Stefanno Reinard Sulaiman, Jakarta – Publicly listed cement manufacturer PT Semen Indonesia (SI) said the company had fulfilled all of its operational requirements at its controversial cement factory in Rembang, Central Java, since last March despite a series of protests by locals over environmental issues.

SI corporate secretary Agung Wiharto said the company had obtained all permits to build the factory, including environmental ones. "Therefore, legally, no one can stop us now [from operating the plant]," he added after a shareholders meeting recently.

Agung said SI had been forced to delay the operation of the factory by two months early this year after the local government revoked their permit.

He added that the company had previously disbursed Rp 40 billion (US$2.8 million) for a corporate social responsibility program on education, health, farmers and the development of small and medium enterprises.

The long-running dispute over the cement factory in Rembang between the company and locals has festered for the past four years. The locals argued that the construction would compromise the quality of groundwater in the Kendeng karst mountain of Central Java.

A protest staged by farmers from Central Java last year made headlines around the world after they cemented their feet in concrete blocks in front of the State Palace in Jakarta. (dwa)

Source: http://www.thejakartapost.com/news/2018/05/01/no-one-can-stop-rembang-cement-factory-si.html