Fishermen protest to Pertamina

CILACAP, Central Java: Hundreds of fishermen in Donan subdistrict here have protested to state oil company Pertamina for allegedly polluting the river from which they making their living.

The fishermen went to the local legislature to seek its support for their fight against Pertamina, which for some time has been dumping waste from its refinery in Cilacap into the Donan river.

"There's been a lot of fish killed due to the pollution. This is costing us our livelihoods," one of the fishermen said, adding that the river water had turned black and turbid.

The legislative council speaker, Fran Lukman, promised to summon Pertamina officials for a dialog with the fishermen.

A spokesman for the oil company, Husni Banser, told The Jakarta Post on Monday that Pertamina had taken measures recommeded by environmental experts to keep the river clean.

"But we will take into consideration the fishermen's complaints," he said. -- JP