State Department quashed court claim against Exxon

The United States has intervened to quash a lawsuit filed against Exxon alleging that the energy company abetted abuses in Indonesia.

The State Department told a court that the action against Exxon, which sometimes uses the Esso name, could have a "potentially serious adverse impact on significant interests of the United States, directly related to the ongoing struggle against international terrorism".

The suit was filed last year by the International Labour Rights Fund on behalf of 11 villagers from Aceh, a province that is a stronghold for Islamic extremists seeking secession from Indonesia. It was filed under a law that allows foreigners to sue American companies in US courts.

Exxon is accused in the suit of having paid Indonesian security forces to protect its interests there while turning a blind eye to abuses they committed on villagers, including torture and rape. The company has denied the charges.

Washington has appealed to Indonesia to help fight terrorism and is worried that a suit could hurt its economy by discouraging foreign investment.

The Lawyers' Committee for Human Rights in Washington said that the war on terrorism "is now going to be used as a cover for all kinds of corporate malfeasance".