16 INQUIRER THE WEEKEND AUSTRALIAN, DECEMBER 31, 2011-JANUARY 1, 2012www.theaustralian.com.au

The party’s over and Bligh is to blamePeter Beattie paved the way for disaster byarranging for his deputy’s succession

ROSS FITZGERALD

IN the new year, Julia Gillard andthe poor standing of federal Laborwill not be responsible for the de-feat of Anna Bligh’s Labor govern-ment in Queensland.

The blunt reality is that Bligh’sgovernment is one of the worst inQueensland history. Neither thePremier nor her government is upto the job. Itsdefeatwill beprimar-ily because of its incompetence. Itis little wonder that eight keymembers of the Bligh team, in-cluding six former ministers, areretiring at the state election. Theyhave simply given up on Bligh andQueensland Labor.

The theft of $16 million of pub-lic funds by a Queensland Healthemployee is the last straw in a his-tory of incompetence that rangesfrom the health payroll debacle topoor financial mismanagementthat led to the loss of Queens-land’s cherished AAA credit rat-ing. There are now 16 millionmore reasons for Queenslandersto vote against Bligh. Many seniorLabor figures find the Bligh gov-ernment so embarrassing thatthey are distancing themselvesfrom it at an alarming rate.

When former premier PeterBeattie handed over to his deputy,Bligh, in September 2007, thepopular Labor government en-joyed a two-party preferred voteof 59 per cent and a primary vote

of 50 per cent. The transition fol-lowed years of Beattie promotingBligh over other ministers intotough portfolios to enhance herexperience. At the time it wasregarded as an ideal transition.

Bligh enjoyed strong publicsupport until her policies and per-formance showed a rapid declineto the point where today the Lib-eral National Party under Camp-bellNewmanenjoysat least59percent two-party preferred supportand is on track to give Labor anabsolute hiding whenever Blighgoes to the polls.

It was a serious error of judg-ment on Beattie’s part to promoteBligh when there were more tal-ented choices available, includingJohn Mickel and Rod Welford. Itseems Beattie was more inter-ested in putting Queensland’s firstfemale premier into office thanpromoting the best candidate.

State Labor’s problems startedwhen Bligh became more focusedon image than on performance.Her promotion of inexperiencedsupporters into cabinet at theexpenseof seniorcolleagues (suchas Mickel, who is now Speaker;former police minister JudySpence; former attorney-generalKerry Shine; and former ministersLindy Nelson-Carr, RobertSchwarten and Margaret Keech)was designed to make her govern-ment look good but took its toll inpoor administration in transport,health, infrastructure deliveryand water, and in the cost ofelectricity.

Bligh’s failure to sack formerhealth minister and close friendPaulLucas over the healthdepart-ment’s payroll fiasco showed per-

sonal loyalty had precedence overperformance. There also was notenough focus on detail. Instead,Bligh concentrated on managingthe latest political disaster. Thedamage from this crisis manage-ment soon became irreparable.

Also, many members of Bligh’scabinet are lazy. Governmentministers are rarely seen at busi-ness events in Brisbane or in keyregional centres and LNPfrontbenchers are being openlycourted as future ministers. TheBligh government has lost thelinks with business vigorouslydeveloped by Wayne Goss andBeattie. It is a pale imitation ofpast Labor governments.

The fat bureaucratic structureof super departments was so cum-bersome that one director-general was responsible to severalministers, making the public ser-vice process-driven rather thanoutcome-focused.

Besides, the quality ofdirectors-general slipped as Blighappointed favourites or ideologi-cal fellow travellers over qualitycandidates.

This resulted in a failure toproperly oversee projects such asthe desalination plant on the GoldCoast and the water grid; costoverruns on infrastructure; theprotection of farmland from theexpansionof thegas industryuntilit was too late; failure to buildcyclone-proof infrastructurealong the coast before last sum-mer’s cyclone season; and accept-ing without question the recom-mended electricity price hikesfrom the regulator. The govern-ment also blindly followedTreasury’s line to abolish the fuelsubsidy, which means Queens-landers now pay more for fuel.

The government ran awayfrom tough decisions on matterssuch as the 10 per cent mandatorylevel of ethanol in fuel; taking thefight to Kevin Rudd’s federal gov-

ernment over the building of theTraveston dam; and the use of re-cycled water. Crucially, it caved into union demands for budget-breaking enterprise bargainingdeals that helped drive the stateover the financial brink. This wasthe underlying reason for thestate’s loss of itsAAA credit rating.

