Indonesia threatens to ban Leonardo DiCaprio over palm oil posts on Instagram

Hollywood superstar Leonardo DiCaprio is facing a ban from Indonesia after he posted critical comments about the controversial palm oil industry to Instagram. The Revenant actor was on a visit to the Gunung Leuser National Park in Aceh, when he criticised the clearing of rainforests for palm oil plantations.

During the trip he announced plans by the Leonardo DiCaprio Foundation's to create a "mega-fauna sanctuary" in the Leuser rainforest ecosystem, in the Sumatran national park. In recent years the park has seen palm oil plantations built, mining, and logging which have reduced populations of Sumatran elephants, orangutans, rhinos and tigers.

"The expansion of Palm Oil plantations is fragmenting the #forest and cutting off key elephant migratory corridors, making it more difficult for elephant families to find adequate sources of food and water," wrote DiCaprio in his post.

But the post could be construed as "incitement" according to one official. Heru Santoso, a spokesperson for the director general of immigration department, told the BBC: ''In terms of [his] visa and immigration permit, Leonardo DiCaprio did not do anything wrong: He entered and left Indonesia legally. But, we still investigate.

"If DiCaprio's posting in his social media can be categorised as incitement or provocation, we can blacklist him from coming back to Indonesia."

Possibly aggravating the government, he later posted to Twitter a petition addressed to the Indonesian President Joko Widodo, calling for the area to be protected. Some ministers have accused DiCaprio of starting a "black campaign" to discredit the Indonesian government.

Farwiza Farhan, chairperson of the group Forest, Nature and Environment of Aceh said: "He just gave his support. Tourists can come and speak their opinion. When Leo arrived in Medan he was shocked that the haze was so thick, he asked us: 'Is this smoke or clouds?'"

In 2013, Indiana Jones actor Harrison Ford was also threatened with deportation for "harassing state institutions" after he interviewed a forestry minister about illegal logging in the country. DiCaprio has thought to have already left Indonesia.