Speaking at an event billed as the “Raja Selamanya Alliance Dinner”, hosted by the International Union for Conservation of Nature (IUCN) and Earthbar in New York, the United States, on Monday, 21st of September, the Indonesian Ambassador to the United States, Indroyono Soesilo, emphasised that protecting Raja Ampat – which holds strategic importance for Indonesia – also means safeguarding one of the world’s vital centres of marine life.
This forum brought together diplomats, conservation leaders, philanthropists, and international organisations to strengthen their joint commitment to safeguarding Raja Ampat as one of the world’s most biodiverse marine areas.
“Protecting Raja Ampat is not just about protecting Indonesia’s tourist destinations, but protecting one of the hearts of the world’s marine life. Indonesia has a responsibility as well as an opportunity to show that nature conservation can go hand in hand with community welfare,” said Soesilo in a statement from the Indonesian Embassy in Washington, which was received on Wednesday, 23rd of September.
Raja Ampat UNESCO Global Geopark covers around 3.7 million hectares and includes seas, island groups, karst areas, forests, and geological landscapes of important value. Its waters are home to more than 1,600 species of reef fish and more than 550 species of coral, making it one of the richest centres of marine biodiversity on the planet.
Recently, Raja Ampat made headlines when a Chinese national, identified by the initials WS, was named a suspect in a case involving the poaching of hawksbill sea turtles in Raja Ampat Regency, Southwest Papua. Two of WS’s associates have also been added to the wanted list. The hawksbill sea turtle (Eretmochelys imbricata) is a critically endangered species in the family Cheloniidae.
“The Southwest Papua Regional Police have named WS a suspect for poaching hawksbill sea turtles in the Raja Ampat conservation area,” Senior Commissioner Iwan P. Manurung, the Director of the Special Criminal Investigation Directorate of the Southwest Papua Regional Police, said, as reported by the press on Wednesday as well.
For their actions, WS has been charged under Article 40A, Paragraph (1), Letter (d), and Article 40B, Paragraph (2) of Law Number 32 of 2024 concerning amendments to the Law on the Conservation of Living Natural Resources and Their Ecosystems.
“The penalty carries a minimum of three years and a maximum of 15 years in prison, as well as a fine ranging from a minimum of Rp200 million to a maximum of Rp5 billion,” Manurung added.