Students go on hunger strike to demand pulp mill closure
Apriadi Gunawan, The Jakarta Post, Medan, North Sumatra
Twenty-five students began a hunger strike on Monday during a rally in the grounds of the North Sumatra provincial council to demand the permanent closure of pulp and paper mill PT Toba Pulp Lestari (TPL), which they accuse of causing serious pollution.
The strike by the 25 university students from the People's Voice Alliance (ASURA) came as thousands of elementary and high school students in the North Sumatra regency of Porsea entered the second week of student strike.
Hunger strike coordinator Golap Silaban said the 25 students were demanding that Jakarta permanently shut or relocate TPL, formerly known as Inti Indorayon Utama.
He said the students, three of whom were women, came from Porsea, the regency protesters say is most affected by TPL's pollution.
He added the hunger strike was part of a series of protests against Jakarta's decision to reopen the pulp mill after it was closed down in response to local protests in 1999.
Last week, elementary and high school students from 21 schools in Porsea refused to attend school, defying police calls to give up the strike.
They pledged to continue the strike until Jakarta responded to their demands for TPL's closure. Local police have condemned their parents and teachers for backing the strike.
But the animosity toward TPL is deep rooted among many in Porsea, where some have lost their lives in clashes with TPL's security personnel.
Golap said local farmers and fisherfolk had seen their earnings decline due to pollution they said was caused by TPL.
"The people's economy is deteriorating as a result of poor harvests in terms of quality and quantity."
"People have suffered from various skin diseases, respiratory infections, the level of Toba lake has fallen drastically, and the fish population is depleted," he said.
Golap added that people living near the mill had also complained about the loud noise and foul odor emanating from the plant.
TPL however denied charges of causing massive environmental destruction. A 1994 environmental audit by Labat-Anderson had concluded that the company met all environmental standards and that its forestry operation posed a negligible pollution threat.
The company is a unit of the Radja Garuda Mas business group.
TPL began operating in June 1980, and has since been constantly criticized by locals complaining about the environmental destruction it was causing.
Its US$600 million timber estate and mills have an annual capacity of 180,000 metric tons of dissolved pulp and 60,000 tons of rayon.
The company's rayon plant has been mothballed since TPL suspended operations in 1999.
The pulp and paper mills resumed operating last month but at less-then-full capacity.
TPL was allowed to reopen after it promised to further tighten its environmental compliance, and improve its community development programs so as to better ties with local residents.