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Rattan is one of the mainstay non-timber forest products found in the Nagari Paru forest in Sijunjung Regency, West Sumatra. However, harvesting rattan is not done arbitrarily: Rattan can be collected once it has reached a length of four meters. It is often used to build products like fences, pinwheels, baskets, mats, and clotheslines. Rattan is also woven and sold on its own.
The community of Iskandar, in Wali Nagari Paru, has been fighting to create a protected status for the forest by appealing to the Ministry of Forestry and the Environment since 2001 or 2004. It was finally granted the status of protected forest or "forbidden forest" around 2014.
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