Exxon settles Indonesia torture lawsuit

ExxonMobil has settled a long-running lawsuit brought by Indonesian villagers who alleged human rights violations by Indonesian military officials providing security to the oil giant.

The two sides agreed to resolve "all matters," said a joint filing from the opposing counsel that did not disclose terms of the agreement.

Filed in 2001, the case was brought by 11 villagers in Indonesia's Aceh province who allege they were victims of human rights violations committed by the Indonesian military between 1999 and 2003, including sexual assault, battery and unlawful detention.

A trial had been scheduled for May 24."Our clients...bravely took on one of the largest and most profitable corporations in the world and stuck with the fight for more than twenty years," said Agnieszka Fryszman, an attorney at Cohen Milstein.

"We are so pleased that now, on the eve of trial, we were able to secure a measure of justice for them and their families."    

The plaintiffs have stayed anonymous, "having brought this lawsuit in the face of grave threats to themselves and their fellow villagers," said a Cohen Milstein news release.

ExxonMobil "condemns human rights violations in any form, those include the actions asserted in this case against the Indonesian military," a company spokesperson told AFP.

"It should be noted while there were no allegations that any employee directly harmed any of the plaintiffs, the settlement brings closure for all parties."