RI must learn from Busang issue: Amien

YOGYAKARTA (JP): Moslem scholar Amien Rais has said that Indonesians had to control, guide and supervise the exploitation of their country's natural resources.

"The Busang case should serve as a moral lesson for us," he told reporters on Wednesday.

"Since the beginning, I've said that it (the mining project) should be handled in an open and transparent manner. Some people misunderstood me. Now what I'd been afraid of has become a reality."

Amien was commenting on the announcement that the Busang site in East Kalimantan contained less than the estimated gold reserves.

"How is it possible for a government with a population of 200 million people to be so easily duped by an insignificant Canadian company like Bre-X?," he said.

Amien, a lecturer of political science at Gadjah Mada University, said earlier that the Busang project and the operations of the American mining giant, through Freeport Indonesia, in Irian Jaya were unconstitutional because they defrauded Indonesians of a fair share of the profits.

Amien, who chairs the 28 million-strong Moslem organization Muhammadiyah, called on the government to provide a transparent report to the public about the Busang gold mining investment.

He said it was possible that Bre-X had manipulated data on the Busang gold reserve to raise its share price on the New York Stock Exchange.

"What's more disappointing is that the government, because it did not exert itself from the beginning, failed to lead, develop and supervise Busang's entire mining project," he said, adding that the blunder had adversely affected Indonesia's image.

But he said, "What's done is done. Even though this stance may be seen naive and fatalistic, but I am aware that my statement is realistic in the Indonesian context as all of us face the strength of an economic and political network beyond the general public's grasp."

He stressed that, based on the 1945 Constitution, Indonesians had to have 100 percent moral courage to control, develop and monitor the country's natural wealth.

"We must focus on prioritizing the needs of our country and people rather than the interests of a small, powerful few among us so that the Busang case does not repeat itself," he said.

Amien said the Busang gold project proved there was collusion and conspiracy among groups that sought the biggest profits in the deal.

"It's time for us to learn from this episode as our country still has tens of mines that I sincerely hope do not become another Busang whether in Kalimantan or another island," he said. (23/01)