Nickel hub 'apocalyptic' for uncontacted Indonesia tribe, say NGOs
Deforestation at one of Indonesia's largest nickel processing hubs is threatening an Indigenous group that is among the country's last uncontacted tribes, rights groups allege.
Nickel is a key component in the batteries of electric vehicles, and Indonesia is both the world's largest producer and home to the biggest known reserves globally.
Two NGOs told AFP that mining operations in North Maluku province are endangering the O'Hongana Manyawa people by stripping forests and pumping pollution into surrounding waters.
The Weda Bay nickel mine on Halmahera island—by some estimates the largest in the world—has left the Indigenous group encircled, said Syamsul Alam Agus, an advocate at the Association of Indigenous Peoples' Defenders.
"They are surrounded... their territory is controlled," he told AFP.
While some of the community have settled over decades, an estimated 300-500 people from the group maintain a nomadic, hunter-gatherer existence isolated from outsiders.
As they lose more land and sources of food, they are being forced into more human contact, potentially exposing them to novel diseases, experts said.
Satelite images showing the progression of deforestation around a nickel complex at Weda Bay on Indonesia's Halmahera Island.
Deforestation at one of Indonesia's largest nickel processing hubs is threatening an Indigenous group that is among the country's last uncontacted tribes, rights groups say.