Tag: Indonesian State Violence

Three hundred Freeport workers ordered home

Bintang  Papua, 14 October 2011Freeport orders 300 workers to ‘go home’

Timika: Reports that workers at Freeport have intimidated and threatened  other workers for refusing to take part in demonstrations and not wanting to go on strike have led to around three hundred Freeport workers being order to go home [dirumahkan’], according to the management of Freeport-Indonesia. Sixty of the three hundred  are staff-level employees joined the strike that commenced on 15 September.

The president-director and CEO of Freeport, Armando Mahler in Timika said on Thursday that the decision to order them home  was taken because they  were involved in intimidating workers who remained at work  and did not join the strike. ‘At the time, many of of the workers felt afraid and threatened. They fled from their barracks and went into hiding. The families of some of the workers who continued to work were also warned that their homes would be burnt down,’  said Armando.

He went on to say that after the strike is over and operations at the Freeport return to normal, the management intends to conduct an investigation to determine what mistakes each of the workers who were ordered home  had made.

Additionally, the director-executive, vice-president  and chief office administrator of the Freeport, Sinta Sirait, said that the decision to order home hundreds of workers meant that the third summons [see below] issued to non-staff employees who had joined the strike was in accordance with the Joint Working Agreement which had been agreed with the workers trade union, the SPSI.

Sinta called on all sides to respect the terms of the agreement that had been reached and not treat it as nothing more than a lip service. ‘We urge the workers not to think that being ordered home and then returning to work is only about establishing good industrial relations with the company.’

Another  manager of the company, John Rumainum said that in a spirit of goodwill, the company had called on the workers to return to work. The first summons was issued on 26 September,  followed by the second summons issued on 29 September and the third summons issued on 4 October.

He went on to say: ‘Those workers who returned to work before the third summons will be exempt from any sanctions But those who returned to work after the third summons, would be treated in accordance with the regulations…

He then said that all the sanctions issued by the company  would be reviewed, once the workers had returned to work.

[Translated and slightly abridged by TAPOL]

[COMMENT: This report reveals the attitude of the company towards hundreds of its employees who were clearly seeking to improve their working conditions during a strike that has been marked by  persistent threats from the company that runs one of the foremost and most profitable mines in the world. TAPOL]

Related articles
1

Photos: Indonesian Police open fire on student dormitory in Jayapura

By Nick Chesterfield/ westpapuamedia.info

October 13, 2011

Plain clothes Indonesian police agents in Jayapura opened fire late on October 12 outside a student dormitory, in another violent act of security force intimidation before the Third Papuan People’s Congress starts on October 16.

Local human rights sources and stringers for West Papua Media have reported that the Rasunawa dormitory, housing West Papuan students from Cenderawasih University (UNCEN) , came under attack at 11pm local time by five plain clothes police agents. The agents arrived in a new white Toyota Kijang with police license plate Ds. B 9481 PAA ( expiry June 2015).

Witnesses from the student dormitory, who have declined to be identified for their safety, have reported directly to West Papua Media that the agents arrived and started shooting immediately outside the dormitory. “For some reason, these five police goons (polisi preman) entered Rasunawaa and fired wildly, so that all the male resident of the three-story building came down and surrounded the five thugs”.

According to an activist with SONAMAPA WP (Papuan Students National Solidarity Organization) who was a witness to the altercation, the students interrogated the five men at the centre of the group. “They were feeling cornered and fired shots incessantly in the air, we think over 30 bullets were flying. ”

the Five Brimob Police shooters after being surrounded by Students

“We are still looking for eyewitnesses or if there is a gunshot victim from the incident or not – the investigation remains ongoing”.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

In dramatic scenes, the West Papuan students successfully detained the men until an entire platoon of uniformed police arrived, who then arrested the Indonesian gunmen by force. Uniformed police, also from Jayapura, were reportedly fired upon by one of the five men. However,the platoon of police also opened fire to disperse the crowd in order to retrieve their men.

Photographs of the incident provided to West Papua Media by witnesses appear to show the police vehicle used in the incident. According to the SONAMAPA WP activist, the new vehicle registration means the car has just been imported directly from Jakarta

A formal report has been made to the Rector of UNCEN, and students have reported to West Papua Media that they hold grave fears for a continuation of the incident, and for the safety of the residents of the Rasunawaa UNCEN domitories.

with local sources

Related articles
4

Greens call for release of West Papuans in custody

http://richard-di-natale.greensmps.org.au/content/media-release/greens-call-release-west-papuans-custody

 by RichardDiNatale in Media Release, West Papua

Greens’ spokesperson for West Papua, Richard Di Natale, has expressed concern over the arrests of West Papuan activists and is calling for their immediate release.

“The Greens are concerned for West Papuan human rights defenders, Henok Dori, Noak Kandipi and Melkianus Bleskadit, who were all arrested on their way to a conference last week, and are still in custody in Jayapura and Manokwari,” said Senator Di Natale.

