PUBLICATIONS

The European Parliament’s revised Renewable Energy Directive, which plans to phase out palm oil based biofuels from renewable energy targets starting in 2021, triggered widespread media controversy in Indonesia and Malaysia. The policy was often misreported as an export ban or embargo, fueling misleading narratives that framed environmental and human rights concerns as foreign or anti national interests and falsely warned of severe economic impacts.

The Indonesian government sought to protect domestic CPO prices and export volumes, given its heavy reliance on exports. While some officials appeared to misinterpret the directive as an import ban, the Ministers of Foreign Affairs and Trade recognized its actual scope but criticized it as discriminatory. Meanwhile, civil society groups such as Madani argued that weak commitments to forest and peatland protection, governance, and human rights were the underlying drivers of the EU’s policy.