Adisti Sukma Sawitri and Indra Harsaputra, Jakarta/Sidoarjo – Legal and environmental activists are threatening to take the government and Lapindo Brantas Inc. to court unless there is quick settlement of compensation for thousands of mudflow victims in Sidoarjo, East Java.
The Foundation of the Indonesian Legal Aid Institute (YLBHI) and Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) set a week's deadline for them to provide "concrete action", or they would sue.
The NGOs charge the government and the companies violated the environment law and the Criminal Code in handling the disaster, which began on May 29 and has yet to be brought under control.
It has submerged about 160 hectares of residential areas, factories and farmland in Porong district, displacing about 8,300 people. A study by Greenomics Indonesia estimated last month that the mudflow at the time had caused Rp 33 trillion (US$3.6 billion) in losses to local people and their environment.
"The government has to make sure that Lapindo as well as its parent companies compensate for the environmental damage and local people's losses, and never get help with the money from state coffers," said lawyer Taufik Basari of YLBHI.
In Padang, West Sumatra, Sonny Keraf, a former environmental minister and now deputy chairman of House Commission VII on mineral resources, demanded Lapindo pay compensation three to four times the nominal value of the damaged property. He also said they should pay nonmaterial losses. "And such losses may not be covered by the government using state money," Keraf told Antara newswire.
Lapindo is owned by PT Medco Indonesia (38 percent) and Santos Brantas Pty (12 percent), with the rest under PT Energi Mega Persada, controlled by the Bakrie Group. Nevertheless, Energi Mega Persada, which claims it has spent US$20 million to handle the calamity, is planning to sell its shares in Lapindo to an unnamed Bakrie unit.
Taufik also demanded an apology from Lapindo for its negligence in exploring the Banjarpanji-1 gas well. Police last week sealed off the site due to the risk of explosion from underground gases. They have questioned nine suspects, consisting of three Lapindo executives and six field operators, for negligence.
The company's management has been blamed for allegedly failing to install protective casing at the required depth during the drilling process.
Walhi's national coordinator Chalid Muhammad said that Lapindo and the government also had to improve transparency in handling the mudflow and providing compensation. "They have yet to do their utmost to stop the mudflow," he said.
Chalid said Lapindo, with the government's permission, had chosen to divert the mud to other areas, instead of attempting to permanently close the leak.
Meanwhile, the Sidoarjo administration continued Tuesday with its efforts to direct the mud to Kali Mati, Pasuruan regency. Sidoarjo regent Win Hendarso said it was an alternative strategy to reduce the volume of mud flowing around the gas well.
"We're doing this to prevent floods in the coming rainy season," he said, adding it would be processed into building material. The decision sparked more opposition from increasingly frustrated locals and activists.