Muhammadiyah Urges Businesses to Take Responsibility for Fires
Muhammadiyah urges businesses to prevent forest and land fires, restore damage and face legal consequences, while calling for stronger government oversight.
JAKARTA — Indonesia’s Muhammadiyah organization is pressing businesses to take direct responsibility for preventing forest and land fires, a recurring threat to communities and ecosystems across the country. Its chairman, Haedar Nashir, says environmental compliance must mean more than paperwork or corporate social programs.
The call also puts pressure on the government to tighten oversight of forests, land and natural resources. Muhammadiyah says companies found responsible for damage should face legal consequences and help restore what has been harmed.
Muhammadiyah calls for action beyond paperwork
Haedar made the appeal in a statement received by Republika on Wednesday. He said companies must prevent fires in areas under their responsibility and must not shift the resulting burden onto residents.
“Environmental compliance must be embodied in concrete action and must not stop at administrative fulfillment or corporate social activities,” Haedar said.
The distinction matters for communities living near affected areas. Prevention and restoration, as Muhammadiyah frames them, are obligations that should be built into business activity—not measures taken only after flames have spread. The organization says any party proven responsible should meet its legal obligations and repair damage and losses under applicable rules.
The primary statement did not detail specific effects on health, education or livelihoods. A separate report by Indonesia’s ANTARA news agency said fires can disrupt those aspects of community life and damage ecosystems, with impacts felt particularly in Sumatra and Kalimantan.
Calls for year-round oversight and permit reviews
Muhammadiyah wants prevention efforts to continue throughout the year, backed by serious monitoring and adequate resources. Haedar warned against allowing government attention to intensify only when fires occur.
The organization also urged officials to review permits and business practices that could raise the risk of environmental damage. Haedar identified abuse of authority, conflicts of interest, corruption and collusion in natural-resource management as problems that must be stopped.
He called for strategic policy changes and fundamental reform in the management of forests, land and natural wealth, with public interests and environmental sustainability as the priorities. Haedar linked that direction to President Prabowo Subianto’s stated political commitment to managing natural resources on a constitutional basis, citing Article 30 of the 1945 Constitution.
“We therefore hope the government will pursue strategic policies and fundamental reforms in managing forests, land and natural resources, with the greatest possible benefit for the people and environmental sustainability,” Haedar said.
ANTARA reported that Muhammadiyah also called for firm action against those responsible for fires, including corporations and parties suspected of protecting violations. The report cited a statement by Muhammadiyah’s central board, numbered 87/PER/1.0/H/2026, and signed by Haedar and board secretary Muhammad Suyuti on Oct. 20, 2026.
Different groups press for investigation
The appeal overlaps with, but is distinct from, a call by the Indonesian Islamic Students Association’s environmental affairs chief, Andi Kurniawan. JPNN reported that Andi urged the head of the Agency for Development Control and Special Investigations, retired Lt. Col. Dr. Aris Marsudiyanto, to investigate fires in several areas and examine possible negligence or legal violations.
That demand focuses on tracing the causes of fires and possible breaches. Muhammadiyah’s appeal reaches further into business responsibility, restoration, oversight and reform of natural-resource policies.
The next test will be whether permit reviews, monitoring of business operations and enforcement accompany routine prevention. Muhammadiyah says those efforts must continue throughout the year, not only after fires break out.
