Indonesia

Indonesia hosts some of the oldest documented cannabis cultivation in Southeast Asia, with records reaching into the medieval period in Java and persistent traditional use across Sumatra's highland communities. The archipelago's extraordinary geographic diversity — spanning over 17,000 islands across three distinct botanical zones separated by the Wallace Line — has produced cannabis populations that are morphologically and chemically distinct from mainland Southeast Asian varieties. Despite a decades-long prohibition enforced by the National Narcotics Board (BNN), traditional cultivation persists in Aceh Province and the Batak highlands of North Sumatra, where cannabis has been integrated into agricultural and cultural practices for centuries. These populations face acute conservation risk from sustained eradication pressure, genetic erosion through the introduction of modern varieties, and the near-complete absence of ex situ preservation efforts.

Overview

Indonesia occupies a complex biogeographic position relevant to understanding its cannabis populations. The Wallace Line, which runs between Bali and Lombok and between Borneo and Sulawesi, divides the archipelago between Asian and Australasian faunal zones. Cannabis cultivation has historically been concentrated west of this line, primarily in Sumatra and Java, though significant cultivated populations have been documented and historically documented in Ambon (Maluku) and Papua.

The principal cannabis-producing regions today are Aceh Province (northern tip of Sumatra) and the Batak highland areas surrounding Lake Toba in North Sumatra. These two regions maintain distinct cultivation traditions, morphological profiles, and local use contexts. Smaller commercial-scale populations have been documented in Bengkulu (West Sumatra), Lampung Province, and Mandailing Natal (North Sumatra). Small-scale cultivation has also been reported from Garut, West Java, and from Papua, though in the latter case the BNN has noted that much of what circulates in Jayapura originates across the border from Papua New Guinea rather than from locally established populations.

Indonesia's cannabis is known internationally under several market names. "Sumatra" and "Aceh" have appeared in seed trade and collector contexts since at least the 1980s, though provenance reliability for commercially circulating material is poor. The so-called "Elephant" strain associated with Lake Toba has attracted particular collector interest due to reports of unusual morphology and exceptionally large leaf structure.

Cannabis in Indonesia is officially referred to as ganja, though the terms cimeng (urban slang), bang, and gandja / gendji appear in historical and regional sources.

Cultural and Historical Context

Pre-colonial and early historic use

The earliest textual evidence for cannabis in the Indonesian archipelago comes from the Historical Dictionary of Indonesia, which records cannabis (Cannabis sativa) as having been "native to the Caspian Sea, but reported from Java in the 10th century." At this period the plant was used both as a source of fibre and as an intoxicant, though its use was not as widespread as tobacco, opium, or betel.

Sanskrit-influenced medical traditions transmitted through Hindu-Buddhist court culture to Java and Bali included cannabis in their pharmacopoeias, suggesting its presence in the archipelago may date to the early centuries of Indianized kingdoms. The Acehnese holy books Mujarabat and Tajul Muluk, translated from ancient Malay in the 16th century, provide religious grounds for medicinal use of cannabis, referencing it as a crucial herbal remedy for "sweet blood" — understood by local communities as diabetes. When local respondents in Aceh are asked about cannabis, they commonly cite these books as foundational references for legitimate use.

Dutch colonial authors noted that ganja or bang served as an "intoxicating agent" whose leaves were regularly mixed and smoked with tobacco, particularly in Aceh. Cannabis leaves were also sometimes soaked in water, dried, and rolled in nipa palm leaves for smoking, with stronger effects reportedly achieved when dried leaves were wrapped in corn or banana leaves. In Semarang, Banyumas, Surakarta, Malang, Blitar, and Tulungagung (Central and East Java), cannabis was used recreationally — sometimes mixed with tobacco — under the local term gendji. Shopkeepers and warung holders used cannabis leaves combined with opium to enhance the aroma and narcotic effect of dried tobacco in banana leaves, a practice widespread enough that many Javanese had familiarity with terms like ganja, gandja, or gendji even without cultivating the plant themselves.

Traditional use in Aceh

Acehnese traditions represent the deepest and most extensively documented stream of cannabis culture in Indonesia. Aceh's position at the northern tip of Sumatra made it a major node in the maritime spice trade, with intensive contact with South Asian and Arab traders from at least the 13th century onward.

