Newmont Minahasa Raya ready to face the government's legal action
Wednesday, March 9 2005 - 03:37 AM WIB
The management of North Sulawesi-based gold mining company Newmont Minahasa Raya (NMR) has said that it is ready to face the legal action to be taken by the Indonesian government over the mining company's alleged failure to protect the environment, Investor Daily reported on Wednesday.
"Although we felt that the government's legal suit is baseless, as good citizens, we are ready to face the legal action," David Sompic, the company's spokesman said in Minahasa on Tuesday.
Meanwhile Newmont's lawyer Luhut M. Pangaribuan said his client had not been informed about the government's plan to take a legal action against the company.
The office of the state minister of environment said that it would file civil suit against Newmont Minahasa Raya (NMR) at the South Jakarta district court this week for causing a serious environmental problem, and will demand Rp 1.7 trillion in damages from the mining company.
The office of the state minister of environment said Newmont's undersea mining waste disposal in the Buyat bay, in North Sulawesi, had not only caused a serious damage in the environment but also had seriously affected the health and the economy of the people living near the Buyat bay. (*)