West Kalimantan Groups Sue Prabowo Over Recurring Forest Fires

A coalition of indigenous and civil-society organisations in Indonesia's West Kalimantan province has filed a class-action lawsuit against President Prabowo Subianto and other authorities, accusing them of failing to prevent and tackle forest and land fires that recur annually in the region.

The case was registered at the Pontianak court in West Kalimantan, with the first hearing scheduled for October 7, according to the court filing. The plaintiffs' lawyer, Glorio Sanen, said the lawsuit was filed in response to public concerns over what he described as the government's negligence and failure to address the fires.

The plaintiffs include the West Kalimantan chapter of the Indigenous Peoples Alliance of the Archipelago, the West Kalimantan branch of Catholic Youth, Perkumpulan Laman Punyung Indonesia, and an individual, Sisilius Rami, the filing shows.

The presidential office did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Indonesia is currently battling its most intense wildfires in 11 years, and the government has warned that the fires could continue until November. The lawsuit adds to pressure on the administration as it grapples with the prolonged fire season.

This is not the first legal challenge of its kind. In 2016, seven Indonesian residents sued then-President Joko Widodo, his cabinet ministers and local governments over their handling of forest fires in 2015. The plaintiffs initially won at the district court, but the Supreme Court later granted the government's petition for judicial review in 2022, overturning that decision, according to media reports.