Government urges police to be stern
Government urges police to be stern
JAKARTA (JP): The government urged on Monday the police to
take tougher actions against protesters to protect the operations
of coal mining company PT Kaltim Prima Coal in East Kalimantan
and gold mining company PT Newmont Minahasa Raya in North
Sulawesi.
Director general at the Ministry of Mines and Energy Surna
Tjahja Djajadiningrat said the situation at the mining sites of
both companies, already rocked by many protests has been
worsening and the police need to take action.
"There is no other way but to ask the police to act sternly
against the protesters," he told The Jakarta Post.
He said he would send a letter to the National Police chief
Lt. Gen. Rusdihardjo asking for special attention at KPC's mining
site.
He noted, however, that the letter had yet to be approved by
Minister of Mines and Energy Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono.
KPC stopped operation on June 15 after some 150 striking
workers took control of important mining facilities to demand a
15 percent salary increase.
He said he had also received reports that Newmont had been
forced to close its gold mining operation due to protests from
the local people.
Surna said that KPC was willing to resume negotiations with
the workers, provided that they leave the mining site.
He said that although he respected the workers' right to voice
their demands, he could not tolerate their action.
"The strike is causing losses to the company and the state,"
he added.
He said the local police should not hesitate to step in and
dismiss the workers at the mine, since the Regional Committee for
the Settlement of Labor Disputes (P4D) has already ruled the
strike illegal.
KPC has said that it was loosing Rp 3 billion (US$348,837)
sales per day due to the strike and was also facing penalties
from buyers for failing to supply coal on time.
The company said that most of its 2,600 workers did not
support the strike and local residents have expressed intentions
to drive out the protesting workers themselves.
Surna said he sees a growing trend of people forcing their
will on mining companies.
"I fear that should we fail to solve the problem with the
workers at KPC, others might imitate their action," he explained.
Aside from KPC, gold mining company PT Kelian Equatorial
Mining (KEM) has also stopped operating since April due to a land
dispute with residents of the Kutai Barat regency, East
Kalimantan.
Locals have demanded more land compensation and have blocked
the only access road leading to KEM's gold mine.
Both, KEM and KPC are subsidiaries of Australian mining giant,
Rio Tinto.
Surna said that Newmont has been forced to halt its operation
in the Ratatotok regency, North Sulawesi because of land
compensation demands like KEM has received.
According to Newmont's press release, former land owners of
its mining area rejected on Monday negotiations with the company
and have instead blocked the access road to the gold mine.
The claims by the locals date back to the early 1990's when
nearly 400 individuals sold their land to Newmont, the statement
said, adding that it was now facing 24 new claims.(bkm)