Drone footage shows a man carrying cannabis crops during a police raid on 10 hectares of marijuana plantation in Aceh, Indonesia in March 2019. -- Photo: AFP
JAKARTA (SCMP): Indonesia has rejected claims that public servants were involved in large-scale marijuana cultivation near the eruption-prone Mount Semeru in East Java, stating that a recent video that exposed the crops was from an anti-drug drive conducted last year.
Forestry Minister Raja Juli Antoni said officials had no role in managing the plantation inside the Bromo Tengger Semeru National Park.
“No, the marijuana plants weren’t grown by my colleagues at the national park. The plantation was uncovered through our collaboration with the police,” Antoni said on Tuesday.
His response came after drone footage showed the marijuana field and sparked rumours of the park being closed to conceal the illicit activity.
“That is not true,” the minister said, adding that the clip was shot when police and forest rangers raided the park in September 2024 following tip-offs about the farm.
A forestry ministry official said thousands of marijuana plants were destroyed during the operation.
Rudijanta Tjahja Nugraha, head of the national park, said the crops on the slopes of Mount Semeru were isolated from tourist areas, The Jakarta Globe reported.
Marijuana plants grown under artificial light. Indonesia has some of the world’s toughest drug laws, including the death penalty for traffickers. -- Photo: AFP
“The site is extremely remote and is nowhere near popular hiking routes or visitor spots,” Rudijanta said.
He also denied that hiking restrictions were imposed earlier this year at the park to avoid detection of the weed groves. He said any measures taken were for safety due to landslides caused by seasonal rains.
More than 47,000 marijuana plants near the mountain were destroyed in a law enforcement blitz between September and October of last year.
Indonesia has some of the world’s toughest drug laws, including the death penalty for traffickers.
Producing, exporting, importing and distributing marijuana carries a prison sentence of up to 15 years and a 10 billion rupiah fine (US$605,000).
Last year, the Constitutional Court dismissed a petition seeking the legalisation of the medicinal usage of cannabis.
A man in West Kalimantan was jailed for eight months in 2017 after he used cannabis oil to treat his sick wife.
Despite the stringent laws, growing cannabis is common in the conservative province of Aceh, where locals often use the seeds as seasoning for dishes.
But attitudes towards drug addiction appear to be changing.
Last year, legal Affairs Minister Yusril Ihza Mahendra proposed rehabilitating drug users rather than jailing them, arguing they were victims of illegal narcotics distribution. - SOUTH CHINA MORNING POST