“We understand that some of their colleagues have been released and we call for these West Papuans to be released.”

The conference was a preparatory event for the important Congress being held this weekend. The Congress brings together different human rights, faith and student groups across West Papua to discuss strategies for bringing peace and justice to the troubled Indonesian province.

“West Papuans have a right to meet and discuss their own future. This congress is a peaceful assembly. We ask the Indonesian government to stand by its stated support for the rights of its residents to move freely and assemble peacefully.”

The situation in West Papua remains critical, with a striking worker at the Freeport McMoran copper and gold mine shot dead this week, and further reports today of police shooting at a student dormitory in Jayapura.

Media contact: Andrew Blyberg             0457 901 600

Related articles
4

Two Papuans arriving to attend congress in Jayapura are arrested

Bintang Papua, 9 October 2011Jayapura: About two thousand people intending to attend the Third Papuan People’s Congress due to open on 16 October have already arrived in Jayapura from other parts of Papua. Some arrived by plane  while the majority travelled here by ship. The police have taken measures to guard the roads leading into Jayapura by examining all  passengers who arrive aboard the white ships.

All passengers who alight from the ships are subjected to sweepings undertaken by the police. A delegation from Serui was also subject to investigation. Ten people were taken into custody. After being interrogated, eight were released while two were held. The two who were held, Noak Kandipi and Henok Dorri, were found to be in possession of sharp implement in violation of the law.

The chief of police of Papua confirmed these arrests, saying that they were carrying weapons without the necessary permit.

The chairman of the congress organising committee, Selpius Bobii described this as an action of terror against Papuans arriving from outside who were coming to attend the congress.

‘Their aim is to warn delegates from other parts of the country against coming to Jayapura to attend the congress.’  he said.speaking at a press conference held at the office of the Dewan Adat Papua. He called on the army and the police not to arrest people and damage the programme of the congress, saying that this was very dangerous indeed. ‘We call on the police to release the two people immediately,’ he said. He also called  on all Papuans not to be provoked by issues that are being launched to damage harmonious relations with the community.

A member of the monitoring and advocacy team express his deep regrets that emergency laws were being used in a part of the country which was not in a state of emergency. ‘Moreover,’ he said, ‘people coming from the kampungs know absolutely nothing about these laws.’ He said that the monitoring team would assist the two and said that they did not know whether the two had been designated as suspects.

Related articles
4

Kontras condemns police shooting of Freeport workers

Kontras, the Commission for the Disappeared and Victims of Violence has condemned the shooting of Freeport workers who were seeking negotiations with the management of the company. Since the commencement of the strike on 15 September there has been no sign that the management is seeking to provide the space for dialogue which could accommodate the interests of the two sides.

During an action on 10 October, the workers protested against the company for recruiting new workers to replace those now on strike. We have received information that some eight thousand workers  were involved in this action. They marched from the secretariat of the SBSI, the trade union, to the culverts, a distance of about 500 metres along a road that was six metres wide. A short distance away, hundreds of policemen were standing on guard.

The police tried to disperse the workers action as they were seeking to meet the management of the company.. Having failed to meet the management, the workers burned some vehicles believed to belong to the company. The police then opened fire on the workers: Petrus Ayamiseba  who works in catering at the company  was shot in the waist and died. Six others were wounded, Leo Wandagau, Alius Komba, Melkius Rumbiak, Yunus Nguliduan, Philiton Kogoya and Ahmad. Some of the policemen were also injured.

We regard the shooting and violence as an act of intervention and intimidation against industrial relations as guaranteed in Law13/2003 on Labour Affairs. The government, in this case the Department of Labour and Transmigration, should be playing a role to guarantee the basic rights of the workers as stipulated in that law, in particular with regard to legal procedures in article 137.

Furthermore, it is clearly stated that no one shall interfere with strike actions undertaken by the workers. (article 143) and workers on strike may not be replaced by other workers in any form whatsoever (article 144).

The presence and acts of violence by hundreds of police have damaged the efforts of the workers  to seek negotiations with the namagement. The police have clearly sided with Freeport  by undertaking  patrols and protection of the company and have been receiving monthly contributions (see letter from head of operations no b/918/IV/2011). The function of the police should  be to protect the people,

The shooting and acts of violence have also violated a number of regulations. Internally, the police should implement the regulations of the police  Furthermore the police have also violated a number of other laws such as the Human Rights Law of 1999 and Law 12/2005 on Ratification of the Covenant on Civil and Political Rights.

Kontras therefore calls on the police:

1. To conduct a thorough investigation into the shooting and acts of violence that occurred on 10 October,

2. To pursue legal procedures  that are impartial, credible, accountable and transparent with regard  to the shooting and acts of violence.

3. Should take steps to ensure that the police maintain their independence in all industrial relations disputes so as to ensure that they do not trigger acts of violence and other breaches of the law.

Jakarta, 10 October 2011

[Translated by TAPOL]

Related articles
2

Create a website or blog at WordPress.com

Up ↑