Activists ready to air Newmont concerns: Report
Wednesday, April 27 2005 - 06:44 AM WIB
But she doesn't want to meet Newmont executives. She wants to talk directly to Newmont shareholders during the company's annual meeting in downtown Denver today.
"We feel there won't be any progress if we talk with Newmont in meetings," the 31-year-old activist said Tuesday afternoon. "In previous meetings, they have shown no good will to solve the problem. We want the shareholders to know that Newmont makes profit at the cost of environment and sufferings of communities."
Newmont spokesman Doug Hock said the company is willing to listen to the concerns of local communities, but it is Hidayati's "right to (not meet Newmont) if she feels that way."
Hidayati is not alone. About a dozen activists from Ghana, Peru, Romania and Nevada have gathered in Denver to meet with Newmont officials and to make their voices heard at the shareholder meeting.
The groups from Peru and Nevada already held talks behind closed doors on Tuesday morning, while those from Ghana are scheduled to meet today.
Hidayati works with the Indonesian Forum for Environment, one of the environmental groups asking Newmont to stop dumping mining waste into marine waters. The method is permitted by the Indonesian government.
Five Newmont employees, including an American and an Australian citizen, were jailed last September after allegations that waste - containing high levels of arsenic and mercury - from the Minahasa mine had polluted nearby Buyat Bay.
Villagers say they have gotten sick from eating fish caught in the bay, although Newmont has cited several studies that have shown no contamination.
In December, the villagers dropped a $543 million lawsuit against Newmont saying they lacked proof to support their contention. A lead accuser also retracted her complaints.
However, the Indonesian government sued Newmont for $133 million and also is pursuing criminal cases against Newmont employees. (*)