INDONESIA'S SAND MAFIA: The Anatomy of Resource Plunder and Organized Crime
INDONESIA'S SAND MAFIA: The Anatomy of Resource Plunder and Organized Crime EXECUTIVE SUMMARY: 1. Staggering State Losses: Illegal sand mining is not merely an administrative violation. Data from the Indonesian National Police (Bareskrim Polri) reveals that just one case in the Mount Merapi area caused state losses of up to Rp3 trillion (approx. $190 million USD) over two years, with a sand volume reaching 21 million cubic meters. This figure is just the tip of the iceberg of a practice spread across the archipelago. 2. The Permitting Mafia and Official Backing: This practice is impossible to execute without protection. Field investigations across various regions—from East Lampung, Bintan, to East Java—show the same pattern: the existence of "permit mafias," the flow of "tribute" payments to rogue officials, and "official backing" (beking) from law enforcement and local government figures. 3. Ecological and Social Destruction: The impact is not just on...