Govt rejects mutton donated by S. Arabia

Govt rejects mutton donated by S. Arabia

SURABAYA (JP): East Java Governor Imam Utomo stuck to his
stance over the 80 tons of mutton donated by the Saudi Arabian
government for Madurese refugees that the meat could be accepted.

"It's up to the central government and the Saudi Arabian
Embassy in Jakarta what they decide to do with the meat. It was
the Ministry of Agriculture which rejected the mutton over fears
the meat may have been contaminated by foot and mouth disease.
East Java was just supposed to be the recipient."

East Java, including the island of Madura, is now home to some
120,000 Madurese people, who fled their homes in Sampit, Central
Kalimantan and Sambas in West Kalimantan following ethnic clashes
in 1999 and 2001.

The mutton which arrived at the Surabaya port, Tanjung Perak,
11 days ago, is now being kept at the temporary container port
(TPS). The Saudi Arabian government had sent the mutton without
informing the provincial government.

The provincial administration declined to accept the mutton
when it arrived at the port. The port management PT Pelindo III
said they knew nothing about the mutton.

Asked if clinical tests were needed to examine the mutton,
Imam just said, "It depends on the government. I was informed
that Saudi Arabia will reexport the meat."

In a related development, the head of the provincial husbandry
office, Sigit Hanggono, said that the province's decision to
reject the mutton was based on a letter from Minister of
Agriculture Bungaran Saragih. The letter, quoting the
International Animal Health Organization (OIE), said that during
this year's haj pilgrimage two dangerous cattle diseases, foot
and mouth disease and valley fever, were found in Saudi Arabia.

Hanggono also said that Indonesia, which had been free from
the disease since 1983, was determined to maintain its
reputation. "We don't want to risk our reputation."

Six Saudi Arabian Embassy's staff, led by Ahmad AM Alamoude
clarified the status of the mutton with the provincial
legislative council and East Java Deputy Governor Imam Supardi.

Alamoude, accompanied by a virologist from the Bogor Institute
of Agriculture (IPB), insisted that the mutton was not
contaminated by any hazardous virus. (nur/sur)