The only tough decision theBligh government made was onthesaleof governmentassets suchas railways to fund the budgetshortfall. But even here Blighmade a hash of its implemen-tation by not putting the issue tothe people in the 2009 state elec-tion, thus costing her valuablecredibility. The deal also meantQueensland sold off the mostprofitable parts of QueenslandRail and kept the unprofitableparts. On election night, Laborseats will fall to the LNP through-out the regionsbecauseof howtheQR sale was handled. The Blighgovernment is guilty of 41/2 dys-functional administration andQueenslanders know it.

Deputies are often promotedbeyond their abilities into the topjob. Bligh was such a deputy andstate Labor will pay a price. It isnormally foolhardy to predict theoutcome of an election with twoor three months to go, but all pub-lished research confirms Queens-landers have reached the viewthat Newman and the LNPcouldn’t possibly do a worse jobthan Bligh and state Labor. Prem-ier Newman will have a substan-tial majority.

When Labor examines why itlost the 2012 Queensland electionit should start with Beattie’s ill-advised decision to promote Blighas his successor.

Ross Fitzgerald, emeritusprofessor of history and politics atGriffith University, is the co-author, most recently, of thepolitical satire Fools’ Paradise.

PICTURES: DEBORAH CASSRELS

A Lombok villager cooks with mercury to extract gold from rock under a sign urging people to buy the precious metal

Destructive goldfever takes theshine off tourismMercury and cyanide poisoning makes itunlikely Lombok will ever rival Bali

DEBORAH CASSRELS

Cocotinos Resort, the only luxury resort in Sekotong Gold-crushing equipment stands beside huge cyanide pumps

Lalu Bayu Windya S. Hiden

‘It’s like the wildwest gold rush.Literally, it’slike walkinginto a saloon’DAVID PILLINGERDEVELOPER

THE Indonesian island ofLombok is yet to become Bali’snemesis as a tourist destination,but locals have found there areother ways to make a buck.

Gold fever has gripped parts ofthe island, particularly the south-west peninsula of Sekotong, trans-forming areas prized by manyAustralians for their superbsurfing and scenery into hotbedsof discontent and environmentaldisaster.

Over lunch, served poolside atCocotinos Resort, the only luxurydestination in Sekotong, there’sscant evidence all is not well.

Dubbed an eco resort, it is en-circled by pristine white sand bea-ches, verdant rolling hills, coconutgroves and development torpor.Such is life on Lombok, a paradisein waiting.

Foreign guests tuck into freshsalads, hamburgers and seafood,unaware that the produce is notfrom the crystal-clear waters inwhich they were recently diving,or from the lush vegetation or thelocal animals.

Resort owner T. M. Wong whis-pers conspiratorially: ‘We are notbuying local produce, as a protec-tion for clients. We get food andwater from Mataram (Lombok’scapital) or Bali.’’ The coral reef, astone’s throw away, has also fadedfrom a rich, brilliant hue to a blea-ched aberration.

Of paramount concern is thethreat of mercury contaminationin water, soil and food as locals en-gage in rampant small-scale illegalgoldmining using toxic processingmethods. Mercury, used to extractgold from the rock, causes neuro-logical disorders, trembling andfever, and produces shockingdeformities in children.

But with no regulations, noreducation on the dangers, thetoxic substance is vaporised ordumped, along with other miningwaste including cyanide, on tolandor into riversandthenflushedinto the sea.

Since 2008 the gold rush hasbeen driving once sleepy villagesin Sekotong. Government at-tempts to stop illegal miners havebeen ignored, while hundredshave died in collapsing mines andlandslides. Earning up to $200 aday, the new rich earn substan-tially more than the few dollarsthey picked up as fishermen orfarmers.

Clashes with police, the mili-tary and mining companies —with corrupt officials fuelling re-sistance — are common; this weekon neighbouring Sumbawa islandpolice shot dead two locals pro-testing over the Australian ArcExploration gold mine.

In an incident on Lombok inOctober, violence erupted be-tween miners and Southern Arc,the Canadian parent of Indone-sian subsidiary PT Indotan, whichwas granted a mining permit ear-lier in the year. Miners blockedstaff and equipment from enteringthe exploration site before de-manding permits to continue min-ing. Southern Arc countered by of-fering to recruit 400 local minersin November. Earlier a local waskilled by police, and two were ar-rested for burning the PT Indotanfacility. In response, locals at-tacked the police office.

