Lousiana district court denies Freeport motion
Lousiana district court denies Freeport motion
JAKARTA (JP): A motion by Freeport-McMoran Inc. to have a
lawsuit filed by an Irianese tribal leader dismissed was denied
by a district court of Louisiana, New Orleans, last week.
A transcript of the court's ruling, made available by the
plaintiff's American lawyers, said the court had found that the
plaintiff, Tom Beanal of the Amungme tribe, wished to continue
his law suit.
"Accordingly, this court will not dismiss the instant suit,"
said the court's minutes signed on July 2.
The court however ordered that attorney Martin E. Regan pay
Freeport $1,000 for misrepresenting Beanal.
"It does not serve...to punish the client because of the
actions of his attorney. It would be unduly unfair to Beanal to
dismiss the suit especially in light of his desire to continue
the suit, both at the deposition and at the hearing," the court
said.
Beanal's lawsuit, filed in April, lists Freeport-McMoran Inc.
and its mining affiliate, Freeport-McMoran Copper and Gold Inc.
of New Orleans, as the defendants. They are the holding companies
of PT Freeport Indonesia, which manages huge and highly
profitable copper and gold mines in Irian Jaya.
The suit claims that Freeport engaged in "eco-terrorism",
"cultural genocide", corporate policies that led to violations of
the tribes' human rights and destruction of the resources
necessary for their survival.
In early May, Beanal ordered Regan to withdraw the suit.
Later, he insisted that it was always his intention to continue
the legal action.
The suit was subsequently filed again in May, prompting
Freeport's motion for a dismissal and sanctions against Beanal's
lawyer for misrepresentation.
Beanal gave a deposition in Jakarta and then testified in the
Louisiana court in May.
The court found that Regan had attempted to obstruct Beanal's
deposition by misrepresenting certain facts.
One misrepresentation was when the attorney cited "illusory
safety concerns" in an attempt to prevent or delay Beanal's
deposition. "These same safety concerns do not seem to be shared
by Beanal," the court said.
Freeport Indonesia is 82-percent owned by Freeport-McMoran
Copper and Gold Inc. The Indonesian government and a private
company, PT Indocopper Investama, own 9 percent each. (emb)