The Killing Pits

Tuesday, May 9, 2017

The coal mining slump in East Kalimantan has left behind a trail of problems. The region’s landscapes are now pockmarked by these giant ‘pits’—or former coal pits— also known as voids, created by dozens of mining companies. Over the past five years, 17 mining pits or voids are known to have claimed the lives of at least 27 people. Not much is known about the identities of the high-profile individuals listed as owners, commissioners, or directors of the mining companies responsible for these fatal pits. Some have family ties with regional executive chiefs, offspring of tycoons and even ministers. This report is a collaborative effort between Tempo, the Tempo Institute and Free Press Unlimited.

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An hour before his death in mid-December 2015, Mulyadi said goodbye to his mother, Indo Itoing, before going to the ‘lake.’ He and his friend went on a motorbike. Before leaving, Mulyadi asked his mother for a few thousand rupiahs to help pay for his share of the gasoline. The 10th grader at the Tenggarong Mining Geology Vocational High School in East Kalimantan went to the pit-also known as a void-to film a documentary on mines for a school

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