Traditional uses of cannabis in Aceh are unusually diverse and extend well beyond smoking. Cannabis seeds are used to enhance the flavor and moisture of local dishes, most notably in goat curry (gulai kambing) and Acehnese noodles. Cannabis flowers are sometimes soaked in palm wine, kept in bamboo branches, and consumed as a tonic. Cannabis is mixed into coffee and brewed as herbal tea for the treatment of diabetes, consistent with the Mujarabat and Tajul Muluk references noted above. In 2006, the BNN documented eradicated cannabis products including cannabis oil, a toffee-like confection, curry, fried noodles, meatball soup, and peanut sauce — primarily prepared with cannabis seeds and/or oil.

It is also common for local households in Aceh to grow several cannabis plants in their own backyards, the yields of which are typically not sold for commercial purposes.

Rumphius and Ambon

Georgius Everhardus Rumphius documented cannabis cultivation on Ambon in his Herbarium Amboinense, written during the latter half of the 17th century and published posthumously in 1741. On Ambon, cannabis was grown from seeds brought from Java. Rumphius recorded both medicinal and recreational applications: cannabis roots were consumed to treat gonorrhea, while the leaves were combined with nutmeg and brewed as tea to alleviate asthma, pleuritic chest pain, and bile secretion. Cannabis tea prepared from dried leaves was consumed recreationally to induce a state of well-being that local populations called hayal — a term related to the modern Indonesian word khayal (imagination or fantasy). Rumphius observed that among Muslim populations, cannabis smoked with tobacco produced effects ranging from aggression to sadness and melancholy.

Rumphius also described a distinct compact, highly resinous cannabis form originating from the Papuan and Sula Islands, which he named Ginji Papoua — distinguishing it from the taller fiber-type he called Ginji Maia. His description of Ginji Papoua as characterised by wrinkled and curled leaves is its most distinctive recorded feature and has attracted scholarly attention in relation to morphologically anomalous cannabis populations documented in the Australasian region.

Thomas Bowrey and 17th-century observations

The English merchant Thomas Bowrey, who traveled extensively in the East Indies between 1669 and 1679, documented cannabis use in Aceh and other parts of Sumatra in his A Geographical Account of Countries Round the Bay of Bengal (published posthumously 1905). Bowrey's observations are primarily pharmacological and social, documenting the effects of cannabis preparations and their consumption contexts among Acehnese and Sumatran populations.

Dutch colonial botanical documentation: Boorsma

Willem G. Boorsma, Head of the Pharmacological Laboratory of the Department of Agriculture, Industry and Trade in the Dutch East Indies, was commissioned by the colonial government following the 1912 International Opium Conference in The Hague to examine the situation of cannabis in the Dutch East Indies. His study found no significant problems in relation to cannabis use: widespread consumption was largely limited to Aceh and East and West Sumatra, while small-scale cultivation for personal use mainly took place among Indian communities (referred to as "Bengalese and Clingalese") in those areas.

Boorsma's published work spans three key papers. His 1892 article in Teysmannia documented chemical characteristics of Cannabis sativa var. indica from Indonesian localities. His 1917 pharmacological laboratory report provided the detailed account of use patterns, cultivation zones, and preparations. His 1918 Teysmannia article gave the most comprehensive overview of the occurrence and use of Indian hemp (Indische hennep) across the Netherlands East Indies.

The result of Boorsma's 1912-commissioned study was that no measures were introduced to stop cannabis cultivation, but increased administrative scrutiny was imposed, requiring regional administrators to report annually on the cannabis situation in their areas.

Dutch-language press and cannabis advertising

During the late 19th and early 20th centuries, advertisements for cannabis products occasionally appeared in Dutch-language newspapers published in the Dutch East Indies, promoting cannabis cigarettes as remedies for asthma, coughing, throat illnesses, and sleeplessness. These advertisements were directed primarily toward the European colonial population, reflecting contemporary European medical practice rather than indigenous use patterns.

