Govt appeals against court decision on Newmont case

The state ministry on environmental affairs has formally submitted an appeal against South Jakarta district court's decision, which dropped the former's civil lawsuit against mining firm PT Newmont Minahasa Raya (NMR), Kompas reported on Monday.

Agung Santoso, a senior official at the Supreme Court said last week that the government rejected to the court's decision requiring the government to settle the legal dispute with Minahasa-based mining company through an international arbitration.

Agung said that the Supreme Court would soon process the appeal so that the government would get a legal certainty over the South Jakarta's court decision on its US$133.6 million legal suit.

The South Jakarta court dropped a civil suit filed by the state minister for environmental affairs recently against Newmont Minahasa Raya, saying the case should be taken to international arbitration.

The court said that the dispute between the government and the mining company should be settled through negotiation or be brought to international arbitration as stated in the contract signed with the company.

The government filed a US$133.6 million civil suit against Newmont last year, accusing the company of causing environmental pollution in its gold mining site in Minahasa, North Sulawesi. (*)