Bomb explosion hits Newmont's office in Lombok<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): A bomb exploded Friday morning at the office of
\ncopper and gold mining company PT Newmont Nusa Tenggara in the
\nWest Nusa Tenggara provincial capital of Mataram on the island of
\nLombok.<\/p>\n
Company spokesperson Iradati Fuad said the explosive, which
\nappeared to be a "small" one, went off at 3.40 a.m. behind the
\nMataram office, causing minor damage to the premises.<\/p>\n
No casualties were reported as the 54 employees stationed at
\nthe office were at home, except for the security guards, Iradati
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
She said the police have been investigating the case and
\nNewmont has told its 54 employees to stay home until the police
\ndeclared the office safe for them to resume activities.<\/p>\n
She said Newmont's copper and gold mining operation in the
\nBatu Hijau area on the island of Sumbawa ran normally despite the
\nincident.<\/p>\n
"There is no special instruction to step up security at the
\nmine following the incident. Security at the mine is as tight as
\nusual," she said.<\/p>\n
The bomb blast took place after a series of bomb blasts rocked
\nthe country, especially Jakarta, killing dozens of people.<\/p>\n
The most fatal incident happened mid September when a bomb
\nexploded in the basement of the Jakarta Stock Exchange building,
\nkilling 11 people. The police had arrested dozens of people
\nsuspected of being involved in the bombing.<\/p>\n
Antara reported the bomb explosion was audible up to a
\ndistance of one kilometer and caused a half-meter-wide hole in
\nthe building.<\/p>\n
Speaker of the province's council HL Srinate speculated that
\nthe bomb had been probably placed by people who were disappointed
\nby what they saw as the small contribution of the company to the
\npromotion of the welfare of the local people.<\/p>\n
"But this is only speculation," Srinate was quoted by the news
\nagency as saying.<\/p>\n
He said many locals had high hopes that the presence of the
\ncompany would bring them a lot of benefit but the company did not
\nmeet their expectations.<\/p>\n
"The people hope with the presence of the company, the roads
\nwill be improved. As it turned out, the condition of the existing
\nroads has worsened because of the company's heavy equipment and
\nfully-loaded vehicles," the council's speaker said.<\/p>\n
He said the council had once proposed that the company build a
\nspecial port near the mine so that the local people could benefit
\nfrom its presence by opening small shops at the port.<\/p>\n
The company however turned down the proposal, he said.<\/p>\n
He also said the public had been initially informed that the
\nmine mostly contained gold, but now the company has been
\nspreading information that the mine contains more copper than
\ngold.<\/p>\n
"We believe the information, because we are stupid. We don't
\nknow precisely whether the mine contains gold, or even uranium,"
\nSrinate said.<\/p>\n
Srinate said he personally preferred to delay the development
\nof the Batu Hijau mine until the Indonesian people were skilled
\nenough to develop it themselves.<\/p>\n
Srinate said he could understand that the locals, especially
\nthose living outside the "mine circle", had accumulated
\ndisappointment over Newmont's presence and often staged protests
\nagainst the company.<\/p>\n
Newmont has given priority to those living inside the "mine
\ncircle", meaning around the mine, in its recruitment and
\ncommunity development program. (jsk)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/bomb-explosion-hits-newmonts-office-in-lombok-1447893297",
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"sponsor": "Okusi Associates",
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