Jakarta – One of Timika's native tribes, Amungme, filed a civil lawsuit with the South Jakarta District Court on Monday, against PT Freeport Indonesia for allegedly taking over their customary land for their main pit without paying compensation, the tribe's lawyer said.

"This one is about customary land acquired by Freeport and this is the first lawsuit. The next will be on human rights violation and financial dispute," lawyer Jhonson Panjaitan was quoted by kompas.com. He said the acquisition had not benefited the Amungmes.

Jhonson said there was an issue about the Amungmes getting 1 percent of profit after a riot in 2005. "But the funds would damage the social relations among the tribes, cause conflict and human rights violation."

Thus, Jhonson said, the Amungmes asked for material compensation of US$2.5 billion and immaterial compensation of $30 billion. The Amungmes filed the lawsuit at the district court because Freeport's headquarters is located in Kuningan, South Jakarta.