TASSY P2P FORUMS

Five tree fee for a Java wedding
From: http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/asia-p ... 124680.stm

Couples in the Sragen region of Java in Indonesia have reportedly been told that they need to fund the planting of five trees if they want to get married.

State-run Antara news agency reported that couples will have to supply seedlings or pay 25,000 rupiah ($3, £1.30) under the compulsory scheme.

Couples applying for a divorce face a higher charge of 25 seedlings or over 40,000 rupiah ($4.25,£2).

District officials say the programme is aimed at combating global warming.

Couples will be expected to hand over the seedlings or cash to the person officiating at their wedding.

"The money will then be used to buy tree seedlings which would have to be planted in the area where the couple live," said district head Untung Wiyono.

Indonesia has staged several tree planting events in recent months, in the run-up to a key UN climate conference in Bali which takes place this fortnight.

In November, President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono joined in a nationwide attempt to plant nearly 80 million trees in a single day.

Indonesia has been criticised by environmental groups for its rapid rate of deforestation.