Nickel Mining and Human Rights in North Maluku: Assessing the Impact of Resource Development on Local Communities
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.65815/6jcx9e92Keywords:
Nickel mining, North Maluku, human rights, environmental rights, resource governanceAbstract
Indonesia's rapid expansion of nickel mining and processing has positioned the country as a major actor in the global energy-transition economy. North Maluku has become an important center of nickel-related investment, but accelerated industrial development has also generated concerns concerning environmental degradation, land access, livelihoods, and community participation. This article examines the human rights implications of nickel development in North Maluku. Using normative juridical and policy analysis, the study evaluates mining regulation, environmental governance, community participation, land rights, and corporate responsibilities. The article argues that the economic importance of nickel for Indonesia's industrial strategy should not reduce the level of protection afforded to communities affected by mining and processing activities. A rights-based approach requires meaningful participation, access to environmental information, protection of livelihoods, environmental safeguards, and effective remedies. The study proposes a human rights due diligence framework for mining and downstream industrial projects that incorporates community consultation, cumulative impact assessment, transparent monitoring, and accessible grievance mechanisms. The article concludes that Indonesia's energy-transition strategy should integrate human rights protections into resource governance to ensure that the costs of green industrialization are not disproportionately borne by local communities.
References
Alimuddin, Muhammad, and others. 2022. “Mining, Environmental Conflict and Community Resistance in Indonesia.” Resources Policy 78.
Amiludin, Amiludin, Bahtiar Amrullah, Tajudeen Sanni, Zaharuddin Sani Ahmad Sabri, and Bayangsari Wedhatami. 2025. “Oligarchy vs. Sovereignty: Constitutional Amendments and the Democratic Regression of Indonesia’s Post-Reform Era.” Indonesian Constitutional Studies 1 (1): 101–32.
Arifin, Mukhlis, Pratama Herry Herlambang, Andi Zakaria, Bùi Hoàng Nam, and Huang Wei. 2025. “Climate Justice in an Age of Democratic Decline: Civic Space and Environmental Resistance.” Indonesian Climate Justice Review 2 (1): 59–82. https://doi.org/10.65815/bh22td17.
Bebbington, Anthony, Denise Humphreys Bebbington, Jeffrey Bury, Jeannet Lingan, Juan Pablo Muñoz, and Martin Scurrah. 2008. “Mining and Social Movements: Struggles over Livelihood and Rural Territorial Development in the Andes.” World Development 36 (12): 2888–2905.
Bridge, Gavin. 2004. “Contested Terrain: Mining and the Environment.” Annual Review of Environment and Resources 29: 205–59.
Deni, Aji, and Budi Kristanto. 2024. “Multidimensional Impact Analysis of Corrupt Practices in Nickel Mining on Sustainable Development in North Maluku.” Jurnal Manajemen Pelayanan Publik 8 (3). https://doi.org/10.24198/jmpp.v8i3.54615.
Gallego Peña, Alvaro Sebastian, Carlos Eduardo Perez, and Gabriela Jimenez. 2025. “The Case of Indigenous Peoples in Latin America: Substantive Justice and the Right to Self-Determination.” Crítica de la Justicia Sustantiva 1 (2): 1-40.
Herawan, Jonathan, and Yuvensius Sri Susilo. 2024. “Impact of Nickel Downstreaming in North Maluku: Input-Output Analysis.” Journal of Business and Information Systems 6 (2). https://doi.org/10.31316/jbis.v6i2.261.
Hilson, Gavin. 2002. “An Overview of Land Use Conflicts in Mining Communities.” Land Use Policy 19 (1): 65–73.
Iskandar. 2025. “Maintaining Environmental Justice, Human Rights, and Climate Law to Protect Vulnerable Communities: Case Study of Nickel Mining Impacts in Central Halmahera, North Maluku.” KnE Social Sciences 10 (26): 492–504. https://doi.org/10.18502/kss.v10i26.20028.
Kurniawan, Muhammad. 2024. “Environmental Defenders Under Threat: Human Rights and Ecological Justice in Indonesia.” Contemporary Issues on Indonesian Human Rights Law and Policy 1 (1). https://doi.org/10.65815/pjhpq484.
