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Ghana is Africa’s largest gold producer, but it has an illegal mining issue
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Corruption: Illegal Gold Mines, Illegal Foreign Chinese Workers, and Powerful Domestic Backers Cower Indonesia’s Anti-Graft Agency

“Where has the government been all this time?”

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Indonesia’s Anti-Corruption Police Reluctant to Disclose Powerful Backers of Illegal Gold Mining Operation, Tempo Magazine

By Dinda Shabrina and Iqbal Muhtarom for Tempo.co, October 18, 2024

JAKARTA, Indonesia — The head of a regional Coordinating and Supervision Task Force of Indonesia’s Corruption Eradication Commission (KPK), Dian Patria, has declined to reveal the names of individuals behind an illegal gold mining operation operating in the West Lombok district of West Nusa Tenggara (NTB) province.

Dian only hinted at the existence of powerful figures who have supported the illegal mining operation, which is believed to have been generating approximately IDR1 trillion ($64 million) annually. According to Dian, such large-scale illegal activity could not have operated over such a long period without powerful figures protecting it.

“It’s sensitive to disclose names. But the bottom line is there’s no way an illegal mine of that scale and duration could function without someone back it,” Dian told Tempo magazine on October 17, 2024.

Piles of rock containing illegally mined gold, ready to be processed in a water pool suspected of using mercury managed by illegal foreign workers from China, in Lendek Bare Hamlet of Lenong Batu Montor Village, Sekotong, West Lombok, West Nusa Tenggara province, August 16, 2024. TEMPO/Imam Sukamto KPK Enggan Ungkap Beking Tambang Emas Ilegal di Sekotong Lombok Barat – Metro Tempo.co

Together with several other relevant agencies, the Corruption Eradication Commission has been monitoring the illegal mining activities in a limited production forest area (HPT) of West Nusa Tenggara province since 2021. The operation has reportedly yielded IDR90 billion ($5.7 million) monthly, translating to over IDR1 trillion annually.

The Commission’s Directorate of Coordination and Supervision for Region V identified at least one illegal mining site in the Sekotong region of West Nusa Tenggara province, covering an area roughly the size of a soccer field. The site features three stockpiles where extracted materials are stored. Commission officials believe other illegal mining sites may be operating in the region, however, they are yet to be identified.

During a visit to the illegal gold mine in Sekotong, West Lombok, on Friday, October 4, 2024, Dian expressed concern over the government’s apparent failure to address the issue. Despite the mine’s massive and visible operation, little action has been taken to regulate or dismantle it.

“Where has the government been all this time? It’s like they’re not even here. What’s going on?” Dian asked.

The illegal mining operation is run by foreign workers, primarily from China, and is far from a small-scale operation. According to Tempo magazine’s investigation, the site hosts three stockpiles, each the size of a soccer field, and 11 cyanide pools the size of futsal courts, where cyanide is used to extract gold from ore. The site is located in the village of Lendek Bare, about 1.5 hours by car from the province’s capital city, Mataram.

“We need to focus on ‘the man behind the gun.’ Who are the big players behind this operation?” Dian asked.

Indonesia’s Corruption Eradication Commission, in cooperation with the provincial government, has begun efforts to clamp down on illegal mining activities in Lendek Bare, Sekotong, West Lombok. The Commission’s Coordination and Supervision Task Force, along with the provincial Environmental and Forestry Agency (LHK) and the Law Enforcement Agency for Java, Bali, and Nusa Tenggara (Gakkum LHK Jabalnusra) have installed signs prohibiting mining in the area which is part of a protected forest.

This article is based on Tempo.co KPK Reluctant to Reveal Backers of Illegal Gold Mining in West Lombok

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In earlier news…

PT Timah Tbk Corruption Trial: President Joko Widodo Allegedly Ordered Accommodation of Illegal Miners in Bangka Belitung Province, Tempo.co

By Amelia Rahima Sari for Tempo.co, September 11, 2024

JAKARTA — Former head of the Bangka Belitung Provincial production unit of Indonesia’s state-owned tin producer PT Timah Tbk, Ali Syamsuri, testified that President Joko Widodo once ordered the accommodation of illegal miners in Bangka Belitung Province. Ali made the allegation from the witness stand during the corruption trial of four defendants at the Jakarta Corruption Court on September 11, 2024.

Ali testified in the trial of Helena Lim, the owner and Marketing Manager of PT Quantum Skyline Exchange (QSE); M.B. Gunawan, the Director of PT Stanindo Inti Perkas; Mochtar Riza Pahlevi Tabrani, the former President Director of PT Timah; and Emil Ermindra, the former Finance Director of PT Timah.

The prosecutor’s questioning led to Ali’s remarks when he was asked whether he had ever heard of mining business license (IUJP) holders acting as middlemen for, or collectors for, illegal miners.

“If they were acting as collectors for illegal miners, I wasn’t aware of it,” Ali responded.

However, he emphasized that there were local communities around mines engaged in unlicensed mining. “This is what we asked to be managed properly,” he added.

The prosecutor then asked, “So, the illegal miners used mining licence holders when selling tin ore. Were you aware of such a practice?”

Ali clarified that not all illegal miners were guided by or supervised by PT Timah. He said that the oversight began after President Joko Widodo’s visit to Bangka Belitung Province. “We were ordered to do so during the President’s visit to the province, Your Honor,” he said.

During that visit, Ali explained, many residents complained about the ongoing crackdown against illegal mining by law enforcement officials. “And the President’s statement was, ‘All of them are my people. Please find a way to make these illegal miners legal’,” Ali said, quoting the President.

