GeRAK West Aceh Demands Strict Enforcement of Law Related to Repeated Forest Fires

MEULABOH - The West Aceh Anti-Corruption Movement (GeRAK) Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) encourages law enforcement officials to take uncompromising action against perpetrators of forest and land fires (karhutla). This decisive step is considered urgent because the karhutla disaster continues to recur every year and is a serious threat in the West Aceh Regency area.

The coordinator of GeRAK West Aceh, Edy Syahputra, stated that the series of land fires in the region must be immediately stopped through real legal sanctions. According to data collected, throughout 2025 alone there have been several fires with a total affected land area of more than 40 hectares. The weak enforcement of the law has been blamed for being the main factor that makes the perpetrators not feel deterred.

Apart from the legal aspect, Edy emphasized the importance of more massive socialization from the regional government level to the villages. This education needs to target all levels, from individuals, the wider community, to corporate parties, so that they no longer use the method of burning land carelessly. He emphasized that anyone who is proven to have deliberately burned land must be arrested and processed according to the applicable rules.

Legally, perpetrators of land burning can be charged with Article 69 paragraph (1) letter h of Law Number 32 of 2009 concerning Environmental Protection and Management. This rule has also been emphasized in Article 22 paragraph 24 of Law Number 11 of 2020 concerning Job Creation, which provides a strong basis for the authorities to take criminal action.

The impact of this forest fire is very worrying. Currently, land fires that have reached an area of 10 hectares in West Aceh are reported to have damaged the ecosystem and biodiversity extensively. The fire destroyed vegetation and natural habitats for endemic flora and fauna that risk triggering species extinction. In addition to environmental damage, smoke pollution is now beginning to cover part of Meulaboh City, thus threatening public health in the capital of the district.