What they are fighting for is1395 tonnes of gold in the hills ofSekotong. The spoils have at-tracted about 6000 illegal miners,who are digging up 12,000ha in 18areas, much of which is protectedforest and private land, accordingto the West Lombok Energy andMineral Resources office.

Drive round the winding, pic-turesque coastline and the telltaletarpaulins dotted over Sekotong’shills — where locals live and diedigging for gold — signal thelocals’ desperation to do better.

Sacks overflowing with ore arepiled outside houses and proces-sing plants, waiting to be crushed.The rock has been removed byhand and delivered by womencarrying the sacks on their heads,ignorant of the gold content.

New concrete houses are re-placing traditional thatched hutsin the villages, and it’s de rigueur tosport multiple gold crushingmachines in the front yard wherewater,highconcentrationsofmer-cury and tailings slosh about, fre-quently spilling on to soil wherechildren play and animals wander.

When Inquirer visited the area,villagers without protective cloth-ing were extracting ore, inhalingmercury fumes over naked flames.Despite suffering dizziness, vil-lagers say they are OK. Theymight be sick five years down thetrack but they don’t care. ‘‘It’s nobig deal; we drink coconut juice,that fixes it,’’ says one.

Sekotong is close to Lembar

Harbour, the jumping-off pointfromBali to spectaculardivingandsurfing spots, including the world-renowned Desert Point, so namedby Australian surfers for its iso-lation. The town attracts foreigninvestors and visitors from Baliwho cherish Lombok’s naturalbeauty. Authorities have theirhopes pinned on the pristineLombok mainland as their ticketto a booming tourist economy.

It has plenty going for it: itslong-awaited internationalairportopened this year; beleaguered de-velopment processes in the southare finally progressing; and Bali’soverdevelopment and overpop-ulation, along with a recent flurryof negative publicity, mean manyare seeking an alternative. Butgold fever, with its toxic by-products, may kill the industrybefore it’s born.

The head of the West NusaTengarra (a region that comprisesLombok and Sumbawa) ForeignInvestment Board, Lalu BayuWindya, thumbing through a listof 87 foreign investments in Seko-tong,despairs thatmost land is ‘‘in-active’’, with tourism developmentflat. Much of the land was boughtin2008 in the heatof thegold rush.

‘‘The government has a plan tobuild marinas for cruise ships andyachts next year,’’ he says.‘‘Foreigners have bought a lot ofland, but they haven’t startedbuilding yet.’’

An exception, the European-owned Palm Beach Garden guest-house in Pelangan, embraces min-ing as a tourist attraction. Oper-ations manager Bukran, althoughhe still takes eager tourists to panfor gold, has lost many friends kil-led in the pits.

‘‘One year ago there were manyaccidents, and in 2009, 200 peopledied in a big hole,’’ he says.

‘‘It was easy to get gold then. Itpaid rupiah 450,000 ($50) for onegram.’’ Now gold ranges in valuefrom R425,000 for 24-carat toR280,000 for 18-carat. It’s stillworth theeffort inacountrywherethe official minimum wage is $100a month, although many earn lessthan that. Much of the ore is trans-ported to Mataram, famous for itsjewellery stores, where the sameperilous mercury techniques areused in processing.

Perth and Bali-based developerDavid Pillinger was drawn intoSekotong’s environmental miningconcerns acouple of years agoby agroup of Australians who ownland there but haven’t built. Theyshare a love of surfing and diving,and an attachment to the spec-tacular landscape. Poolingresources and know-how, theytried to facilitate a sustainable

plan, but Pillinger says corruptionstymied it.

‘‘It’s like the wild west goldrush,’’ he says of the chargedatmosphere. ‘‘Literally, it’s likewalking into a saloon.’’ Their ideawas to form a co-operative operat-ing under its own licence withsecurity of tenure, with the localgovernment receiving royaltypayments. ‘‘It didn’t seem to bewhat the government wanted.Everyone had their little goldassay plant,’’ Pillinger says of thevillagers’ archaic processing meth-ods. ‘‘They were crushing the golddown to a superfine slurry, then(panning) it. They were burningmercury over an open Bunsenburner. Then they get their wives

to do it. They sit there with a wok,burning this mercury.

‘‘Some of the best snorkelling isin these beautiful reefs,’’ he says.‘‘There used to be farming andfishing: it’s gone. The big prawnfarms are empty; no one wants todo it. They get paid more forrisking their lives doing gold-mining. It’s really dangerous andthe by-product is killing anddeforming everything of the fu-ture of that area.’’