Legal History

First colonial restrictions

The first prohibition-oriented legal action against cannabis in the Indonesian archipelago came at the provincial level: in 1924, the Aceh region enacted an ordinance under which the cultivation, possession, storage, transport and sale of cannabis were punishable with a fine of 100 guilders. This preceded the national framework by three years and reflected the concentration of cannabis cultivation and use in Aceh.

At the national level, the Dutch colonial government passed the Verdoovende Middelen Ordonnantie (Narcotics Decree) in 1927, driven by the inclusion of cannabis in the 1925 International Opium Convention. The decree prohibited the cultivation of Indian hemp (Indische hennep) and established restrictions on its use, possession, and distribution — though its primary focus was opium. Cannabis was significant in this context primarily as an opium surrogate: as opium came under tighter colonial control, cannabis use expanded as a substitute.

Under the 1927 Ordonnantie, penalties for cannabis included a maximum fine of 1,000 guilders or a prison sentence of up to six months for cultivation; 3,000 guilders or three months for import, export, possession, preparation, or use. Cannabis-related arrests — ranging from cultivation to recreational consumption — began to increase during the 1930s as colonial enforcement efforts intensified.

Post-independence period

Following Indonesian independence in 1945, the new government initially retained the colonial narcotics legislation. Fifteen years after the 1961 UN Single Convention on Narcotic Drugs, the Indonesian government passed Law No. 9 of 1976 on Narcotics, which classified cannabis as a controlled substance restricted to medical and research purposes only. Unlike later legislation, the 1976 law contained no formal scheduling system. Penalties under this law included: personal use, up to two years' imprisonment; cultivation and small-scale distribution, up to six years and a fine of Rp 10 million; dealing and trafficking, 20 years to life and Rp 30 million.

Law No. 22 of 1997 on Narcotics introduced formal scheduling. Cannabis was placed in Schedule I — the most restrictive category — alongside heroin and cocaine, permissible only for research under strict conditions. Penalties escalated significantly: small and large-scale possession and cultivation carried 10–15 year sentences; production and distribution, up to the death penalty.

The governing legislation today is Law No. 35 of 2009 on Narcotics. Cannabis remains in Golongan I (Group I). The 2009 law was stated by its architects to prioritise rehabilitation over prosecution for users, and Article 127 specifies a maximum four-year sentence for personal use alongside mandatory rehabilitation obligations. However, the law's ambiguous language enables prosecutors and law enforcement to reclassify users as dealers — a practice widely documented by civil society organisations — meaning that individuals caught with small quantities for personal use regularly face the heavier penalties of Article 111 (cultivation and possession: 5–20 years or life for over 1 kg/5 plants) or Article 113–116 (production, distribution, sales: up to the death penalty).

Between 2009 and 2012 alone, 37,923 people were imprisoned for cannabis use — approximately 26 persons sentenced daily.

Timeline of cannabis legislation in Indonesia

Period	Legislation	Cannabis status	Key penalties
1924	Aceh Provincial Ordinance	Prohibited (province only)	Fine of 100 guilders for cultivation, possession, transport, sale
1927–1976	Verdoovende Middelen Ordonnantie	Import/export/possession restricted; cultivation prohibited	Up to 1,000 guilders or 6 months (cultivation); up to 3,000 guilders or 3 months (use/possession)
1976–1997	Law No. 9/1976	Restricted to medical/research (no scheduling)	Personal use: 2 years; cultivation/supply: 6 years; trafficking: 20 years–life
1997–2009	Law No. 22/1997	Schedule I (research only)	Personal use: 4 years; large-scale: 10–15 years; trafficking: death penalty possible
2009–present	Law No. 35/2009	Schedule I (Golongan I)	Personal use: 4 years (Art. 127); >1 kg/5 plants: life or death (Art. 111, 113–116)

The war on drugs and the BNN

The Indonesian government formally declared a war on drugs in 2002 under President Megawati. An independent National Narcotics Board (Badan Narkotika Nasional, BNN) was established in March 2002, and in 2003 expanded into provincial branches (Badan Narkotika Provinsi, BNP), rolling out the national anti-drug programme P4GN (Pencegahan dan Pemberantasan Penyalahgunaan dan Peredaran Gelap Narkoba) down to village level.

