"Environmental defenders fear backlash as defendant sues expert over testimony," 26 April 2018

Basuki Wasis, an expert on environmental degradation from the Bogor Institute of Agriculture (IPB), has testified in more than 200 cases involving environmental crimes such as forest fires and pollution.

On Feb. 14...he testified as a prosecution witness against Nur Alam, the suspended governor of Southeast Sulawesi, who was charged with abuse of power in the issuance of mining licenses. Basuki told the court that the illegal mining activities by one of the companies that received a permit from Alam had led to deforestation and resulted in 2.7 trillion rupiah ($196 million) in combined ecological losses, environmental economic losses, and the cost of repairing the damage.

... Alam’s lawyers filed a lawsuit against Basuki, questioning the accuracy of his calculations and his credibility. (Alam was convicted on March 28; he was sentenced to 12 years in prison and ordered to pay fines and damages totaling...$268,000.)

Besides demanding a prison sentence for Basuki, Alam’s team also seeks to seize the witness’s assets, including his house, and calls for a combined...$322,000...in fines and damages...

The move has struck fear into the community of environmental experts in Indonesia, who say they are scared of winding up in prison for testifying against environmental violators in future cases...