Prosecutors confident of winning case against Newmont

Indonesian prosecutors say they believe they have a strong case against US mining giant Newmont, which is accused of dumping toxic waste into a bay on eastern Sulawesi island, the AFP reported on Tuesday.

Prosecutors are to present residents, allegedly sickened because of pollution from the Buyat Bay operation, as witnesses, said Herley Robert Ilat, a spokesman for the North Sulawesi province prosecutors office.

The state prosecutors on Monday filed charges against Newmont's Indonesian subsidiary Newmont Minahasa Raya and its American president director Richard Ness at a district court in the provincial capital Menado.

"The prosecution, on this case, possesses a strong belief of winning," said Ilat. "We will present people who have been afflicted by the pollution as witnesses to support our argument before the court.

"We will prove to the court that defendants named in our case, Newmont Minahasa Raya and its president director Richard Ness, have committed environmental pollution," he told AFP.

Indonesian police launched an investigation last year after claims Newmont had pumped toxic waste into the air and sea around its mine in Buyat Bay, causing neurological disorders and severe skin conditions to nearby residents. Ilat said the Menado district court had yet to appoint a panel of judges for the trial and set a date within two weeks.

If the trial goes ahead and Ness is convicted, he faces a maximum jail sentence of 15 years.

A spokesman for Newmont Minahasa Raya, Rubi Purnomo, said the company was "disappointed" with the submission of the charges to Menado court.

"We will try our hardest to defend our company and Mr. Richard Ness," Purnomo told AFP. "There have been more than 10 scientific studies that show that water in Buyat Bay is clean and sea products are safe to be consumed."

The government has also filed a civil lawsuit against Newmont, the world's biggest gold producer, seeking 1.24 trillion rupiah (130 million dollars) in damages -- although this is expected to be settled out of court.

Newmont's operations in Buyat, 1,500 miles (2,400 kilometers) northeast of Jakarta, ceased in August 2004, shortly before the first allegations of pollution emerged.

From the outset, Newmont has claimed it disposed of toxins safely and that levels of mercury and arsenic found around the mine were well within acceptable levels.

Studies of the waters around Buyat Bay have shown conflicting results. A World Health Organisation-backed report found no evidence of pollution, but government tests showed high levels of toxins.(*)