Prayitno: Walhi's lawsuit against Freeport no more than advocacy

The head of the House of Representatives' Commission VIII on mines and energy, Dr Irwan Prayitno, said that the lawsuit filed by the Indonesian Environmental Forum (Walhi) against Freeport was no more than an advocacy technique that benefits its own interests.

He noted that Walhi was not serious in its lawsuit, judging from its demand for Freeport to only make an apology to the public from its mistakes Walhi has listed in the lawsuits.

"Looking at the lawsuit, Walhi has only pursued its advocacy purposes to achieve its own goals outside the environmental issues," he said on Wednesday.

Irwan said that Walhi's lawsuit would not improve Freeport's environmental performance, but on the other hand would only downgrade the company's value and therefore, its stock prices would fall. Then, it would open an opportunities for those who want to increase their shares in Freeport to do so.

"So, I see Walhi's lawsuit as not an effort to improve the environment. From that lawsuit, it is very clear to me that there is another interest that it wants to achieve," Irwan said.

Walhi, in cooperation with other non-governmental legal organizations, has sued Freeport over the breakdown of its Wanagon tailing disposal site that claimed four lives, charging Freeport deliberately gave false and misleading information about the Wanagon accident and its environmental management in general.

Walhi demanded that Freeport made a public apology over what Walhi describes as Freeport's faults. (*)