Nuclear plant should be built in Jakarta: Scholar
Nuclear plant should be built in Jakarta: Scholar
SEMARANG (JP): If officials in Jakarta consider that nuclear
power plants are really safe, then they should build one in the
Indonesian capital city, a vocal scholar believes.
Sociologist Arief Budiman hopped on the anti-nuclear bandwagon
on Saturday amidst growing speculation that the government was
about to make the final decision on whether or not to go nuclear.
"If the government (in Jakarta) is guaranteeing that a nuclear
power plant is safe, then why can't they build it in Jakarta?,"
Arief said.
National Atomic Agency Chief Djali Ahimsa, whose office is
leading the nuclear study, said the government is only looking at
one site for the country's first nuclear power plant, on Mt.
Muria in the Jepara regency, Central Java.
"Why must it be in Jepara. This is not fair to the people in
Jepara," Arief said. "What if it leaks, which is a possibility
given the work ethics of the Indonesian people?"
He pointed out that the plan has never been on the agenda of
the Central Java legislative council, which means that the
government had never consulted the local people on the issue.
Djali in the past two weeks has been making public statements
about the nuclear energy studies, and indicating that the
government would soon accept proposals from foreign contractors
to build a 1,800 MW nuclear power plant in Jepara.
His remarks were made although the government has not made the
final decision on whether or not to resort to nuclear energy, and
they raised speculation among anti-nuclear activists that the
decision has in fact already been made behind their backs.
President Soeharto himself has stated that Indonesia would
only resort to nuclear energy as a last resort.
Alternatives
This point was reiterated by Djali during a hearing with the
House of Representatives on Friday, but he said the other
alternatives such as wind power and solar energy would not be
able to meet Indonesia's energy demands, while large scale use of
coal is considered as too harmful to the environment.
To add fuel to its anti-nuclear campaign, the Indonesian Forum
for the Environment (Walhi) published on Friday a survey in which
it found that almost 80 percent of 1,000 people it interviewed
oppose nuclear power plants.
Arief noted that the government appeared to be trying to
monopolize the flow of information regarding its nuclear energy
plans, and silence its critics.
The government is showing complete disregard for the wishes of
the people, he said. It should be more honest and allow the
public complete access to information about nuclear energy.
"It is the people who should decide this issue," he said.
Arief said most advanced industrial countries are already
abandoning nuclear energy, including Canada.
"It's strange that Canada is making an offer. Their own people
have rejected nuclear power plants," he said. Canadian Prime
Minister Jean Chretien during his visit in Jakarta last month
offered Canadian technology to build the Indonesian nuclear
plant.
"What is clear from the various offers made by advanced
countries to build Indonesia's first nuclear power plant is that
it is a dirty business," Arief quipped. (har/emb)