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Freeport ‘doesn't belong to the US’, says Jokowi. ‘It's ours now’
The President said he expected the government would soon hold 61 percent of gold and copper miner PT Freeport Indonesia and urged the public to consider the firm an Indonesian entity.
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President Joko “Jokowi” Widodo walks through an industrial site in this undated photo. (BPMI Setpres/Lukas)
P
resident Joko "Jokowi" Widodo has claimed credit for the fact that the Indonesian government is now the majority shareholder in gold and copper miner PT Freeport Indonesia (PT FI) and has pledged that it will soon acquire greater control.
The President said he expected the government would soon hold 61 percent of the company and urged the public to consider the firm an Indonesian entity.
"Watch out when you're talking about Freeport. It doesn't belong to the US anymore. People often have that perception. It is now the property of Indonesia; it now belongs to MIND.ID," Jokowi said in a speech at a gathering of the Indonesian Buddhist Students organization in North Jakarta on Thursday. MIND.ID is the state-owned mining holding company.
In his speech, the outgoing President, who will leave office on Oct. 20, recounted moments from the negotiation between the Indonesian government and US mining giant Freeport McMoran Inc.
Jokowi, who touted the takeover of PT FI as a key success of his signature downstreaming policy, claimed that while the negotiation was ongoing he had received an intelligence briefing claiming potentially disastrous consequences if he pressed ahead with his plan for Indonesia to acquire a majority stake in the company.
"Many whispered to me about the possibility of Papua separating. Many others whispered that I could be forced out of office," Jokowi said.
In 2018, Indonesia wrapped up a tough negotiation process to acquire a majority stake in PT FI.
