Gus Dur supports plan to legalize illegal miners

President Abdurrahman Wahid has supported the plan of the Ministry of Mines and Energy to legalize the rampant operation of illegal miners in the country, Detik.com reported on Wednesday.

The President's support was made during a weekly economic meeting on Monday evening. Several other economic issues were also discussed during the meeting, which was led by the President himself.

Abdurrahman, more popularly called Gus Dur, said that legalizing the illegal mining activities mostly carried out by individuals and small-scale companies would help reduce conflicts between the local communities and mining companies.

The President said that all members of the society have the rights to take an active role in all economic activities including in the mining sector as long as they followed the existing procedures and regulations.

According to Minister of Mines and Energy Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono, the state suffers trillion of rupiah a year due to the illegal mining activities. (*)