In 2015, President Joko Widodo (Jokowi) escalated the war on drugs with a policy of executing drug traffickers and a target of placing 100,000 drug users into rehabilitation programmes — a figure planned to double annually. Critics, including the Indonesian Drug Users' Network (PKNI) and Lingkar Ganja Nusantara (LGN), documented the resulting expansion of forced urine tests, fraudulent controlled medicine sales, breaches of patient confidentiality, and extortion by officers seeking to meet quantitative enforcement targets.

The GAM conflict and Aceh

The decades-long armed conflict between the Indonesian government and the Free Aceh Movement (Gerakan Aceh Merdeka, GAM) from the late 1970s to the 2005 Helsinki Peace Agreement had complex and contested effects on cannabis cultivation in Aceh. GAM was alleged to have partially financed its operations by levying taxes on cannabis cultivation and cooperating with trafficking networks. In 1988, a GAM sub-district commander was arrested and reportedly showed investigators hectares of cannabis fields connected with GAM operational funding, though the validity of this confession has been questioned.

In response, the Indonesian military launched Operation Nila I in 1989, ostensibly targeting both GAM and cannabis cultivation simultaneously. However, the relationship between GAM and the cannabis trade was considerably more complex than official narratives suggested. Indonesian military and police forces were themselves extensively involved in cannabis trafficking: a police helicopter pilot was arrested after transporting 40 kg of cannabis destined for the police chief of Aceh Besar regency; in 2002, an army truck carrying 1,350 kg of cannabis was intercepted in Binjai, North Sumatra, resulting in a firefight between police and military in which six police and one soldier were killed. Multiple competing actors — military, police, rival GAM factions, local warlords, criminal entrepreneurs — were involved in shifting alliances around cannabis revenues. The rural farmers and cannabis growers dependent on cannabis cultivation for subsistence were consistently the most disadvantaged parties, harassed by all armed groups seeking to control the territory and revenues of cultivation areas.

By 2004, an estimated 30 per cent of Southeast Asia's cannabis supply originated in Aceh.

The 2005 Helsinki Peace Agreement ending the conflict was followed by intensified eradication operations as Indonesian authorities consolidated control over previously contested highland areas, making the post-conflict period one of heightened rather than diminished enforcement pressure on Acehnese cannabis farmers.

Traditional Cultivation

Aceh

Cannabis cultivation in Aceh is documented across multiple highland districts, with Aceh Province as a whole — particularly the Gayo Highlands (Bener Meriah and Aceh Tengah regencies) and the coastal and interior regions of Aceh Utara and Aceh Besar — constituting the primary producing zone in Indonesia. Almost all cannabis consumed in Indonesia is produced in Aceh and other parts of Sumatra, from where it is transported nationally.

Cannabis plantations in Aceh typically do not exceed one hectare. Many cultivating farmers are not landowners, working rented or informally occupied land. Farmers sometimes abandon cultivation sites after harvest and shift to new land for strategic reasons related to law enforcement avoidance. Because of the severe penalties attached to cannabis cultivation, many farmers seek protection from the Indonesian military through bribery.

Morphological reports from field observers and collector accounts describe Acehnese cannabis as tall (commonly 2–4 metres under natural conditions), narrow-leafleted, and with extended flowering periods consistent with equatorial tropical photoperiod adaptation. Aromatic profiles described in collector literature emphasize citrus, incense, and spice notes.

North Sumatra: Lake Toba and the Batak highlands

The Lake Toba region of North Sumatra supports cannabis cultivation in the Batak highland communities surrounding the caldera. The altitude (approximately 900 m) and corresponding cooler temperatures differentiate this growing environment from lowland Sumatran conditions. Other documented North Sumatran producing areas include Mandailing Natal regency.

The so-called "Elephant" strain or type associated with Lake Toba has been referenced in collector and seed trade contexts since at least the 1990s. Reports describe unusually large leaf structure — including exceptionally wide leaflets — as a defining characteristic, though the consistency of this trait across the population and the reliability of provenance claims in commercially circulating material are uncertain.

