SUKABUMI PEOPLE QUESTION CHEVRON'S TRANSPARENCY

Sukabumi, W Java, March 25 (ANTARA) - Hundreds of people in the West Java regency of Sukabumi staged a demonstration in front of Chevron Geothermal Salak Ltd's office here Thursday.
They demanded the US company's transparency in exercising its corporate social responsibility (CSR) and job recruitment policy.

The demonstrators were residents of Kalapanunggal and Kabandungan sub-districts. They accused Chevron of not transparently exercising its CSR.

According to the demonstration coordinator, Andi Roswandi, Chevron had ignored the interests of local people. Instead it cared outsiders.

"When Chevron took its partner company from local area, there had never been such this demonstration," he said, adding the locals also wanted Chevron to help empower local entrepreneurs.

Safeguarded tightly by a group of policemen, Chevron's authorities accepted the demonstrators' representatives to have a dialogue with the presence of journalists.

In response to the locals' demands, Chevron Gheotermal Salak
Ltd's Policy, Government and Public Affairs Manager Usman Slamet said the company would remain attentive to the locals' interests.

"If Chevron needs goods, we are going to use local company's services," he told the demonstrators' representatives at the meeting attended by Chief of Sukabumi military precinct Lt.Col.M.Yusuf and Chief of Sukabumi police precinct Adjunct Senior Commissioner Herukoco.