Prosecutors claims to have strong case against Newmont
Prosecutors claims to have strong case against Newmont
Reuters, Manado
Prosecutors told the court in Manado on Tuesday they had a strong pollution case against U.S.-based Newmont Mining Corp. and would prove that its local unit and American chief had violated environmental laws.
At the last hearing on Aug. 19, lawyers representing Newmont, the world's biggest gold miner, urged the court to dismiss the case, saying the police investigation was flawed.
The charges relate to PT Newmont Minahasa Raya's tailings disposal processes, which allegedly involved dumping mercury and arsenic into Buyat Bay near a now-defunct mine in eastern Sulawesi region, causing health problems for villagers.
Newmont has denied the charges in a case that has drawn wide attention, including from investors and environmentalists in Southeast Asia's biggest economy, home to some of the world's largest deposits of tin, nickel, copper and gold.
Prosecutor Muthmainnah Umadji told a panel of five judges during the hearing in Manado that she would produce key witnesses to prove the case.
"We reject the objection from the (Newmont) lawyers. The case against PT Newmont Minahasa Raya and its president director is clearly legal, based on the environmental law," Umadji said.
The trial was adjourned until Sept. 20, when the court will decide if the trial should proceed or not, after hearing initial testimony from both sides but not witness statements.
Newmont has said the police investigation failed to include environmental experts and that evidence or testimonials favoring the firm were not included in the 72-page indictment.
The company's lawyers have also said there was no provision in Indonesian law that makes a local chief executive automatically responsible for corporate acts.
President Director Richard Ness, a 55-year-old Minnesota native, could face a jail sentence of up to 10 years and be fined around US$68,000 if convicted.
Newmont also faces a $133 million civil case over the alleged pollution.
The gold mine near Buyat Bay, 2,200 km northeast of Jakarta, opened in 1996 and closed in August 2004 due to depleted reserves.
Legal uncertainty, graft and bureaucracy are often cited as key reasons for sluggish foreign investment in the country.
Newmont's operations in Indonesia accounted for six percent of its global sales in 2004.
The company also operates Asia's second-largest copper mine, Batu Hijau, on eastern Sumbawa island, which produced 718 million pounds of copper and 719,000 ounces of gold last year. It has a mine life of 20 years.