Land dispute shuts Newmont operation
Land dispute shuts Newmont operation
JAKARTA (JP): PT Newmont Minahasa Raya, a subsidiary of the
United States-based Newmont Corp., shut down on Friday its mining
operation in Ratatotok village, North Sulawesi, for the fourth
time this year over a land dispute with locals.
Newmont said that on Thursday night 15 people entered its
mining site, forcing the company to suspend operations.
"The situation is extremely frustrating because this handful
of claimants is in no way reflective of the perception of the
other ex-landowners," Newmont president Richard Ness said in a
press release.
The company halted its operations several times in June when
former landowners of its mining area blocked the access road to
the gold mine.
Newmont said at the time the locals' claims dated back to the
early 1990s. The company then negotiated a deal with some 400
former landowners and had since resumed its operations.
"From nearly 400 land purchase cases, only a dozen have made
any claim whatsoever that the process was unfair," Ness went on.
According to him, a review based on thousands of pages of
documents had failed to come up with any evidence of wrongdoing
or unfair treatment during the negotiation process.
He said that efforts to bring the protesters to the
negotiating table had failed, adding that the company would let
the police handle the matter.
Newmont said it was informed by the police that arrests would
be made as the closure of the mine by the protesters was illegal.
"Four times this same group has resorted to breaking the law
and infringing on the rights of the company and community," Ness
said.
Indonesia's mining industry has faced continued run-ins with
local residents and administrations in disputes ranging from land
compensation payments and human rights violations to tax payments
and environmental issues.
Earlier this year, Newmont faced a order issued by the Tondano
District Court to close its mine after the local administration
charged the company with failing to pay taxes on overburden.
The dispute between Newmont and the local administration led
the central government to intervene, although to no avail.
The Supreme Court eventually stepped in to strike down the
closure order.
The company later admitted to having failed to pay Rp 550
million (about US$61,000) in taxes, and agreed to pay this amount
as well as donating $2.4 million for community development
programs.
Newmont Minahasa, which is 80 percent owned by the Denver-
based Newmont Corporation, produced 344,000 troy ounces of gold
in 1999. It expects to increase its gold production to 350,000
troy ounces this year. (bkm)