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Thousands Of Mudflow Victims Block Indonesian Roads

http://www.planetark.com/dailynewsstory.cfm/newsid/47063/story.htm

INDONESIA: February 20, 2008

SIDOARJO - Thousands of victims of a mud volcano on Indonesia's Java island blocked roads and railway tracks on Tuesday to protest against a parliamentary report that described the mudflow as a natural disaster.

Some scientists say the mudflow in Sidoarjo regency, near the country's second biggest city, Surabaya, was caused by a gas drilling operation by PT Lapindo Brantas.

Lapindo and PT Energi Mega Persada Tbk, which has a stake in Lapindo, dispute that the disaster, which started two days after a massive earthquake in Central Java, was caused by drilling.

The report, prepared by parliamentarians assigned to monitor the handling of the mud flow, was due to be presented on Tuesday. Parts of the report, which were reported by local press over the weekend, describe the mudflow as a natural disaster.

"We will ease the blockade if it (parliament) calls it a human error, but we will stay here if parliament calls the mudflow a natural disaster," a local villager, Orasi Djoko, told Reuters, while sitting in the middle of a flyover.

Thousands of homes and factories in an area four times the size of Monaco have been submerged by the hot mud since it first started to erupt in May 2006, forcing about 15,000 people to abandon their homes.

The government has tried several schemes to halt the flow, including dropping giant concrete balls into the crater, but the hot mud still spurts at a rate of 148,000 cubic metres a day.

The blockade on the railway tracks prevented five trains from leaving the station, causing the railway operator to cancel all trips on Tuesday.

"Tell the president we won't unblock the roads unless parliament's decision truly sides with us," said Bambang Kuswanto, whose house was inundated by foul-smelling mud.

The government ordered energy group Lapindo, which many people blame for the disaster, to pay 3.8 trillion rupiah (US$415 million) in compensation to the victims and to cover the damage.

Lapindo and PT Energi Mega Persada Tbk dispute whether Lapindo alone should shoulder the cost.

The situation has also become a bigger embarrassment for the government since Energi is owned by the Bakrie Group, controlled by the family of chief social welfare minister, Aburizal Bakrie.

The Bakrie family last year topped the Forbes' list for the wealthy in Indonesia.

(US$1 = 9,156 rupiah)

(Reporting by Heri Retnowati, Writing by Adhityani Arga, Editing by Sugita Katyal and Alex Richardson)

REUTERS NEWS SERVICE