Dwarf coffee-field phenotype

A distinct cultivation context documented in North Sumatra involves compact, dwarf-phenotype cannabis plants grown as understory or border plants in coffee fields. These plants reportedly maintain a compact, bushy morphology under full sun in mixed-crop conditions. Whether this represents phenotypic plasticity within the regional landrace population or a distinct selected type is not established. The practice of intercropping cannabis with coffee has practical concealment advantages under prohibition conditions. Cannabis and coffee have been documented as providing complementary income streams in Acehnese agriculture, a combination noted in the international press in the early 2010s.

Other producing areas

Smaller-scale commercial cultivation has been documented in Bengkulu (West Sumatra Province), Lampung Province, and Garut, West Java. These populations are poorly characterised and their botanical relationship to the Acehnese and Toba landraces is unknown.

Papua

Cannabis cultivation in the Papuan region is poorly documented in scientific literature. The BNN has noted that cannabis circulating in Jayapura is primarily transported from Papua New Guinea rather than locally cultivated, though this does not preclude the existence of established indigenous populations in highland Papua. The connection to Rumphius's Ginji Papoua description remains speculative pending modern botanical and genetic survey work.

Enforcement and Conservation Threats

BNN eradication operations

The National Narcotics Board (BNN) conducts regular eradication operations targeting cannabis cultivation throughout Indonesia, with Aceh Province receiving disproportionate enforcement attention. Annual eradication campaigns involve aerial surveillance, ground operations to destroy cultivation sites, seed and processed material seizures, and farmer arrests.

Seizure data compiled by the BNN and UNODC for the period 2003–2013 show dramatic peaks in 2006–2007: 1,109,307 cannabis plants were seized in 2006, escalating to 1,869,595 in 2007. These peaks coincided with the Nila Rencong Operations — three major eradication campaigns carried out in collaboration with the Acehnese provincial BNN and provincial police across multiple Acehnese sub-districts, conducted following the 49th Commission on Narcotic Drugs meeting and with UNODC endorsement.

In 2015, the BNN reported eradicating 64 hectares of cannabis plantations nationally, with 60 hectares converted to alternative crop cultivation — primarily cacao, patchouli, soybeans, and turmeric — in Aceh, accompanied by cacao cultivation training for 150 Acehnese farmers. The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) opened an office in Jakarta in 2011 and began providing counter-narcotics assistance including for cannabis eradication in North Sumatra.

The effectiveness of these eradication efforts has been persistently questioned. Local researchers have noted that crop substitution programmes are contested due to the significantly lower market value of alternative crops compared to cannabis. Civil society organisations have also documented cases of staged eradication operations carried out primarily for media coverage rather than substantive enforcement.

Alternative development programmes

Between 2006 and 2010, the UNODC and the Mae Fah Luang Foundation carried out alternative development projects in Aceh following the Nila Rencong Operations. These programmes comprised health-related development and sustainable rural development projects including reconstruction of irrigation systems, aimed at creating agricultural livelihoods as alternatives to cannabis cultivation. The programmes' long-term effectiveness in displacing cannabis cultivation has not been independently established.

Genetic erosion

Beyond direct eradication, Indonesian cannabis populations face genetic erosion through two main pathways. Introduction of modern high-THC hybrid varieties — primarily through seed imports associated with commercial cultivation for the domestic urban market — has displaced traditional landraces in some areas and introduced hybridisation pressure in others. Additionally, the disruption of intergenerational knowledge transmission under prohibition conditions means that traditional cultivation practices, selection criteria, and varietal knowledge are being lost even where cultivation persists.

Absence of ex situ preservation

No confirmed ex situ preservation programme for Indonesian landrace cannabis is known to exist as of the date of this writing. Internationally, limited quantities of material purporting to originate from Aceh and Sumatra exist in private collector networks, but provenance verification and maintenance conditions are generally inadequate to ensure the preservation of representative population diversity. Accession data for Indonesian material held by the Zomia Collective is documented in the Indonesia/Accessions subpage.

