Mining body calls for policy reforms

Mining body calls for policy reforms

JAKARTA (JP): The Association of Indonesian Mining
Professionals (Perhapi) has called for reforms to mining policy
to give greater benefits to the public.

Association chairman Herman Afif Kusumo said on Monday that
the 1967 mining law should be revamped in line with the spirit of
the new economic policy set out recently by the Special Session
of the People's Consultative Assembly (MPR).

"The mining law should be revamped in line with public demand
for reform in all sectors," Herman said.

Herman also called on the government to review Govt.
Regulation No. 20/1994 on foreign investment, which allows
wholly-owned foreign investment in a number of sectors of the
economy, including mining, Herman said.

"The mining sector should be out of bounds for wholly foreign-
owned ventures," he said.

Herman said the new law should also emphasize the need for
sustainable development and environmental protection in mining
areas.

Mining activities in remote areas should be maintained for
longer periods of time to give greater benefits to local
communities and should play lead roles in development in these
areas, Herman said.

The new mining law should also oblige mining companies to take
measures to ensure that local economies can adapt to an end to
mining once mineral reserves have been exhausted. At present, he
said, withdrawal of mining ventures results in many settlements
becoming ghost towns.

"Alternative industries could be provided by following post-
mining programs to turn mining areas into industrial forests or
plantations," Herman said.

The new law should also oblige mining companies to protect the
environment and mete out criminal punishment for those which fail
to meet the obligations, he said.

In the new law, the government should also list "prime"
mineral resources which have priority for development, Herman
said.

Prioritizing mineral resources would help the government to
resolve disputes arising from overlapping land uses, he pointed
out.

The new law should also make sure that provincial governments
and local communities receive a fair share of earnings from local
mining activities.

He called on the government to merge supervision of the mining
sector with forestry and plantations under the auspices of a new
Ministry of Natural Resources, which he said would improve
coordination of land use planning.

Under the changes he proposed, directorates general
responsible for energy in the current Ministry of Mines and
Energy would become a separate entity in a new Ministry of Energy
set up to supervise the development of oil and gas resources.
(jsk)