Eight Malaysian Firms Suspected to be Behind Forest Fires

Pekanbaru, Riau (Antara) - Environment Minister Balthasar Kambuaya said eight Malaysian companies were strongly suspected to be behind land and forest fires in Riau Province, Sumatra. "There are eight Malaysian oil palm companies which are strongly suspected to be behind the forest fires. We are still collecting data in the field to make it sure," Balthasar told a press conference here on Saturday. The eight companies, he said, are PT Langgam Inti Hiberida, PT Bumi Rakksa Sejati, PT Tunggal Mitra Plantation, PT Udaya Loh Dinawi, PT Adei Plantation, PT Jatim Jaya Perkasa, PT Multi Gambut Industri and PT Mustika Agro Lestari. The eight companies excluded the 14 companies mentioned earlier to be involved in the land and bush fires. "The number of suspected companies could increase further in the field. We will continue to investigate other companies whether they came from Indonesia, Malaysia or Singapore," the minister said. The minister said earlier that his side had identified 14 companies which were involved in the forest fires in Riau Province. "Based on the data of our team which made observation in the field yesterday (Friday, June 21), there were eight firms identified to have been involved the forest fires but their numbers now have increased to 14 firms," the minister said. He said that investigation would be conducted to know the origins of the companies. Of the eight companies earlier identified, one was a foreign company which came from Malaysia. "Of the eight identified yesterday, we found an indication that one of them came from Malaysia. We have found no other foreign firms coming from other countries," he said. (*)