Forestry Confrontation

Press, Volume CIII, Issue 30555, 25 September 1964, Page 1

Forestry Confrontation

(N Z. Press Association) ROTORUA. Sept. 24. The Indonesian delegation at the seventh session of the Asia-Pacific Forestry Commission in Rotorua has refused to recognise the membership of Malaysia in the commission. It will recognise Malaya only. Mr R. Soediarto, director of the Forest Research Institute. Java, made these comments this afternoon in his country’s initial statement to the session.

After expressing the greetings of his country’s foresters, Mr Soedi-

arto said: “In this conference. the Indonesian delegation recognises only the membership of Malaya and not the socalled Malaysia.”

Mr A. Majid (Malaysia), the acting-chairman this afternoon, said it was “highly regrettable that the international position has been brought into these specialised discussions.

“However, 1 feel there are difficulties on this issue. We will leave it there.”

Mr Soediarto and the other Indonesian delegate, Mr A. Lubis, ar-

rived at the conference this morning, two days late.

In his statement, Mr Soediarto revealed that Indonesia’s forests were at present troubled with pest diseases.

The Government had established a Ministry of Forestry only in July of this year and its first Minister was a forester. Its forest industry planning was mainly based on fast growing species.

“Besides enlarging our plantations, we have got to get protection for them,” he said.