It's a First: Cunningham Responds

On September 11, University of Texas Ethno-musicology professor Steven Feld sent a letter of resignation to UT Chancellor William Cunningham. Calling Cunningham's close ties to New Orleans-based Freeport-McMoRan "morally repugnant," Feld wrote, "My work, for almost 20 years, has been committed to the causes of ecological and cultural integrity on the Melanesian island of New Guinea. By contrast, you have steered the university toward collaboration in environmental destruction and criminal abuses of human rights in West Papua, the part of New Guinea now known as the Indonesian province of Irian Jaya. I am referring, of course, to your role on the board of directors of Freeport-McMoRan." Freeport operates the largest gold mine in the world on the Irian Jaya site.

Feld's objections to Cunningham's involvement with Freeport were bolstered by two recent reports by the Australian Council for Overseas Aid, and the Catholic Church of Jayapura, both of which allege Freeport complicity in murder, torture, and disappearances at the Freeport mine site.

Along with his letter of resignation, Feld sent copies of the reports to Cunningham and to several other top officials at the university. Here is Cunningham's letter to Feld, with a few annotations:

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WILLIAM H. CUNNINGHAM
1909 Hill Oaks Court
AUSTIN, TEXAS 78703

• 1909 Hill Oaks Court is Bauer House, the chancellor's official address. The house is owned by UT.

September 12, 1995

• Even though Feld has been writing to Cunningham since 1990, this is the chancellor's first response.

Dr. Steven Feld
The University of Texas at Austin
Anthropology and Archeology
EPS 1.240 (C3200)

Dear Dr. Feld:

I write in response to your letter of September 11 resigning your appointment as Professor of Anthropology and Director of the Center for Intercultural Studies in Folklore and Ethnomusicology at The University of Texas at Austin, effective December 31, 1995. I trust that your academic experience at the University of California, Santa Cruz, will be productive and satisfying.

While I am confident that you are a widely recognized and highly respected professor of anthropology and music, I am curious about your strong views concerning Freeport McMoRan and its operations in Indonesia, particularly since you have not visited the site personally. I hope that you will decide to visit Irian Jaya as I believe your views would differ dramatically from those you have expressed. As indicated previously, I have been to the mine site and have observed Freeport McMoRan's operations. Quite simply, I disagree with your views. Should you elect to visit the site and if I can facilitate matters, I would be pleased to do so.

• Cunningham doesn't mention that Freeport has consistently refused to allow independent groups to analyze the water quality below the gold mine. Feld says he will take Cunningham up on his offer to help him visit the site. "I'm willing to pay my own ticket over there if they are willing to take me around," says Feld.

I am well aware that environmental and human rights concerns are not only important societal issues, but they are also subject to distortion and highly charged rhetoric. Enclosed for your perusal is an article which was published in the August 28 edition of The Jakarta Post. As you will note, an official from the National Commission on Human Rights indicates that "None of the 23 witnesses we interviewed (in Timika, Irian Jaya) said that the (FP Freeport) mining company was involved in the human rights abuses."

• Cunningham enclosed a copy of a faxed article from the Jakarta Post, which had previously been faxed to him by Jim Bob Moffett, Freeport's CEO. Quoting the Indonesian press does little to resolve the dispute. Indonesia has been ruthless in its dealings with independent journalists and other critics. Last year, the government shut down four publications including Tempo, an influential news magazine, saying the publications had become threats to national stability. On April 17, The New York Times ran an article titled, "Indonesia Cleansing Its Press of Writers who `Insult' Rulers." The article indicated that several journalists were arrested on charges of "insulting the government," a crime punishable by up to seven years in prison. Freeport is one of Indonesia's largest taxpayers. The Indonesian government is a partner in the Irian Jaya gold mine. Would the ruthless Suharto regime allow a free press to report wrongdoing by one of its business partners? Probably not.
• The Jakarta Post article doesn't deny that torture and killings allegedly occurred on Freeport property. By not condemning the violence, are Freeport and Cunningham condoning it?

Regarding the issues you raise in connection with pollution and Freeport McMoRan operations in the United States, I think that it is appropriate to note that all of the company's activities are in total compliance with Environmental Protection Agency standards.

• Not true. According to the EPA regional office in Dallas, Freeport agreed last March 22 to pay a $20,000 fine for more than 30 illegal discharges into the Mississippi River from the company's Faustina plant in Welcome, Louisiana. The violations occurred over a 16-month period from late 1992 to early 1994 and included illegal discharges of oil and grease, pH, and phosphorus, as well as discharges with excessive biochemical oxygen demand and chemical oxygen demand.

Sincerely,

[signed]
William H. Cunningham

Enclosure

• No mention of his title as Chancellor of UT.

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