Indonesian Green Groups Slam Newmont Judges

FROTH AND BUBBLE

The Newmont mine on Buyat Bay in Sulawesi, Indonesia. Head judge Ridwan Damanik told AFP Tuesday he and the other judges had considered all of the evidence during the 20-month trial before reaching their verdict. Meanwhile about 80 villagers, who say they developed illnesses from the waste, rallied outside the prosecutor's office in North Sulawesi, ElShinta radio reported. The lead prosecutor has said he plans to file an appeal against Tuesday's verdict within 14 days.

by Staff Writers
Jakarta (AFP) April 25, 2007
Indonesian environmentalists said Wednesday they will lodge complaints of bias against judges who cleared US mining giant Newmont this week of dumping tonnes of toxic waste. Chalid Muhammad, of the Friends of the Earth (Walhi), accused the five judges of siding with Newmont during a lengthy trial that was closely watched by foreign investors.

"It was obvious that the judges were on Newmont's side. Instead of using witnesses provided by prosecutors, the judges preferred to call on witnesses from Newmont," said Muhammad.

The judges found Newmont and one of its executives not guilty Tuesday of charges of pumping waste into Buyat Bay from its now defunct gold mine in Sulawesi.

It allegedly sickened villages and poisoned marine life.

The verdict was cheered by foreign investors and Newmont, which had always denied the charges, saying it disposed of toxins safely and that levels of mercury and arsenic were within acceptable levels.

Environmentalists had hoped the verdict would send a signal to companies operating in Indonesia amid increased environmental degradation.

They told a press conference in Jakarta that official complaints would be lodged with a Supreme Court body charged with overseeing judges' code of conduct and ethics.

"The judges are thought to have violated their code of conduct and ethics," Muhammad said.

"I am optimistic the body will take action against the judges," said environmental legal expert Mas Ahmad Santosa.

He added that the Supreme Court body has the authority to annul a verdict if it found evidence that judges were not impartial. The Supreme is Indonesia's highest court.

Head judge Ridwan Damanik told AFP Tuesday he and the other judges had considered all of the evidence during the 20-month trial before reaching their verdict.

Meanwhile about 80 villagers, who say they developed illnesses from the waste, rallied outside the prosecutor's office in North Sulawesi, ElShinta radio reported.

The lead prosecutor has said he plans to file an appeal against Tuesday's verdict within 14 days.

Source: Agence France-Presse

Memory Foam Mattress Review

SPACE MEDIA NETWORK PROMOTIONS
Solar Energy Solutions
Tempur-Pedic Mattress Comparison ...

Newsletters :: SpaceDaily :: SpaceWar :: TerraDaily :: Energy Daily
XML Feeds :: Space News :: Earth News :: War News :: Solar Energy News

FROTH AND BUBBLE

Indonesia Clears US Miner In Pollution Trial But Faces Prosecuter Appeals

Manado (AFP) Indonesia, April 24, 2007
A court in Indonesia on Tuesday cleared US mining giant Newmont of dumping tonnes of toxic waste, closing for now a case that risked the nation's efforts to increase foreign investment.

INTERNET SPACE Couch Potatoes On Track For Virtual World All Of Russia Will Have Internet And Phone Access Wildblue High-Speed Internet Via Satellite Triples Capacity With New Satellite Publish, Perish Attitudes Make Profs Balk At Online Publication	LAUNCH PAD Orbital Minotaur Launches US Missile Defense Agency NFIRE Satellite Minotaur Launched From NASA Wallops Flight Facility ASTRA 1L Integrated To Ariane 5 Dual-Payload Dispenser System India Puts Italian Satellite Into Orbit
AEROSPACE Australia Fears Jet Flight Guilt Could Hit Tourism Nondestructive Testing Keeps Bagram Aircraft Flying New FAA Oceanic Air Traffic System Designed By Lockheed Martin Fully Operational NASA Seeks New Research Proposals	MILITARY COMMUNICATIONS TSAT Team Moves Closer To Developing Flight-Ready Laser Terminals Raytheon To Supply Canada With Enhanced Position Location Reporting System Terminals Intelsat To Test Internet Routing In Space For The US Military Northrop Grumman And LockMart Team Up For Integrated Air And Missile Defense Battle Command
TECH SPACE New Family Of Pseudo-Metallic Chemicals Could Create New Electronic Materials Ultrasound Upgrade Produces Images That Work Like 3-D Movies Scientists Design New Super-Hard Material Everything Starts With Recognition	APPOINTMENTS Dodgen Joins Northrop Grumman As Vice President Of Strategy For Missile Systems Business Townsend To Lead Ball Aerospace Exploration Systems In Huntsville NASA Nobel Prize Recipient To Lead Chief Scientist Office Kathryn Kynard Plays Key Role In Ares I Upper Stage Engine Development
EARTH OBSERVATION Envisat Symposium 2007 Kicks Off In Switzerland Scientists Meet To Review Envisat Results After Five Years Of Operations US Uses Landsat Satellite Data To Fight Hunger And Poverty NOAA And NASA Restore Climate Sensor To Upcoming NPP Satellite	GPS NEWS Safer Air Traffic With EGNOS Boeing-Led Team Developing Surface Navigation Concept For DARPA Northrop Grumman Team OCX Bids On The GPS Next Generation Control Segment Contract China Launches Compass Navigation Satellite

The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright Space.TV Corporation. AFP and UPI Wire Stories are copyright Agence France-Presse and United Press International. ESA Portal Reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space.TV Corp on any Web page published or hosted by Space.TV Corp. Privacy Statement