The Mining Advocacy Network (Jatam) strongly criticizes President Prabowo Subianto's recent speech at the Annual Session of the People’s Consultative Assembly (MPR) on August 15, 2025, calling it as empty rhetoric that fails to address the root causes of illegal mining. 

The network views the speech by the president, which referred to Article 33 of the 1945 Constitution and emphasized that the State controls natural resources for the welfare of the people, as lacking substantial action.

Muh Jamil, Head of the Legal Division at Jatam, said that the president's statement regarding illegal mining fails to acknowledge the longstanding involvement of political elites and security apparatus in shielding these illegal activities. Jatam’s criticism centers on the fact that while Prabowo spoke about more than a thousand illegal mines that are costing the state hundreds of trillions of rupiah, the illegal mining business continues to thrive without substantial government intervention.

"If the government is truly not afraid, why has this problem persisted for years, even during Prabowo’s leadership?" Jamil said as quoted in a statement on Sunday, August 17, 2025.

Despite the president’s promises of action against illegal miners, Jatam argues that the problem extends beyond illegal operations. They cited several cases where even legally licensed mining companies violate environmental laws with impunity. For example, PT Dairi Prima Mineral (DPM) in Dairi continues operations even after its environmental permit was revoked by the Supreme Court, a ruling that should have halted its operations. The company is partly owned by the Bakrie Group, a major backer of Prabowo during the 2024 presidential election.

Jatam also referred to ongoing mining activities in Wawonii Island in Southeast Sulawesi, where PT Gema Kreasi Perdana (GKP), a subsidiary of Harita Group, continues operating despite a legal challenge by local communities that won a case in the Supreme Court.

"These are just a few examples of how even legal mines are immune to the law when tied to powerful political and business interests," Jamil said.

JATAM further criticized Prabowo’s speech for focusing solely on economic losses due to illegal mining, rather than addressing the environmental and social destruction caused by both illegal and legal mining operations.

“The government is more concerned about economic losses than the damage to the lives and livelihoods of the people. Local communities face violence, imprisonment, and loss of land,” Jamil said.

In conclusion, Jatam claims that the government, entangled with mining oligarchs, has failed to regulate the industry in the public interest.

"Rather than being part of the solution, the government is part of the problem. The rhetoric about tackling illegal mining is nothing more than an empty dream, as the government is in bed with mining corporations," Jatam stated.

The advocacy group challenged President Prabowo to reveal the names of the major players behind illegal mining within 72 hours. "If the President fails to do so, it will only prove that his speech was nothing more than empty words that mask the reality that the government today stands with mining corporations, not the people or the environment."