Freeport denies human rights violations

The giant copper and gold mining operator PT Freeport Indonesia strongly denies reports on human rights violations against civilians amid the Indonesian government's plan to set up an independent commission to investigate its involvement, the Satunet.com reported on Friday.

Freeport's spokesman Bill Collier denied that his company is never involved in the human rights violations.

"From the five investigations on human rights violations done previously on Freeport's mining sites, none shows that Freeport was part of the violence incidents," Collier said in New Orleans.

Activists have frequently accused Freeport, a company, which is believed to have a close link with former president Soeharto, of providing facilities to the Indonesian military to crush Papuan rebels who want to separate from Indonesia.

Human Rights Affairs Minister Hasballah M Saad said in Jakarta on Thursday that the government will set up the new independent commission to start investigating the human rights violation incident in Irian Jaya on June, 2000.

"We will ask the commission to give official reports on the human rights violations, including (the actions allegedly done by) Freeport," Hasballah said.

Collier reiterated that Freeport pays much attention to the importance of upholding human rights. However, his company is ready to cooperate in the investigation, he said. (*)