avoid farmers from the potential hazards of pesticides, threat of transgenic foods, biotechnology, etc.

 

It worthy to say, there are regional coordinating bodies. PAN Asia and the Pacific in Penang Malaysia, PAN North America in San Francisco, PAN Europe in London, PAN Africa in Senegal, and PAN Latin America in Peru.

 

Realizing goal and objectives of PAN Indonesia has been developing two modes of actions to assess alternatives. Field trials (on-farm) and alternative market development, as well as policy reformation both national and international levels. Alternative pest management, seeds exchange activities among farmers and NGOs in the country and the SEA (South East Asia region), and alternative trade (fair trade) development, is examples. Reforming agricultural policy on food crops, pesticide-biotechnology management policy, alerting biosafety protocols, watching WTO, disseminating success story of alternative farm practices, etc. are further examples

 

Legal entity

 

Specific in developing alternatives to trade into a legal entity/body, PAN Indonesia on 17 April 1996 has set up her sister, namely BioTani Indonesia Foundation. This foundation registered No. 42 dated 17 April 1996 at a notary, namely Ms. Lindasari Bachroem, SH. Address Jl. Cianjur No. 8 Jakarta Pusat.

 

Biotani Indonesia, then popularly named as BioTani PAN Indonesia is a foundation and classified as a non-governmental organization. It is stated her aim/basic mission concern with the negative impacts of chemicals and biotechnology, whilst committed to develop participation within sustainable development as well as agriculture processes such as to enhance people and community welfare (a translation from the Indonesia version of a statue of Biotani Indonesia Foundation).

 

Founders of Biotani Indonesia Foundation

Riza VT (PAN Indonesia, Jakarta),

Gayatri (PAN Indonesia, Padang West Sumatera),

Tubagus Erwin A. PerbataKusuma (ex WWF Reg. Rep for Leuser National Park Tapak Tuan Aceh).

 

 

Steering Council

 

Advisory Council

Ir. Sabastian Eliyas Saragih, Ms.

 

Executive Council 

Chief of the Executive Council: Riza V. Tjahjadi

Secretary: Dwi Djuang Prastyanto, SH, Atty

Treasurer: Dino, drs

 

Supervisory Council

Prof, Dr. Ningrum Sirait, SH, LLM

 

 

BioTani Indonesia aims to promote sustainable development by mitigating the negative effects of chemicals and biotechnology in agricultural processes. BioTani Indonesia is one of the founders of the Southeast Asian Council on Food Security and Fair Trade (SEACON FS&FT; carried out Fact Finding Mission on Food Crisis in Indonesia in February 1999),  and a member of the International Federation of Organic Agriculture Movement (IFOAM). Since 2002, BioTani Indoneia has developed a programme that aims to promote the principles of the “Right to (Adequate) Food” in Indonesia. BioTani Indonesia also promotes food communities of West Sumatera as displayed within activities in the World Meeting of Food Community in Torino, Italy in 20-23 October 2004, and 27-30 October 2006.

 

Within the latter programme, BioTani Indonesia is responsible for implementing a project that improves the advocacy capacity of artisanal fisher communities on small islands to enforce their right to secured access to food and sustainable livelihoods. In one example, in January 2004 BioTani Indonesia had facilitated a policy dialogue between the government and the community of a small community, namely Tunda Island, which faced food insecurity as a result of seapiracy (this community suffered from food shortage and malnutrition in 2002) This resulted in the protection of the community, eradicating the threat of sea piracy and thus increasing opportunity and ability toward food security of artisanal fishers in the small island.

 

On a national level (2003-2004), BioTani Indonesia advocates for the enforcement of the right to adequate food through working together with the Constitution Commission, the Department of Fisheries and Marine Affairs and the National Logistic Agency. At the international level, BioTani Indonesia participates as one of observers in the development of the UN FAO “Voluntary Guidelines on the Right to Adequate Food”, and member of The IPC Working Group on Right to Adequate Food.

