Campaigners call on House to back atomic power plant

JAKARTA (JP): Nuclear campaigners are calling on the House of Representatives to support a bill which, if passed, will provide legal grounds for the construction of nuclear power plants.

Members of the Indonesian Nuclear Society (Himni) urged the House to disregard ongoing controversies on the planned construction of a nuclear power plant in Gunung Muria in Central Java.

Chairman Amiruddin said in a hearing with House Commission X, which oversees research and technology, that the bill is badly needed. The meeting was presided over by Suratman of the Armed Forces (ABRI) faction.

If passed, the government-sponsored bill, submitted to the House in January, would replace the 1964 law on atomic energy, which is considered no longer able to keep up with current conditions in the field of nuclear power.

State Minister of Research and Technology B.J. Habibie is scheduled to explain the government's view on the bill before the House's plenary session today.

Amiruddin, who is also vice chairman of the People's Consultative Assembly, pointed out a number of articles in the 1964 law which should be amended by the bill.

The law, for instance, has no ruling on nuclear power plants, he said. In addition, it rules that the National Atomic Energy Agency (BATAN) is in charge of both managing and supervising the use of atomic energy.

The ruling, he argued, is against the 1994 International Convention on Nuclear Safety, which stipulates that the two functions -- management and supervision -- be handled by separate agencies.

The association, whose members comprise scientists, legislators and BATAN employees, was set up in 1995 to campaign for nuclear power. It openly expressed its support yesterday for the government's plan to build the nuclear power plant in Central Java by 2000.

Association member Suyitno said the nuclear power plant is needed to satisfy industrial electricity demands, especially in Java and Bali, which other power plants have failed to adequately meet.

Critics have said the bill was introduced only to provide legal grounds for the planned nuclear power plant.

The controversial bill also strives to include private sectors and foreign countries in the plant's construction.

Canada is the first country to offer its expertise and investment to contribute to Indonesia's nuclear program. Prime Minister Jean Chretien discussed the idea with President Soeharto during his visit to Indonesia, five days before the bill was received by the House. (01)