NMR-Buyat Bay capers continue

Tony Hotland and Fabiola Desy Unidjaja, The Jakarta Post/Jakarta

The government's advice to the people of Buyat village in North Sulawesi to reduce their consumption of fish and water from Buyat Bay has apparently fallen on deaf ears, with local people saying they have no alternative.

"We have no choice. Clean water is limited and fishing has been our safety net. Support from the government is barely visible and we can do nothing else but to consume what we have ... contaminated water and fish," said Rasyid, a Buyat resident.

On Wednesday, along with three other Buyat residents, Rasyid had the chance to meet with State Minister for the Environment Rachmat Witoelar and Minister for Health Siti Fadillah Sapari, and shared with them what life has been like at the village since the residents accused gold miner PT Newmont Minahasa Raya (NMR), whose parent company is the U.S. Newmont Corporation, of polluting Buyat Bay with its mining tailings.

"Clean water that was once provided by Newmont, and which we also had to pay for, stopped coming. Water supplies from local agencies are unreliable, and we use it only for drinking purposes. So where's the support from the central government?" asked Rasyid.

In addition, he said access to health services had become more difficult as doctors at the nearest clinic, which was donated by NMR, were rarely present and medicines had become scarce, yet the number of residents suffering ailments continued to grow.

The Buyat Bay case hit the headlines several months ago when a number of Buyat residents claimed to be suffering various diseases allegedly caused by toxic tailings dumped into the bay by NMR since 1996.

Residents have reported a number of ailments such as skin lumps, continuous bleeding, and vomit containing blood, which they claim is the result of consuming fish and water from the bay.

Test results from a variety of different bodies have yielded a variety of results, however the government recently declared the bay to be polluted and accused NMR of being responsible. This followed a research report undertaken by a government-sanctioned team that asserted that the bay was polluted.

But despite the government's statement, the situation in Buyat has yet to change. "We still have to pay for health services even though the government has declared that we've been contaminated," said Rasyid.

Several activists, accompanying the four residents, claimed things had in fact got worse, with the local administration doubting the joint team's research results and refusing to provide better health services for the Buyat residents.

Health minister Siti responded by saying that the government would treat the situation as an "extraordinary event", meaning that the government would provide maximal funds and support to rehabilitate the area.

Siti ordered state-owned Kandouw Hospital in the regional capital of Manado not to charge a single rupiah to Buyat residents, and also promised to supply clean water to the area.

Elsewhere, Minister Rachmat said he had sent a team on Wednesday to evaluate Buyat Bay and its surrounding areas for relocation purposes. There are about 300 residents in Buyat.

"We plan a relocation, but it's still in its early stages. In the meantime, we're going ahead with our legal action to bring Newmont, and possibly former government officials, to court," he said.

Rachmat added that President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono supported the legal steps being taken and gave an assurance that the case would not affect badly-needed foreign investment, but rather would fortify Indonesia's reputation as an environmentally friendly nation.

Five high-ranking Newmont employees have been declared suspects in the alleged pollution case.

"We will press for criminal charges against the five employees and then move on with a civil law suit against the company," he said.