 

On February 2006 until end of January 2007, BioTani Indonesia working with artisanal fishers of small islands, entitled Building Opportunity, with right-based approach to Strengthening the capacity of poor and marginalized communities of small islands in Indonesia, BioTani Indonesia responsible for the coordination and conductance of advocacy, including right-based participatory budgetting approach at kabupaten or district level, as well as the implementation of Community-Based Conservation Resource Management, CBCRM activities in Banten province – west part of Jakarta.

Text Box: “A group of small island communities led by Biotani Indonesia Foundation has urged that the adaptation fund should include a special corpus to cover their initiatives.” (Bali Climate conference has a message for rural community; Ashok B Sharma in Financial Express, India, December 17, 2007 at 0158 hrs IST) 

 

 

 

 

 


In January 2006 BioTani Indonesia with Basa-Asia, Biodiversity in Action for Sustainable Agriculture in Asia organised a training workshop, entitled Training for Lawyers with Farmers' participation in South East Asia. One of results, a video news release entitled Alternatives to Legal Protection to Seeds and Farmers with 11 minutes duration.

 

BioTani Indonesia or Biotani PAN Indonesia has been acting as lead agency for PAN Indonesia since 1996 until 2003, such as part of survival strategy within Soeharto oppression regime: How keep reforming policies related to both pesticides and agriculture within oppressive regime -- this kind strategy also use by several NGOs forum in Indonesia. Hard liner advocacy work back up by soft path and legal entity. However, BioTani PAN Indonesia representing PAN Indonesia in a legal action, with other NGOs, filed sueing at the state administrative court against the ministry-level decree on limited releasing transgenic/ Bt cotton, during May 2001 up till now; although appealing has lost.

 

In addition, PAN Indonesia also published a newsletter (Indonesia and English versions), namely Terompet. Indonesia version, at least two per year since 1996. In 1993-1996 almost four per year.

 

In addition, PAN Indonesia also published a newsletter (Indonesia and English versions), namely Terompet. Indonesia version, at least two per year since 1996. In 1993-1996 almost four per year.

 

English version, terminated. However, between 1993 and 1997, Terompet published, at least, one per year. In 1993, 3 issued, 1994, one issued, 3 issued in 1995, two in 1996, and two in 1997. English version ended in 1997 since economic crisis has caused mail delivery costs very expensive.

 

 

Quantity 1,000 copies of each version.

 

English version (until dec. 1997): NGOs, farmers, university, government agencies, international agencies, donor, and embassies.  coverage: 33 countries.

 

More additional information, please see also: ITC, International Trade Centre, UNCTAD CNUCED, WTO OMC: Product and Market Development, Organic Food and Beverage: World Supply and major European Markets. Geneve. 1999. page. 82.). This, mostly served as umbrella to develop quality in alternative farming systems, but also work in policy advocacy arenas.

 

Also:

UNEP's book, entitled Cultural and Spritual of Biodiversity in the third week of November 1999. This book has included a story of traditional agricultural practices of Dayak Pasir of East Kalimantan. My field staff whose never go to school has made field notes (issued in the Terompet Double Issue Nov. 1995) and I edited for UNEP.

 

Funding/donor

Agriculture the only survival sector during country economic, political and cultural turbulent. However, sustainable agriculture multiplication efforts not so popolar in the eyes of donors, compare to human rights issues, democratic and opening access to rights of assembly and self-organizing for common people.

 

Few donors interested with mission of PAN Indonesia, even though donors accepted by PAN Indonesia have played important support during crucial period (Soeharto step down, May 1998 until now). Main sources of donor from churches development agencies, and individual donations. Average fund achieved from fund raised activities around US$ 30,000 per annum, directed for organic farm development as well as assessment toward alternative to trade, also publication of newsletter (mentioned above). In term of collaboration, to provoke the Govt. of Indonesia delegation to WTO as well as public campaigns/public debate against WTO, mostly support from local donors fund raised by bigger scale NGOs.

