http://www.thejakartaglobe.com/news/nine-foreign-nationals-detained-for-entering-grasberg-mine-without-permit/
By Banjir Ambarita on 5:00 pm October 21, 2013.
An aerial view of the Grasberg Mine. (Reuters Photo/Muhammad Yamin)
[Updated at 5:00 p.m.]
Jayapura. Security officials at Freeport Indonesia’s massive Grasberg Mine discovered that nine foreign nationals who said they were mountain climbers had entered the mine without permission, according to a source within the company.
The nine hikers allegedly entered the open pit mine in Papua province, which is the largest gold mine and the third largest copper mine in the world, at some point on Sunday and were found by security later that day.
The climbers have been identified by the anonymous source within the company as Swiss nationals Michel Wirth-Fragata, 44; Silvan Schenk, 57; Matthias Halchey, 34; Fritz Yacobv, 60; and Daniel Meyerhoff, 45; German national Reinhard Buscher, 61; Austrian national Alois Fuchs; and Matheus ven der Maulen, 59, from the Netherlands.
The ninth climber and the only female in the group, who has been identified only as Elen Anezlua, 42, was taken to the hospital in Tembagapura to receive treatment for severe dehydration.
The others were taken to the Freeport security office in Sugapa Grasberg.
“What happened is that those foreign climbers took their own route to climb Mount Carstensz,” said Freeport Indonesia spokeswoman Daisy Primayanti. Mount Carstensz is the tallest mountain in central Papua province’s Sudirman range.
“One suffered from a light injury and they decided to turn back, through a [mining] work route,” she said. “In light of the conditions, [we] have facilitated logistical relief so that they can descend to the plateau.”
She said they were not allowed in the work area “for safety reasons.”
Local police were not immediately available to comment.
Freeport Indonesia, a subsidiary of US mining giant Freeport McMoRan, operates gold and copper mining in Papua’s Timika district. The Indonesian government owns a stake in Freeport Indonesia as well.