Overview of Indonesian Laws related to Gili Matra

The Main Legal Framework

The protection, management and responsible use of Gili Matra are supported by several layers of Indonesian law. Together, these regulations govern conservation zoning, coastal development, environmental protection, wastewater and pollution, business activities, public access and the use of small islands.

1. Minister of Forestry Decision No. 85/Kpts-II/1993 — originally designated the waters surrounding Gili Air, Gili Meno and Gili Trawangan as a protected marine tourism area.
2. Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries Decision KEP.67/MEN/2009 — transferred and established the area as the National Marine Conservation Area of Gili Ayer, Gili Meno and Gili Trawangan under the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries. Official KKP record
3. Law No. 27 of 2007 on the Management of Coastal Areas and Small Islands, as amended by Law No. 1 of 2014and most recently by Law No. 6 of 2023 — provides the principal national framework for planning, protecting and using coastal areas, small islands and their surrounding waters. Official legislative record
4. Law No. 32 of 2009 on Environmental Protection and Management, as amended most recently by Law No. 6 of 2023 — establishes obligations relating to pollution prevention, environmental approvals, environmental damage, restoration, monitoring and enforcement. Official legislative record
5. Law No. 31 of 2004 on Fisheries, as amended by Law No. 45 of 2009 and later legislation — provides a legal basis for protecting fish resources and marine ecosystems and for taking action against destructive or unlawful fishing practices.
6. Presidential Regulation No. 51 of 2016 on Coastal Setback Boundaries — requires provincial and district governments to determine coastal setback boundaries in their spatial plans. The regulation uses a coastal setback of at least 100 metres from the highest-tide line as the general planning standard, while the precise legally applicable boundary must be established through the relevant regional spatial plan. Official legislative record
7. Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries Regulation No. 31/PERMEN-KP/2020 on the Management of Conservation Areas — regulates the planning, zoning, use, supervision, monitoring and evaluation of marine conservation areas. Official legislative record
8. Government Regulation No. 21 of 2021 on the Implementation of Spatial Planning — regulates land and marine spatial planning and requires activities to be compatible with the applicable spatial plan. Developments or activities may require confirmation or approval of spatial-use compatibility, including approval for the use of marine space.
9. Government Regulation No. 22 of 2021 on Environmental Protection and Management — regulates environmental approvals, wastewater, marine-water quality, pollution control, waste management, environmental supervision and administrative sanctions. Official legislative record
10. Government Regulation No. 85 of 2021 — establishes the types and tariffs of non-tax state revenue collected by the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries. These include entrance tickets for conservation areas, approvals for marine-space use and certain permits connected with the use of marine resources. Official legislative record
11. Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries Decision No. 34 of 2022 — formally establishes the present Conservation Area of Gili Air, Gili Meno and Gili Trawangan in West Nusa Tenggara, including its boundaries, conservation targets and zoning system. Official KKP record
12. Director General of Marine and Spatial Management Decision No. 62 of 2023 — establishes the management plan for the Conservation Area of Gili Air, Gili Meno and Gili Trawangan. The official KKP database currently describes this as the 2023–2024 management plan, not 2023–2042. This should therefore be checked against the signed decision before publishing a longer period. Official KKP record
13. Minister of Marine Affairs and Fisheries Regulation No. 10 of 2024 on the Utilisation of Small Islands and Their Surrounding Waters — adds important national rules specifically relevant to small islands such as the Gilis. It requires island use to comply with spatial and zoning plans and to consider ecology, water capacity, climate and disaster vulnerability, biodiversity, environmental impacts, local communities and public access.

Among its key provisions:

• conservation is listed as a priority use of small islands;
• activities must not cause a reduction in the physical area of an island smaller than 100 km²;
• at least 30% of a small island must remain under direct state control;
• businesses may utilise no more than 70% of the island;
• at least 30% of the land utilised by a business must be allocated as green open space;
• proposed developments must consider freshwater availability, carrying capacity, waste, environmental impacts and public access;
• activities on islands below 100 km² may require a ministerial recommendation when the relevant rules have not yet been incorporated into the applicable spatial plan.

Regional and Local Rules

National legislation does not operate by itself. Provincial, regency and village regulations may impose additional or more detailed requirements concerning:

• land use and building permits;
• coastal setback boundaries;
• building height, density and site coverage;
• wastewater treatment and groundwater use;
• rubbish collection and disposal;
• tourism and other business licences;
• roads, pathways and public beach access;
• protection of conservation land;
• marine-space use, anchoring and moorings; and
• activities permitted within each conservation zone.

A land certificate, business licence or village approval does not automatically override environmental, spatial-planning, coastal-setback or conservation requirements. A project may need to comply with several different approvals at the same time.

Protection Requires Enforcement

Gili Matra does not suffer from a lack of laws. The greater challenge is consistent implementation, monitoring and enforcement.

A conservation-area designation has little practical value if zoning rules are ignored, buildings extend into protected coastal setbacks, untreated wastewater enters the environment, beaches become privately obstructed or developments exceed the islands’ freshwater and waste-management capacity.

Effective protection requires cooperation between the Ministry of Marine Affairs and Fisheries, the conservation-area management authority, environmental authorities, the West Nusa Tenggara Provincial Government, the North Lombok Regency Government, village governments, local communities and businesses.

It also requires transparent spatial plans, clearly marked conservation zones and coastal boundaries, routine environmental monitoring, investigation of reported violations and meaningful sanctions when regulations are breached.

This overview is intended as public information and not as formal legal advice. The official Indonesian text of each regulation and the latest provincial and regional spatial plans should be consulted when assessing a particular activity or development.