Civil Society and Advocacy

The primary cannabis advocacy organisation in Indonesia is Lingkar Ganja Nusantara (LGN, Circle of Cannabis Archipelago), which evolved from the Dukung Legalisasi Ganja (DLG) social media campaign launched in 2007. LGN has documented traditional and cultural contexts of cannabis across Indonesia and in 2015 established a research body, Yayasan Sativa Nusantara (YSN, Sativa Nusantara Foundation), which obtained the first government license to legally conduct scientific research on the cannabis plant in Indonesia. LGN also published Hikayat Pohon Ganja: 12,000 tahun menyuburkan peradaban manusia (The Tale of the Cannabis Tree: 12,000 years enriching human civilization), a foundational text on Indonesian cannabis culture and history.

The Indonesian Drug Users' Network (PKNI) has provided legal advocacy for arrested cannabis users and documented the systematic ways in which the law's ambiguous language is used to reclassify users as dealers, exposing them to dramatically heavier sentences.

Known Varieties and Accessions

Name	Region	Status	Notes
Aceh	Aceh Province	Endangered	Primary documented landrace; multiple highland districts; main national supply source
Lake Toba / Elephant	North Sumatra	Unknown	Distinctive leaf morphology reported; provenance uncertain in circulating material
Dwarf Sumatran	North Sumatra	Unknown	Compact phenotype from coffee-field intercrop context; may not be distinct variety
Ginji Papoua	Maluku/Papua (historical)	Historical	Documented by Rumphius c. 1690; relationship to modern Papuan populations unknown
Papua Highland	Papua Provinces	Unknown	Essentially undocumented; field survey required
Bengkulu	West Sumatra	Unknown	Reported commercial cultivation; no morphological documentation
Lampung	Lampung Province	Unknown	Reported commercial cultivation; no morphological documentation

Conservation Status

The overall conservation status for Indonesian landrace cannabis is assessed as Endangered. The concentration of traditional cultivation in Aceh — a single province subject to intensive enforcement since the post-GAM conflict consolidation of state control — represents a critical structural vulnerability. The Lake Toba populations are less well-documented but face analogous pressures. Papua represents an essentially unassessed potential reservoir.

Immediate conservation priorities include:

• Field survey and morphological documentation of Acehnese highland populations across multiple districts
• Genetic sampling and characterization of Toba-area populations, with particular attention to the reported "Elephant" phenotype
• Initiation of ex situ seed preservation through partnership with established gene bank institutions
• Documentation of traditional cultivation knowledge, including the Acehnese culinary, medicinal, and agricultural intercropping practices, before further generational loss
• Investigation of Papuan populations and their potential relationship to Rumphius's Ginji Papoua description

Further Reading

• Rumphius, G.E. (1741). Herbarium Amboinense. Amsterdam. See wiki article.
• Boorsma, W.G. (1892). Eenige bijzonderheden omtrent cannabis sativa, var. indica. Teysmannia, III, pp. 792–799.
• Boorsma, W.G. (1917). Pharmacologisch laboratorium. Jaarboek van het departement van landbouw, nijverheid en handel 1915. Batavia: Landsdrukkerij, pp. 21–29.
• Boorsma, W.G. (1918). Over het voorkomen en het gebruik van Indische hennep in Ned.-Indië. Teysmannia, VI, pp. 324–334.
• Putri, D. and Blickman, T. (2016). Cannabis in Indonesia: Patterns in consumption, production, and policies. Drug Policy Briefing, No. 44. Amsterdam: Transnational Institute.
• Schulze, K.E. (2004). The Free Aceh Movement (GAM): Anatomy of a separatist organization. Policy Studies, No. 2. Washington: East-West Center.
• Heyne, K. (1916). De nuttige planten van Nederlandsch-Indië. Batavia: Ruygrok & Co.
• Cribb, R. and Kahin, A. (2004). Historical Dictionary of Indonesia. Scarecrow Press.
• Lingkar Ganja Nusantara (2012). Hikayat Pohon Ganja: 12,000 tahun menyuburkan peradaban manusia. Jakarta: LGN.

See Also

• Southeast Asia — Regional overview
• Herbarium Amboinense — Primary historical source
• Ginji Papoua — Rumphius's Papuan cannabis entry
• Aceh — Province-level article
• Lake Toba — Growing area article
• Indonesia/Accessions — Accession database subpage
• Portal:Current Events — Enforcement monitoring

Indonesia Southeast Asian Endangered Southeast Asia Indonesian Illegal 2 Herbarium Amboinense Putri & Blickman 2016