Ina Parlina, Jakarta – The Constitutional Court has ordered the government to force PT Lapindo Berantas to complete the payment of compensation to victims of the notorious mudflow incident in Porong, Sidoarjo.

"The bench has laid a strong legal foundation for the government to force Lapindo by any means to carry out its responsibility [to pay the compensation] to those people living within [areas on] the map of affected areas," chief justice Hamdan Zoelva told a press conference on Friday.

The press conference was made following what Hamdan deemed as "misunderstanding and deliberate incorrect understanding" of the ruling. Some people, including victims, understood that the payments were to be made by the government using the state budget.

Last week, the court ruled that "the state, with its powers, should be able to guarantee and ensure the payment of the compensation to the community in [...] the affected areas [...] by the company responsible for it".

There are reportedly two ways in which compensation will be paid. Lapindo should pay the victims within affected areas as outlined on the map, while the government is responsible for those people outside those areas.

The ruling was made in favor of six plaintiffs who are victims of the mudflow and have yet to receive full compensation from the company, while the others outside the area received funds from the government.

However, Hamdan refused to explain what kind of forcible measures the government should use if Lapindo declared it was not yet able to pay the compensation.

"It is not our decision, but the government's," he said. "The government now has a strong legal basis to do it, and people's rights must not be ignored. They deserve justice just like those who received payment from the state budget."

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2014/04/04/govt-ordered-force-lapindo-pay-compensation.html