 

However, BioTani PAN Indonesia has been developing series of assessment

promoting farm-based basic standard quality of organic farming in several region: West Sumatra, West Jawa, East Kalimantan, and South Sulawesi. As being known PAN Indonesia is one of proponents promoting both organic farming and community seed banking as well as its policy advocacy on conservation of plant genetic resources since in the middle of 1980s.

 

In term regional collaboration, let's say, in the South East Asia, PAN Indonesia is a member of the SEA Council on Food Security and fair Trade, of which partly financially supports by Misserior Germany. Last year the SEA Council conducted a fact-finding mission on food crisis in Indonesia, also a regional conference on people response to food crisis in the SEA region.

 

Further information about The SEA Council for Fair Trade and Food Security members its will further attachment, if necessary.

 

PAN Indonesia, through BioTani PAN Indonesia will also participate in the EXPO2000 Hannover Germany, the World Exposition in Germany in next few months. Biotani PAN Indonesia is one of two the Indonesian NGOs approved to participate as well as two government agencies.

 

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Text Box: Govt should rethink the use of hybrid rice 

Adianto P. Simamora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

The government should stop a plan to introduce the wide use of a modified, high-tech rice hybrid as it will burden farmers, a farming NGO said Monday.

"The government should carry out research on the impacts of weather anomalies, which are more frequent due to climate change," executive director of Biotani Indonesia Foundation, Riza Tjahjadi told The Jakarta Post. 

"The government must also reveal results of the study to farmers." 

Riza, a member of the International Planning Committee Right to Food Working Group, made the statement ahead of World Food Day which is to be celebrated Tuesday. 

More than 150 countries observe World Food Day, which falls every Oct. 16. 

The Agriculture Ministry is set to push the use of hybrid rice in an effort to boost the country's yield production to meet the local demand for rice. 

According to the plan, more than 181,121 hectares of prime rice fields, mainly in East Java, will begin using the hybrid rice this year. 

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono marked the plan by planting the hybrid rice seed during a ceremony in Gorontalo earlier this year. 

More…"
 http://www.thejakartapost.com/detailnational.asp?fileid=20071016.H03&irec=2
The Jakarta Post 16 Oct, 2007
 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 


Press Statement

In commemoration the World Biodiversity Day 22 May 2003

 

 

Although UNEP didn't put specific theme for 2003, World Health

Organization (WHO) report shows that 80% of the world's population

depends on herbal medicine... Here the ways transnational companies

as well as the government researchers

"producing" herbal medicine.

 

"According to an article in Business Week, when employees of Novo Nordisk go on holiday, they take along soil-collection kits to gather exotic microorganisms. The father of one scientist who worked for the company collected a soil sample from Indonesia, which yielded an enzyme that is now widely used by soft-drink suppliers to change

starch into sugar."

 

Pat Mooney, added, soils had taken from a temple in Bali (pers.com, Nov.

1995)

 

STOP BIOPIRACY

 

Pasak Bumi (Eurycoma fongifolia) in South East Asia

BIG INTEREST IN A SMALL TREE, bioresearch of Eurycoma fongifolia

 

ARE ASEAN GOVERNMENTS SPONSORING BIOPIRACY?

Japanese has had patented but still applying at EPO

 

A Press Statement

by

Biotani Indonesia Foundation

 

Amongst the treasures of the tropical forest in the South East Asian (SEA) region, is Eurycoma longifolia; popularly known as “Pasak Bumi” in Indonesia and “Tongkat Ali” in Malaysia.  Unbranched tree or shrub up to 8m tall and 15cm diameter, or with a few upright branches, each crowned by an umbrella-like rosette of leaves.  Though known best as the “only herbal medication that has been scientifically proven to work as an

aphrodisiac”, its Ginseng-like qualities make it a much sought after plant in biomedical research for pharmaceutical products. For that very reason at one level governments in SEA are having to deal with the over-exploitation of the plant, (due to widespread unlicensed harvesting of Tongkat Ali in the Malaysian jungles the plant has since been

declared a “protected plant” in Malaysia.) On another level there is an increasing number of government research projects as evidence of the growing interest in the herb.  The more worrying is the involvement of the industry in its commercialisation, once again raising the issue of the biopirating of bioresources and traditional medical knowledge of

the  local communities of the region.

