The Necessity of Human Rights-Based Conservation

The process of submitting the KSDAHE Bill, Law Number 5 of 1990 concerning the Conservation of Biological Natural Resources and Their Ecosystems, is underway. Although it is considered to have positive opportunities for strengthening the protection and preservation of biodiversity, the dimension of respect for human rights (HR), which should be inherent in it, still seems insufficiently strong. This is because, in essence, conservation areas, whether forests or seas, are never truly devoid of humans and their lives. Therefore, the ultimate goal of conservation should not merely be "preservation for preservation" itself, but should ensure the fulfillment of human rights for communities that depend on living in/around them. Conservation areas have been their living space for generations, past, present, and future. Without this human rights condition, efforts to amend the KSDAHE Law will potentially deviate from the goals of welfare and sustainability; instead, they will perpetuate the process of dehumanization and exclusion in the name of conservation. This Policy Brief discusses various issues of interpreting the concept of conservation, the relationship between conservation and power, and the urgency of ensuring conservation policies and agendas that respect human rights.