Pillinger became involved withthe regent of southwest Lombok,Zainy Arony, who has advocated azoningplan forSekotongwithdes-ignated community mining.

Consultations between theprovincial government and thenational Ministry of Energy andMineral Resources are in flux.Meanwhile, the government over-turned Lombok’s tourism zoninglast year to allow 1500ha of trad-itional small-scale mining.

Despite health and environ-mental alarms, local governmentlethargy appears solid. ‘‘There areno reports of environmentalmonitoring carried out statingthat the goldminingactivitieshaveshown a significant adverse andlarge impact,’’ investment boardhead Bayu says. That is no sur-

prise, given the government’saversion to funding studies, a lackof initiative to monitor effects ofchemical use and an entrenchedculture of corruption.

A study undertaken last year bythe head of the physics depart-ment at Mataram University, S.Hiden, found unsafe levels of mer-cury in Sekotong soil, but that ‘‘it’snormal, according to the citycouncil’’. Government researchfunding was a paltry R5 million($500). ‘‘We wanted to measurethe water,’’ Hiden says, ‘‘but thereis no more funding.’’

Contradicting this, the head ofthe government-run Environ-ment Agency, Tadjuddin Erfandy,claims no independent study hasbeen undertaken. He cites a gov-ernment study on mercury andcyanide contamination about twoyearsago that ‘‘foundthequalityofwater in Sekotong — in sea, riversand creeks — was safe, with noindication of mercury contami-nation in the fish’’.

Although annual checks arescheduled, they are irregular be-cause of funding shortages.

Environmental engineerYuyun Ismawati, a winner of theGoldman Environmental Prize in2009, is completingamaster’sdeg-

ree at Oxford University on mer-cury in artisanal small-scalemining in Indonesia. She cites evi-dence that mercury levels in Seko-tong’swater and fish far exceed theWorld Health Organisation’s safestandard of 0.001 parts per million.Mercury in river sediment is 600to 3500 times higher than theWHO standard, according to a2010 study conducted by Univer-sitas Gadjah Mada in Yogyakarta.

Mercury in fish in Glodok, adownstream area of West Lombokwhere several rivers flow to thesouthern coast, was up to 2000times higher. Hair samples of localchildren also showed unsafemercury levels.

‘‘Sadly, in hair samples fromchildren aged 0 to 4 years mercuryconcentration was up to20.07ppm,’’ says Ismawati, whofeatured in Time magazine’s 2009list of environmental heroes. ‘‘Inthe next two to three years Ibelieve there will be manychildren with congenital diseasesas the mother eats mercury-con-taminated fish.’’

Compounding the problem isthe sale of illegal mercury broughtinto Lombok and Bali.

‘‘One of the big mercury illegalimporters told me he importedmercury under the table, payingoff customs and police officials toimport 200 tonnes of mercury,’’Ismawati says. ‘‘While the officialfigure of mercury importationfrom the Ministry of Trade in 2010and 2011 is only two tonnes: that isthe total amount used by manu-facturing companies to makecompact fluorescent lamps andsphygmomanometers (bloodpressure meters).’’

To make matters worse, inIndonesia there are no laws ban-ning the use of mercury or cyan-ide, which are sold openly in shopsand on websites. Ismawati seesSekotong as a looming tragedysimilar to that of Minamata inJapan, which claimed nearly 2000lives after a mercury poisoningoutbreak 55 years ago.

Among the 900 hot spots inIndonesia, miners suffering tre-mors and fever indicative of mer-cury poisoning have beenmisdiagnosed as having denguefever, malaria or stomach cancer.Reports have not been released.

Regional autonomy, a legalquagmire, also hampers the regu-lation of small miners who slipthrough myriad gaps into unpro-tected territory. ‘‘It’s cowboy coun-try. There’s cheating at everystage, with no records of gold tradeor of gold produced at hot spots,’’says Ismawati, adding that childlabour is common. ‘‘Many shaftopenings are so narrow only achild could get in. Some have diedin landslides.’’

When Pillinger opted out hewas pushing for the banning ofmercury: ‘‘I thought I could bringsome expertise from WesternAustralia. I took some geologistsand a couple of people from publicmining companies who were will-ing to do something.’’

He suggested a communityprocessing plant with sealed unitsthat recycled waste and water, but‘‘you can’t stop them mining, it’slike their god-given right. Indone-sia could have safe, Australian en-vironmentally approved proces-ses, but it’s too hard. You put yourmoney in and they steal it.’’

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