JAKARTA: About 80 protesters gathered outside the venue of the Roundtable on Sustainable Palm Oil's (RSPO) annual conference, demanding that the certification body and its member companies be held accountable for forest fires and haze in Indonesia.

The protesters gathered outside Swissotel Jakarta PIK Avenue in North Jakarta, Indonesia, where the Annual Roundtable Conference on Sustainable Palm Oil 2026 (RT2026) was being held, carrying placards reading "Sustainable on paper, burning on land" and "You burn it, you own it", alongside banners calling for action for communities affected by the haze.

An activist from Serikat Pekerja Transport Indonesia (SPTI), who requested anonymity, said organisers had mobilised about 80 people for the demonstration. SPTI is a trade union representing workers in the land, sea and air transport sectors.

He called on the Indonesian government to stop the burning and investigate allegations that companies were clearing forests by fire to establish or expand oil palm plantations.

“As members of the community, we have a responsibility to hold the government accountable and demand an immediate end to the burning and a thorough investigation into companies burning forests to establish and expand oil palm plantations,” said the activist. 

He also demanded that palm oil companies belonging to RSPO take responsibility for the environmental and health consequences of forest fires.

“Palm oil companies that belong to RSPO must take responsibility for the effects of forest fires, forest destruction, and harm to wildlife and illnesses caused by the smoke,” he said.

The protester claimed that communities in Indonesia and neighbouring countries, including Singapore, Malaysia, Brunei and Thailand, had endured months of smoke, and alleged that companies associated with RSPO were burning forests to expand plantations.

However, RSPO chief executive Joseph D’Cruz said in his RT2026 opening keynote on Tuesday that only about 14,500ha of the more than 1.9 million hectares affected by fires across Indonesia between January and September were within RSPO-certified concessions.

He said there was no data or evidence so far that any RSPO-certified unit had deliberately started fires, although he acknowledged that 14,500ha was still too much and pledged to investigate concessions showing unusual burning.

“I’ve said this before and I will say it again: anybody who has any evidence of RSPO members deliberately lighting fires should come forward and lodge a complaint. We will investigate thoroughly and vigorously,” said D’Cruz.