This is my first blog on the Buyat case in nearly a year—the last one was on 18-Dec-2007 when the South Jakarta Court ruled in favor of Newmont in the civil suit filed by WALHI. With favorable rulings for my Dad and Newmont in Manado High Court and South Jakarta Court, we had hoped that Buyat controversy would come to a decisive close. But recently there are some murmurs in the halls of Indonesia’s Supreme Court, where the appeal against Manado High Court’s ruling has rapidly progressed to the top of the pile of pending cases.

While the Supreme Court is reviewing the appeal, the Independent Scientific Panel (ISP), which was created as part of the Goodwill Agreement between the Government of Indonesia (GOI) and Newmont to do long-term monitoring at Buyat Bay, has released the findings of its first round of monitoring for the year 2007, and their conclusion once again establishes that Buyat Bay is clean and its fish are fit for human consumption. The executive summary released by ISP, stated that:

…it can be readily concluded that the Buyat Bay and Buyat area communities have levels for which there is no possibility of mercury- or arsenic-related illnesses to have occurred either in 2005 or in the PT Newmont Minahasa Raya’s mining period between 1996 – 2004.
[Download Exec Summary]

In yet another decisive court ruling handed down by the South Jakarta District Court, the judges have vindicated my Dad and Newmont of any wrong doing. This verdict resonates perfectly with the ruling in the criminal case by the Manado High Court, thereby reaffirming once again that Buyat Bay is clean.

While the latest verdict brings one more chapter of the Buyat Bay hoax to an end, it should mark the beginning of serious soul-searching for WALHI. Most importantly, it raises questions about Chalid Mohammed and his leadership of WALHI.

By now it is commonly known that Newmont followed all the regulations and there are irrefutable scientific facts that show that Buyat Bay is clean. Prominent evidence that supported these conclusions included Government of Indonesia’s own reports and testimonies as well as the findings of researchers from the World Health Organization, CSIRO-Australia and other academicians from Indonesia’s universities.

Earlier this week the Australian chapter of Friends of the Earth posted a statement on their website in response to comments made by Australian Senator Ian Macdonald. The press release stated the following:

National environmental organisation, Friends of the Earth (FoE) Australia, has responded angrily to a statement made in the Senate by Ian Macdonald implying that its sister organisation, WALHI/ Friends of the Earth Indonesia is linked to terrorists.

"Today’s statement by Senator Macdonald is scandalously and recklessly incorrect" said Cam Walker, FoE Australia. [link]

Senator Ian Macdonald earlier in the day on the Senate floor stated the following:

Interestingly, WALHI appears to have now been joined by radical Islamic groups in its campaign against the US mining giant, Newmont. A photograph— which I could perhaps table if the Senate were interested—recently featured in the Indonesian press shows Abu Bakar Bashir, the spiritual leader of Jemaah Islamiah, flanked by Muhammad Al Khaththah, the leader of the Indonesian chapter of Hizb ut-Tahrir, attacking Newmont’s environmental record. I also note an article from the Straits Times of 22 April 2006 which states:

The head of Walhi [Chalid Muhammad], the main environmental group, is also a member of Hizbut Tahrir, a hardline Muslim group which emerged over the past year, and which has been famously described as being a ‘conveyor belt for terrorists’. Although the group claims to be non-violent, the Walhi chairman took part in recent violent demonstrations outside the US embassy, wearing full Islamic robes. [link]

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