A Hidden Pitfall for REDD: Analysis of Power Relation in Participatory Forest Management on Whether It Is an Obstacle or a Reliever on REDD Pathway

Box 3

Unstructured interview with one of key persons from Kikore who is a member of village standing committees.

“What REDD+ project people are doing is not constructive at all! Before the project we had established

effective system for protecting forests under Community Based Forest Management (CBFM). It is well

know that village government has authority as a manager and owner of VLFRs on behalf of the

community. It is the one which is responsible to ensure forests are well managed based on the village

forest management plan document. Surprisingly, REDD+ pilot project came and re-establish new

institution which is joint team of forest guards that is over the village government and directly

answerable to them. You can imagine how awkward it is; a group of individuals from different villages

mealy selected randomly are given power to collect fines from forest defaulters without consultation

of village government leaders of the particular forest area. Nobody knows at village what is happening

on the forest because at village office nowadays there has been no either a report of patrols

performance, offences or that of defaulters and action taken over them. Because forest patrols are

done at forest landscape wide not village based; there have been cases where fine for a crime done at

a certain village is collected at another village. This is a kind of overthrowing the village government

from its legal authority”.