 

The Forest Research Institute of Malaysia (FRIM) in cooperation with the US Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT), has an ongoing five-year Malaysia MIT Biotechnology Partnership Programme (MMBPP), a research and development partnership to supposedly "develop advanced technologies that command the future of biotechnology"! Under the MMBPP there is a specific project on “Micropropagation of Eurycoma longifolia (Tongkat Ali) and Chemical Fingerprinting of Ingredients in Formulations of Tongkat Ali”. A total of eighteen academic, industrial and government

research institutions including six Biotechnology Cooperative Centers along with MIT collaborate in the MMBPP with FRIM as one of the project partners. The Government of Malaysia & MIT have together applied for patents on the “bioactive fraction of Eurycoma longifolia”.

 

In Thailand the Faculty of Science of the Mahidol University is engaged in an “Investigation and Structure Elucidation of active compounds from Eurycoma longifolia Jack root”. Meanwhile in Taiwan (March 2001) a study conducted to reinvestigate the Chemical Constituents of Eurycoma longifolia. The U.S. FDA 2002 stated a capsule of Pasak Bumi sold with brandname El Jack (to Eurycoma longifolia as a “tree of 100 remedies,”) is represented as a drug and not a dietary supplement, it would be subject to regulation as a drug (FDA received and filed the notifications of Herbal Powers, Inc. on March 18,20).

 

Meanwhile, an Indonesian public-listed pharmaceutical company also began conducting two-four years lab-testing, since field collection began in early November last year. In the meantime, Kompas daily newspaper, reported a public-listed pharmaceutical company – PT Kimia Farma began assessing the potential of traditional herb of East Kalimantan such as requested by the Vice Governor of the province. Currently collection of samples from the whole area of the province is underway, which will then be analysed in the laboratory of the company in Bandung, West Jawa.

 

A Japanese company Asahi Denka Kogyo had as early as in 1991 applied for  patents for

  - Chewing gum containing extract of eurycoma longifolia jack (JP3292860)

  - Chocolate containing extract of eurycoma longifolia jack (JP3292857)

 

It may be noted, recently, there are four patents on Eurycoma longifolia have been applying as to get patent granting at EPO, European Patent Office.

 

  1. AU4796601 Bioactive fraction of eurycoma longifolia

  2. WO0217946 BIOACTIVE FRACTION OF EURYCOMA LONGIFOLIA

  3. JP3292860 CHEWING GUM CONTAINING EXTRACT OF EURYCOMA LONGIFOLIA JACK

  4. JP3292857 CHOCOLATE CONTAINING EXTRACT OF EURYCOMA LONGIFOLIA JACK

 

While it is becoming trendy for companies to market all kinds of confectionary with Eurycoma longifolia under the category of sex products, local herbalists have long used the herb as an additive in small roadside drink stalls as an energy booster.

 

In the early 90s itself, PAN Indonesia and Rekari have warned of Australian researchers taking out samples of Pasak Bumi from East Kalimantan. The call of alert is now being reiterated.

 

 

With the nature and extent of research and commercial activities vis-à-vis Pasak Bumi coming to light, it is imperative that governments that are either part of these activities or facilitate private sector operations in such activities, make known all the terms and conditions of a proposed project. NGOs & CSOs on their part would need to make a call for transparency in such projects. It may also be recalled that countries in the region are party to the Convention on Biological Diversity, which mandates that States must take the “prior informed consent” of local communities and indigenous peoples on decisions

related to access of genetic resources. Those long campaigning against the patenting of life and life forms would have to be particularly alert against any ensuing intellectual property rights (IPRs) in such activities. IPRs and esp. patents could restrict access of traditional communities to the resource that was developed by their very know-how.

This could have far-reaching implications on the life and livelihood of traditional practitioners and small-scale herbal households. Another dimension of the problem is the cross border nature of the herb in question. In such a situation there is no scope for patents that mandate sole ownership with exclusive use by an identifiable “inventor”. The

governments of the region hitherto fighting patent wars against Western MNCs would necessarily need to look within the region in what could be a potential South-South conflict over a resource.

