Ary Hermawan, Jakarta – Environmental activists poured some 700 kilograms of toxic mud outside the office of welfare minister Aburizal Bakrie on Wednesday to protest the government's handling of the Sidoarjo mudflow disaster.

The mud was brought from Sidoarjo, East Java, where sludge has been gushing since May 29 from a gas drilling site owned by Lapindo Brantas Inc., which is linked to Aburizal's family. Protesters from Greenpeace Southeast Asia demanded that Lapindo take full responsibility for the disaster.

"It is utterly shameless for the minister to distance himself from the disaster when his corporate group owns the controlling shares in this operation," Greenpeace Southeast Asia executive director Emmy Hafild said at the rally.

The activists staged a silent protest, holding posters that read "Stop your mud Mr. Bakrie or your mud will stop you!"

Police arrived at the scene but did not prevent the protesters from pouring the blackish-gray mud at the gate of Aburizal's office. No-one from the welfare ministry came out to talk with the activists.

Greenpeace said it could not offer any solutions to the mudflow problem, but said the handling of the disaster should focus on evacuating residents from nearby areas. "We can't do anything about it. We're not experts," Emmy said.

Greenpeace said it did not oppose the government's plan to dump muddy water into the sea and the Porong river, despite fears that this would pollute the ocean. The environmental group said dumping untreated mud and water into the aquatic environment is "a regrettable outcome arising from a very desperate situation".

Emmy argued that the social problems arising from the tragedy were more urgent than the environmental damage. Others felt the mudflow itself should be the top priority. "All attempts now must be focused on how to stop the mud," said Nur Hidayati, another Greenpeace activist.

Emmy said the government should force the Aburizal family or Lapindo to pay all the costs for evacuation, compensation, containment and rehabilitation associated with the disaster.

"Taxpayers' money must not be used to deal with the disaster, which was caused by one of the largest industrial conglomerates in Indonesia," she said. "We demand corporate responsibility."

Aburizal, who is one of the country's wealthiest businessmen, has been quoted as saying the mudflow was not his responsibility. Lapindo, in which the Bakrie Group has a controlling stake, has made payments to those left homeless by the disaster and is building an ever-expanding network of dams in an effort to contain the mud.