Pollution haunts villagers' livelihood

Pollution haunts villagers' livelihood

JAKARTA (JP): Farmers and fishermen of a village in
Pekalongan, Central Java, reported yesterday that toxic
industrial waste from factories has threatened their livelihood.

Speaking at the Indonesian Center for Environmental Law (ICEL)
office, residents of the Setono-Dekono village in East Pekalongan
said 16 factories along the Banger river have been dumping their
toxic waste into the river for the past 10 years.

They identified the companies as PT Coyo, Bihun Kupu, PT Asia
Arben Kencana, PT Gajah Kembar, PT Sinar Jaya, PT. Kesmatex II
and III, CV. Ezritex, PT. Bintang Triputratex, Batik Sido Mukti,
PT. Faristex, Printing Abdullah, Printing Badrudin, Printing
Seruni, PT Kesmatex Mandiri and Ipal Bersama.

They said waste from the factories, mostly textile, have
caused them to lose their main sources of income, supplies of
fresh and clean water and have expose them to various diseases.

Desperate efforts to voice their grievances, they said, were
addressed to the legislative council in 1995 but to date, to no
avail.

"Suffering has driven us to find ways to the National
Commission on Human Rights, ICEL, and the Environmental Impact
Agency in Jakarta to seek help," said Daryono, one of the
delegates.

The 11-member delegation, representing about 240 families,
filed a complaint Thursday with the rights commission over
intimidation action by local security officers.

"Pak Asmara Nababan has guaranteed us that he would report
those intimidators directly to Pak Feisal Tanjung only if we
could identify the perpetrators," Daryono said, referring to a
commission member and the Armed Forces chief.

Ismar, a fisherman, said that he used to catch almost two
kilograms of lobsters per night before the river was polluted.

"Now, there are no fish or lobsters left to catch," he said.

In 1994, he said, he had nine goats. But after feeding them
grass cut from near the river, his goats got sick and died a few
days later.

Ismar added that he could no longer use water from his
4-meter-deep well but had to deepen it by two meters to get clean
water.

"Ibu Sopuan, in the past two years, has had to walk some 100
meters to get clear water," Ismar said, pointing at his fellow
villager who came to Jakarta with her 4-year-old daughter.

Rapi'i, 73, told the press that his feet have been infected
with a skin disease for seven years.

Many residents in his village also suffered the same disease,
he said.

Another resident, a farmer, said they have lost several
hectares of paddy field because they can no longer be cultivated.

"Even cash crops along the river near their village have
produced poisonous fruit," he said, showing a blackened banana.

The residents said they asked the government and factories to
restore the river's condition and compensate them for the losses
they have suffered all these years.

Sulaiman M. Sembiring of ICEL, who was accompanying the
Setono-Dekono residents, said he wondered why the local
administration had not taken any legal measures against the
alleged polluters.

"According to a 1990 government regulation, the local
administration is authorized to take legal actions against
polluters," he said, referring to Government Regulation No. 20 on
water pollution control.

Sulaiman said the Environmental Impact Agency has planned for
the residents to meet today with their mayor, Samsudiat, in
Pekalongan. (aan)