INTRODUCTION

Indonesia’s forest areas and everything they contain are exclusively owned by the Government and are to be utilized for the welfare and prosperity of the general public. This is expressly stated in the preamble of Law No. 41 of 1999 on Forestry.[1]

In order to optimize the use of Indonesian forests for the greater good of the Indonesian people, the Government has the authority to lend Government-owned forest areas to support national developments as provided for under Government Regulation No. 24 of 2010 on Utilizing Forest Areas (“Forest Utilization Regulation”).[2]