 

To light, it is imperative that NGOs & CSOs position against patenting life forms the need for close cooperation to attack biopiraters

 

The governments of ASEAN should respectively explain such potential tension or conflict in the region (horizontal conflict in the implementation of TRIPs harder than WTO).

 

Such patents application will block/ undermining access of traditional communities, including small scale home industries to one of their productive resources, namely "Pasak Bumi". (see: trick of Malaysian govt., indicate positive correlation?)

 

So, NGOs/ CSOs defending Art 8.j, and indigenous sustainable livehood should immediately insisted European Patent office (EPO) to cancel patent application of Pasak Bumi.

 

 

21 May 2003

 

For more on the subject please contact:

 

Riza V Tjahjadi

 

BioTani Indonesia Foundation/ PAN Indonesia

Jl. Persada Raya No. 1 Menteng Dalam

Jakarta 12870

Indonesia

Tele-fax: +62-21-8296545

Email: biotani@rad.net.id

 

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No Patent No Beauty, No Patent No Cure,

No Patent No Food,

They claimed,

We fight for Farmers' Rights

and

Community Rights

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"Kein Patent auf Leben!" ("No Patents on Life!")

also

Pharmacosmetic is coming..!

 

 

News clipping:

Farmers' Rights, IPR, biopiracy; a selected English version news clipping (1995-2001)

 

 

Traditional community needs govt protection

 

   An environmental activist is calling on the government to move immediately to provide protection for the intellectual property rights of traditional communities before they are patented by foreign corporations abroad.

   Riza V.T, of the Pesticide Action Network (PAN) Indonesia, said there is an immediate need to protect the intellectual property rights of plants and other living organisms that have been grown and developed by indigenous people.

    PAN Indonesia is part of coalition called PAN International.

    Riza said that intellectual property rights regarding agriculture are actually covered by the Law on Farming Systems enacted in 1992. Three years later, however, the government has not issued the regulations to enforce the legislation.

    The government, he noted, appears to be indecisive about the protection of these rights. "The attitude of the government just goes back and forth". He cited several examples of living organisms found or developed by traditional communities in Indonesia that should be protected, including: a variety of rice in Pangalengan, west Java; a variety of rice in Pasir District in East Kalimantan which is still being grown by farmers there in addition to the seeds provided by the government; and a coffee bean strain, which can be grown without the aid of fertilizer, founded by farmers in Pandegelang West Java.

    Riza said the failure to register these strains could allow foreign corporations to claim the patents and register them abroad.

    The government's attitude before the enactment of the law, he recalled, was clearly in favor of protecting the rights of traditional communities and not the big corporations, particularly multinationals.

    "In 1991, Syarifudin Baharsjah, who was then junior minister of agriculture, even said that corporations patenting agricultural technology would troublesome for the patens," Riza said.

Syarifudin is now the Minister of Agriculture.

    Riza said an increasing resistence is found in developing countries to foreign corporations registering patent rights for living organisms found and developed in their countries.

   Because of the lack of clarity in Indonesian regulations, Riza fears that particular Australian pharmaceutical company, for example, might apply for the patent rights to the pasak bumi, a plant that is believed to be an aphrodisiac and that the company is currently studying in Kalimantan.

    The need to protect the intellectual property rights of traditional communities surfaced at a recent national congress on biology. Some suggested that a separate, more specific law be drafted.

    This issue will be one of the central themes at the second international convention of Biodiversity, which Indonesia will host in November.

    The meeting will debate community intellectual property right as versus intellectual property rights, as well as access to genetic resources and farmers' rights, Riza said.

    He expressed concern with Indonesia's ability to defend its interests at the international meeting, which excludes non-governmental organizations, because Indonesia hardly has any "Environmental diplomats."

    "We only have one or two people, including Emil Salim," he said referring to the former environmental minister. (The Jakarta Post, 3 November 1995)