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View all search resultsStronger protection for vulnerable communities urged in climate policies
Despite supporting United Nations’ resolutions pertaining to state responsibility on climate change, Indonesia has shown a weak commitment to protecting vulnerable communities in its existing and upcoming climate legislations, according to environmental groups.
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Participants hold placards on April 21, 2024, as they march on a street ahead of Earth Day on April 22, annual environmental awareness day, in Jakarta. (AFP/Yasuyoshi Chiba)
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nvironmental activists have pushed the government to follow an advisory opinion issued by the International Court of Justice (ICJ) to guide Indonesia’s climate laws toward protecting vulnerable communities, rather than prioritizing investments for the carbon market.
Issued in July 2025, the advisory opinion is a landmark, nonbinding opinion from the court judges outlining states’ obligations under international law to address the climate crisis, protect the environment and safeguard the rights of present and future generations.
The bench also said limiting global heating to 1.5 degrees Celsius should be considered the “primary temperature goal” for nations, which are obliged to make “adequate contributions” to the mission.
Indonesia has supported the process since before the issuance of the opinion.
The country was among cosponsors of a 2023 United Nations resolution spearheaded by Vanuatu to request an advisory opinion from the world’s top court on the obligations of states in regard to the climate crisis. Indonesia was also among the supporters of a resolution passed in May that backed the ICJ’s landmark opinion.
Despite such a position in the UN top forum, environmental group Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) warned the opinion would have little practical impact without stronger political commitment from the government.
Indonesia climate policies, including a climate change bill currently deliberated at the House of Representatives, disproportionately emphasize market-based mechanisms such as carbon trading, rather than protecting communities most affected by the crisis, according to Walhi legal advocacy manager Christine Constanta.