Lahadalia, Bahlil, Chandra Wijaya, Teguh Dartanto, and Athor Subroto. 2024. “Into Sustainable and Equitable Nickel Downstreaming in Indonesia: What Policy Reforms Are Needed?” Migration Letters 21 (3): 620–31.
Lahadalia, Bahlil, Chandra Wijaya, Teguh Dartanto, and Athor Subroto. 2024. “Nickel Downstreaming in Indonesia: Reinventing Sustainable Industrial Policy and Developmental State in Building the EV Industry in ASEAN.” Journal of ASEAN Studies 12 (1): 79–106. https://doi.org/10.21512/jas.v12i1.11128.
Li, Tania Murray. 2011. “Centering Labor in the Land Grab Debate.” Journal of Peasant Studies 38 (2): 281–98.
Lèbre, Éléonore, Daniel Owen, and others. 2020. “The Social and Environmental Complexities of Mining and the Global Energy Transition.” Nature Communications 11.
McCarthy, John F. 2010. “Processes of Inclusion and Adverse Incorporation: Oil Palm and Agrarian Change in Sumatra, Indonesia.” Journal of Peasant Studies 37 (4): 821–50.
Nancy, Natasha. 2022. “Potential Distortion of Sustainable Development in the Conflict of Interest of Nickel Mining and Indigenous Communities in Halmahera, North Maluku.” Journal of Global Environmental Dynamics.
O'Faircheallaigh, Ciaran. 2015. “Social Equity and Large Mining Projects: Voluntary Industry Initiatives, Public Regulation and Community Development Agreements.” Journal of Business Ethics 132 (1): 91–103.
Owen, John R., and Deanna Kemp. 2013. “Social Licence and Mining: A Critical Perspective.” Resources Policy 38 (1): 29–35.
Rochman, Auliya, Ekapala Suryana, and Ethan Michael Robertson. 2024. “Human Rights and Environmental Justice: The Struggle for Indigenous Rights Against Environmental Degradation in Indonesia.” Contemporary Issues on Indonesian Human Rights Law and Policy 1 (3). https://doi.org/10.65815/403fwg65.
Rumadan, Ismail, Ummu Salamah, Binov Handitya, Rian Sacipto, Nam Rumkel, and Albert Muhammad Isrun Naini. 2025. “Criminalization of the Maba Sangadji Indigenous Community’s Opposition to Nickel-Mine Expansion and the Expropriation of Customary Lands in East Halmahera, North Maluku.” Journal of Cultural Analysis and Social Change 10 (2): 1100–1109. https://doi.org/10.64753/jcasc.v10i2.1741.
Schröder, Martin, and Fusanori Iwasaki. 2024. “From Nickel to Electric Cars? Indonesia's Resource-Cum-Automotive Industry Policy.” Journal of the Asia Pacific Economy 29 (4): 2065–86. https://doi.org/10.1080/13547860.2023.2231192.
Sovacool, Benjamin K., and others. 2020. “Sustainable Minerals and the Energy Transition.” Nature Sustainability 3: 347–56.
Temper, Leah, Daniela del Bene, and Joan Martínez-Alier. 2015. “Mapping the Frontiers and Front Lines of Global Environmental Justice: The EJAtlas.” Journal of Political Ecology 22: 255–78.
Zafiroth, Aqriel Thane, and Nyssa Aurelith. 2025. “Environmental Health Justice and Extractive Industries: Legal Protection of Indigenous Communities in Indonesia’s Mining Regions.” Indonesian Health Justice Review 2 (4). https://doi.org/10.65815/22ph4g16.
Legal Sources
Indonesia. 1945. Constitution of the Republic of Indonesia of 1945.
Indonesia. 1999. Law No. 39 of 1999 concerning Human Rights.
Indonesia. 2009. Law No. 32 of 2009 concerning Environmental Protection and Management.
Indonesia. 2020. Law No. 3 of 2020 concerning Amendments to Law No. 4 of 2009 concerning Mineral and Coal Mining.
United Nations. 1966. International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights.
United Nations. 2007. United Nations Declaration on the Rights of Indigenous Peoples.
United Nations. 2011. Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights.
Downloads
Published
Issue
Section
License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
All writings published in this journal are the personal views of the authors and do not represent the views of this journal or the authors’ affiliated institutions. Authors retain copyrights without any restriction under the license of Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0).
