Between Biodiversity and Biopiracy: Indonesia’s Legal Approach

The protection of biodiversity and genetic resources has become a strategic legal concern both nationally and internationally, particularly for megadiverse countries like Indonesia. Amidst the growing exploitation of biological materials by the global biotechnology industry, biopiracy—defined as the unauthorized appropriation and utilization of genetic resources and traditional knowledge without prior informed consent or equitable benefit-sharing—poses serious threats to the bio-cultural sovereignty of local communities. This study critically examines Indonesia’s legal approach to biopiracy by analyzing the evolution of its national regulatory framework following the ratification of the Convention on Biological Diversity (CBD) and the Nagoya Protocol, and by contrasting it with the global intellectual property regime, especially the TRIPS Agreement under the World Trade Organization (WTO). Employing a normative legal approach and grounded in Rudolf von Jhering’s theory of law as an instrument of social struggle toward utilitarian ends, the article advocates for a more responsive and contextually grounded legal reform in Indonesia. This includes the development of a sui generis system to recognize Communal Intellectual Property Rights (CIPRs), mandatory disclosure of origin in patent applications, and the legal empowerment of Indigenous and local communities as rightful holders of ecological knowledge. The study concludes that Indonesia must adopt a legal strategy that is not only defensive but also proactive and sovereign within the global legal order, ensuring that the nation’s biodiversity is effectively protected, sustainably utilized, and fairly shared for the benefit of present and future generations.