With the objective of creating greater opportunities for national shipping companies and national insurance companies which engage in import and export activities, The Ministry of Trade has issued Regulation No. 82 of 2017 on Provisions for the Utilization of National Maritime Transportation and Insurance for the Importation and Exportation of Certain Goods.

In a bid to increase the national competitiveness of the tobacco industry, as well as to reorganize the rules for the importation of tobacco, the Ministry of Trade has finally issued Regulation No. 84 of 2017 on Import Provisions for Tobacco.

With the overall objective of controlling the consumption of tobacco products across Indonesia while accommodating targets for the excise contribution made by said products to state revenue in 2018, the Ministry of Finance has issued Regulation No. 146/PMK.010/2017 on Excise Tariffs for Tobacco Products .

The Ministry of Agriculture has issued Regulation No. 34/Permentan/HR.060/9/2017 on the Second Amendment to Ministry of Agriculture Regulation No. 48/Permentan/SR.120/8/2012 on the Production, Certification and Distribution Supervision of Horticultural Seeds. Regulation 48/2012 was previously amended once through the issuance of Ministry Regulation No. 116/Permentan/SR.120/11/2013.

The Supreme Court has rendered Decision No. 31 K/Pdt/2017, which settles the citizens? lawsuit filed by 12 Indonesian citizens, who were being represented by the Rights-over-Water Advocacy Team acting as the claimant. The lawsuit was filed against the government (i.e., the President, Vice President, Ministry of Public Works and Ministry of Finance) and two private companies responsible for the management of the provision of water in the Special Capital Region of Jakarta (i.e., PT Aetra Air Jakarta and PT PAM Lyonnaise Jaya)

The government has finally issued Presidential Regulation No. 88 of 2017 on Land-Tenure Settlements in Forestry Areas in response to the following Constitutional Court (MK) Decisions regarding judicial reviews of laws and regulations within the forestry sector: (1) MK Decision No. 34/PUU-IX/2011; (2) MK Decision No. 45/PUU-IX/2011; (3) MK Decision No. 35/PUU-X/2012; and (4) MK Decision No. 95/PUU-XII/2014

The Ministry of Agriculture has issued Regulation No. 21/PERMENTAN/KB.410/6/2017 on the Second Amendment to Ministry Regulation No. 98/PERMENTAN/OT.140/9/2013 on Plantation Business Licensing Guidelines. The regulation represents a response to public demand as regards the inadequacy of state land for plantation business. In a nutshell, Regulation 21/2017 redefines several matters pertaining to the Plantation Business License for Processing, as well as to partnership schemes and sanctions.

As part of the government?s 2017 priority-legislation program, the House of Representatives is now deliberating the Draft Bill on Palm Oil in a bid to create a more comprehensive framework for the Indonesian palm-oil sector. The draft bill addresses various matters; however, due to the broad scope of the bill, this edition of Indonesian Legal Brief (ILB) will confine its discussions to matters pertaining to palm-oil businesses, foreign ownership and criminal sanctions.

The Ministry of Environment and Forestry has issued Regulation No. P.32/MENLHK/SETJEN/KUM.1/5/2017 in a bid to overcome the problem of overlapping applications for the securing of Timber-Forest Product Utilization Permits (IUPHHK). The new application process will apply both to companies wishing to either secure new IUPHHKs or to extend their existing IUPHHKs. The new regulation also sets out new sanctions for any applications for IUPHHK which fail to settle the mandatory payment of fees within the due time.

The House of Representatives is currently in the process of discussing the Draft Bill on Water Resources in response to Constitutional Court Decision No. 85/PUU-XI/2013, which declared Law No. 7 of 2004 on Water Resources to be null and void. The Draft Bill is aiming to update the umbrella arrangement for the management of water resources, which currently falls under the obsolete Law No. 11 of 1974 on Water. Containing a total of 50 articles, the Draft Bill in general addresses the following matters: rights over water resources, the authority and responsibilities of the government, water-resource management measures, financing for water-resource management, rights, the obligations and roles of communities, coordination of water-resources management, the investigation of water-resource related crimes.