Sotheby Auction Of 100 Islands Raises Fury Of Indonesians

Sotheby’s auction of the exclusive licensed rights to the Widi Reserve, more than 100 environmentally protected islands that cover 25,000 acres in Indonesia, has been delayed from its originally scheduled date last week, Kelsey Ables and Winda Charmila reported for The Washington Post.

Photo Insert: The Widi Reserve, an archipelago in North Maluku province, is located in a biodiverse area known as the “Coral Triangle,” which is home to endangered animals such as sea turtles, humphead wrasse, and whale sharks.

The holdup follows backlash from environmental groups, which say the privatization and development of the islands could cause ecological damage and interfere with life in coastal communities.

The Widi Reserve, an archipelago in North Maluku province, is located in a biodiverse area known as the “Coral Triangle,” which is home to endangered animals such as sea turtles, humphead wrasse, and whale sharks.

“Sustainable tourism is a discourse. We just talk about it, but we don’t implement it,” said Yusuf of Jala Ina.

“There is no evidence of sustainable tourism in Indonesia.” Afdillah, the ocean campaign team leader at Greenpeace Indonesia, who goes by a single name, shared Yusuf’s concern, calling eco-tourism “an empty promise.”

“We firmly believe there is no such thing as ‘sustainable development’ on reserves and that the best way to preserve them is just to let them be. In fact, we, humans, must try to expand them,” he said, adding that resorts, ports, and airport runways would change the landscape.

The auction is also “a serious violation of the rights of coastal communities and traditional fishermen who live around the reserve,” said Afdillah, who countered Sotheby’s claim that the reserve is uninhabited. “In Indonesia, not a single island or sea area is ownerless,” he said.

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