British agro-group cries foul over court ruling<\/p>\n
Deutsche Presse-Agentur
\nJakarta<\/p>\n
In what has been hailed as yet another blow to foreign investor
\nconfidence in Indonesia's judicial system, a British agro-group
\nhas appealed a court ruling that deprived it of a US$3 million-
\nplantation, executives said on Tuesday.<\/p>\n
A senior executive of Rowe Evans, which runs 33,500 hectares
\nof rubber and palm oil plantations, employs 6,000 Indonesians and
\nboasts total investments worth US$80 million in the country, has
\nexpressed \"astonishment\" over a recent Medan District Court
\nruling that annulled its $2.3 million purchase of a plantation in
\nNorth Sumatra from a local politician named Rahmat Shah.<\/p>\n
The court ruled that Rowe Evans should return shares in the
\nplantation and its management back to Shah, overturning a
\ncontract signed between the buyer and seller in March, 2002.<\/p>\n
Shah was not ordered to immediately return the money to Rowe
\nEvans, the company's lawyer added.<\/p>\n
\"We were astonished and shocked and very concerned by the
\njudgment that was handed down by the district court in Medan,\"
\nsaid Philip Fletcher, executive chairman of Rowe Evans
\nInvestments Plc., which has been operating in Indonesia for the
\npast 100 years.<\/p>\n
\"There is no legal basis to overturn this agreement and we are
\nseeking the protection of the Indonesian legal system. We will be
\nrigorously appealing against this decision, and seeking the
\nassistance of the Indonesian government,\" Fletcher told a press
\nconference.<\/p>\n
The Medan court case follows fast of the heels of other
\ndubious court rulings by Indonesia's judicial system, deemed one
\nfor the world's most corrupt.<\/p>\n
Recent cases that have raised eyebrows include a bankruptcy
\nruling against Prudential Assurance, the local affiliate of a
\nBritish insurance group, and the annulment of a bond agreement
\nbetween Indonesian petrochemical company Tri Polyta and its
\nmostly foreign creditors.<\/p>\n
Indonesia has suffered a net outflow of foreign investment
\nsince 1997, when the Asian financial crisis hit the region, but
\nfrom which other countries have by now recovered.<\/p>\n
\"The rule of law is the number one issue as far as the foreign
\nbusiness community is concerned and it has been for some time.
\nUntil these sorts of problems can be fixed then I'm afraid
\ninvestment will continue to be slow to this country,\" said Gary
\nAndrews, executive director of British Chamber of Commerce.<\/p>",
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