Newmont case resumes in Manado court
Jongker Rumteh, The Jakarta Post/Manado
The trial of a local subsidiary of U.S.-based Newmont Mining Corp resumed at the Manado District Court on Friday, with its American president director insisting the company had nothing to do with a baby's death after the tearful mother showed the court a photo of the girl.
In the trial, which examined three witnesses, 40-year-old Masna Stirman, who lived near the company's now closed mine, showed a photo of her baby, Andini, who died in July 2004 at the age of five months. However, neither Masna nor the prosecutors, could specify Andini's cause of death or attempt to link her illness to the mine.
"As a father, I can feel your suffering, but I personally don't see any connection with our tailings," Richard Ness told the court, as quoted by Reuters, using the technical term for mine waste.
Newmont stopped mining on Sulawesi two years ago after extracting all the gold it could. But it continued processing ore until August 2004, when the mine was permanently shut.
The charges put on trial relate to the company's tailings disposal processes, which allegedly involved dumping mercury and arsenic into Buyat Bay.
Newmont has denied the charges in a case that foreign investors mostly view as evidence of the legal uncertainty that exists in the country.
However, environmentalists see the case as a test case for the government, which has been accused of being lax in enforcing environmental laws, especially toward multinational companies due to its need for foreign investment.
In Friday's trial, the team of prosecutors questioned the witnesses about the level of pollution in Buyat River and surrounding Buyat Pante village.
Witness Marjan Ismail alleged that the river, which is the residents' main water source, had been contaminated by the company's tailings. "We used to take drinking water from the river but now we can't do it anymore because we will fell sick and dizzy after drinking it," Marjan said.
Last week, three villagers living close to the mine testified they had suffered from lumps and dizziness among other complaints. They did not, however, link their illnesses to Newmont's mine.
The company's lawyers, Luhut Pangaribuan and Palmer Situmorang, accused the prosecutors on Friday of diverting from the main charge.
"The main charge is about dumping the tailings in the sea but now the prosecutors shift the matter to (waste) in the river," Luhut said.
Presiding judge Ridwan Damanik decided that all -- both prosecutors and lawyers -- should go together to Buyat for direct observation.
"In order to get a clear picture (of the charges), we all need to observe Buyat Pante village later," Ridwan said.
Ness, who faces up to 10 years in prison and the company a US$68,000 fine if convicted, told the court he saw no connection between the witnesses' illnesses and the company's tailings.
He said the company had managed its waste according to international, environmental safety standards.
Prosecutor Purwanto declined to answer when asked whether medical experts planned to testify in the trial, and insisted that the charges against the company were strong.
"It all depends on what element of the indictment you are looking at," he said, without elaborating.
The case will continue next week to examine more witnesses.