Based on this directive, Ali noted, PT Timah had then initiated a program to manage the miners. “So, that’s what we did, managed the people around the mines with mining business permits and work orders (SPK) so they wouldn’t be chased by law enforcement, Your Honor,” he stated.

According to a report on the official presidential website, setkab.go.id, President Joko Widodo appointed the Ministry of Energy and Mineral Resources (ESDM) to coordinate the regulation of all tin mining activities in Bangka Belitung Province back in 2015.

“We will later collaborate with the Ministry of State-Owned Enterprises (BUMN) because tin is under the purview of a state-owned company, as well as with the regional government, the Governor, and Regency officials,” said then Minister of Energy and Mineral Resources, Sudirman Said, after a limited meeting on tin mining at the Presidential Office in Jakarta on Thursday, June 25, 2015.

Sudirman pointed out that many small-scale miners lacked the necessary legal, environmental, and technical requirements. Thus, the government aimed to push the illegal miners to meet the required standards and become legitimate operators.

“After all, they are our people. We will offer technical guidance on environmental management, equipment, and even consider providing them with capital to help them to develop themselves,” Sudirman explained.

This article is based on a report by Tempo.co: https://metro.tempo.co/read/1915039/sidang-korupsi-timah-jokowi-disebut-perintahkan-akomodir-penambang-ilegal-di-bangka-belitung. Featured image credit: The Conversation, Cristina Aldehuela & Getty Images, https://theconversation.com/ghana-is-africas-largest-gold-producer-but-it-has-an-illegal-mining-issue-5-essential-reads-238623.

Photo of workers in a workshop at the tin mines in Koba, Bangka Island, 1914

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$20 Billion Losses to Government in Timah Case: Former Bangka Belitung Islands Provincial Official Charged, Kompas.com

By Irfan Kamil, Ardito Ramadhan for Kompas.com, July 31, 2024

JAKARTA, KOMPAS.com – Indonesia’s Attorney Generals Office has indicted the former head of the Bangka Belitung Islands provincial office of mining and energy, Suranto Wibowo, for causing state financial losses amounting to Rp300 trillion (approximately $20 billion). According to the indictment, the significant losses were the result of mismanagement of tin commodity trading within the mining concession areas operated by PT Timah Tbk between 2015 and 2022.

Bangka-Belitung province is circled in the map above. In the lower map, Belitung is the island on the right.
https://news.mongabay.com/2022/02/illegal-mining-fuels-social-conflict-in-indonesian-tin-hub-of-bangka-belitung/

“The state suffered a financial loss of Rp300,003,263,938,131.14 (approximately $20 billion),” said prosecutor Ardito Muwardi during a hearing at the Central Jakarta District Corruption Court on Wednesday, July 31, 2024.

Prosecutors revealed that Wibowo had acted in collusion with Amir Syahbana, the former head of the Metal Minerals Mining Division at the Provincial Energy and Mineral Resources Office, and Rusbani, another former acting head of the same office.

Prosecutors alleged that Wibowo, during his tenure as the head of the provincial Mining and Energy Office, approved inaccurate Work Plan and Budget documents for five smelters between 2015 and 2019. The smelters included PT Refined Bangka Tin and its affiliates, CV Venus Inti Perkasa and its affiliates, PT Sariwiguna Binasentosa and its affiliates, PT Stanindo Inti Perkasa and its affiliates, and PT Tinindo Internusa and its affiliates.

“The false documents were supposed to serve as the basis for mining operations within each smelter’s concession area, yet, they were also used to legitimize the extraction and management of tin ore from illegal mining activities within PT Timah’s concession area,” said prosecutors.

Furthermore, Wibowo is accused of failing to provide supervision and oversight over the five smelter companies and their affiliates, which engaged in mining activities in breach of the approved Work Plan and Budget for the 2015-2019 period. The failure led to poor mining governance and environmental damage in Bangka Belitung Islands Province. It is alleged the approved Work Plans and Budgets were merely formalities used to accommodate the illegal extraction and management of tin ore from PT Timah’s concession area.

Wibowo is also accused of neglecting to supervise mining service companies partnering with PT Timah, allowing these companies to conduct illegal mining and trade tin ore with PT Timah.

https://www.mongabay.co.id/2024/06/26/tambang-timah-polusi-suara-dan-ancaman-kehidupan-mamalia-laut-di-pulau-bangka/

“As a result, PT Timah Tbk should not have purchased tin ore sourced from its own concession area,” alleged prosecutors. Additionally, Wibowo allegedly received hospitality and transportation perks from PT Stanindo Inti Perkasa.

Wibowo, along with Mochtar Riza Pahlevi, Emil Ermindra, Alwin Albar, Rusbani, Amir Syahbana, and Bambang Gatot Ariyono, is also alleged to have turned a blind eye to illegal mining activities within PT Timah’s concession area, resulting in ecological, economic, and environmental losses.

The actions of Suranto Wibowo, Amir Syahbana, and Rusbani are alleged to have violated Article 2 Paragraph (1) and Article 3 Paragraph 1 and Article 18 of Law No. 31/1999 on the Eradication of Corruption Crimes, and Article 55 Paragraph (1) of Indonesia’s Criminal Code.

This article is based on Kompas.comhttps://nasional.kompas.com/read/2024/07/31/15364601/kasus-timah-eks-kadis-pertambangan-babel-didakwa-rugikan-negara-rp-300-t.

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