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Dayak leader Panglima Jilah: Traditional farming not cause of forest fires
🇮🇩 Indonesia /Culture & Society

Dayak leader Panglima Jilah: Traditional farming not cause of forest fires

From CNN Indonesia · () Indonesian

Translated from Indonesian and summarized by DistantNews. Read the original for the full story.

At a glance

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  • Panglima Jilah, a prominent Dayak leader, stated that traditional farming practices have existed for thousands of years without causing forest fires.
  • He emphasized that Dayak communities do not farm on peatlands, which produce thick smoke when burned, and generally use mineral land for cultivation.
  • Jilah met with President Prabowo Subianto to discuss forest and land fires in Kalimantan, noting government support for mitigation efforts.

Panglima Jilah, a prominent Dayak leader and head of the Pasukan Merah Tariu Borneo Bangkule Rajakng (TBBR), asserted that the traditional farming methods of indigenous Dayak communities are not the cause of the recent forest and land fires in Indonesia.

Dayak people do not farm on peatlands. Peat produces thick smoke, the peat is thick, 12 meters.

— Panglima JilahPanglima Jilah explained the difference between Dayak farming and activities on peatlands.

He explained that Dayak farming practices, which have been in place for thousands of years, differ significantly from land clearing for plantations. Jilah pointed out that indigenous communities do not cultivate on peatlands, which are known to produce dense smoke when burned. Instead, their farming typically occurs on mineral land.

Before plantations existed, farming existed in Kalimantan since ancient times, even thousands of years ago. And we never saw incidents like this.

— Panglima JilahPanglima Jilah argued that traditional farming is not the cause of current forest fires.

"People who farm would not possibly want to plant their rice in peatland. That's the logic," Jilah stated, emphasizing that the current fires cannot be solely attributed to traditional farming activities. He also highlighted that indigenous communities have self-monitoring mechanisms for their farming areas, with those conducting controlled burns actively monitoring the locations.

People who farm would not possibly want to plant their rice in peatland. That's the logic.

— Panglima JilahPanglima Jilah used logic to explain why farmers avoid peatlands.

Jilah made these remarks following a meeting with President Prabowo Subianto at the Presidential Palace in Jakarta. The discussion included the issue of forest and land fires in West Kalimantan. The leader noted that the government is providing support, including personnel, cloud seeding operations, and additional helicopters, to help manage the fires. The government is also addressing cases of forest fires and alleged encroachment in areas like Mempawah Regency.

So if we burn where our fields are burned, we are the ones who will monitor it.

— Panglima JilahPanglima Jilah described the self-monitoring practices of indigenous communities.
About this summary

Originally published by CNN Indonesia in Indonesian. Translated, summarized, and contextualized automatically by DistantNews, with a note on how the source frames the story. Not individually reviewed before publishing. How this works.

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