Statement of GSBI: DEADLY TRAGEDY OF WORK ACCIDENT DOZENS OF WORKERS DIED UNDER NICKEL DOWNSTREAM WITH NATIONAL STRATEGIC PROJECT STATUS (PSN) - JOKOWI.

 

Statement of GSBI 

DEADLY TRAGEDY OF WORK ACCIDENT DOZENS OF WORKERS DIED UNDER NICKEL DOWNSTREAM WITH NATIONAL STRATEGIC PROJECT STATUS (PSN) - JOKOWI.

"PT ITSS - IMIP and the Indonesian Government must take full responsibility for the recovery of all victims of the PT ITSS nickel smelter furnace explosion, and provide adequate compensation and livelihood guarantees for their families, education guarantees for the children of victims who died and guarantees for their future in getting work"

Greetings Democracy!!

The Center of Indonesian Labor Struggle (GSBI) expresses its deep concern and condolences to all victims of the smelter furnace explosion that occurred at PT ITSS (Indonesia Tsingshan Stainless Steel) one of the companies in the PT IMIP (Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park) area. Precisely on Sunday, December 24, 2023. Until this release was published the number of casualties continued to grow, on the first day of the tragedy 13 workers died and now an additional 6 people died so that a temporary total of 19 workers died (13 people died at the scene and 6 people died in the hospital) and ± 32 workers were seriously injured who are currently being treated at the hospital.

This incident is not the first time. Since the opening of nickel mines in Morowali in 2015 and at the same time part of President Jokowi's National Strategic Project (PSN). There have been 20 incidents recorded until December 2023. Nickel mining companies with the status of National Strategic Projects (PSN) have repeatedly experienced similar incidents and continue to result in the loss of the lives of dozens of workers / workers and hundreds of workers suffering moderate - severe injuries to permanent disability throughout 2015 - 2023. Moreover, this national strategic project is projected as a downstream industry that supports energy transition, including as the main supporter of electric car/motorcycle batteries. This is one of the Jokowi government's models of equitable energy transition!

GSBI found information from various direct and indirect sources, that the implementation of OSH at PT ITSS is very poor, negligent and perfunctory. How could it not be, for an ambulance car in the IMIP area of more than 2,000 hectares and more than 31 operating companies there are only no more than 5 ambulance cars, while the OSH officers at PT ITSS are estimated to be less than the number mandated by Law No. 1 of 1970 concerning work safety (100 workers: 1 OSH officer) including the composition of the OSH officers, some of whom are workers. 1 Year 1970 on work safety (100 workers : 1 OSH Officer) including the composition of OSH officers, some of whom are foreign workers who cannot speak Indonesian (at PT ITSS based on GSBI's direct sources, OSH officers use orange colored Helmet attributes, but when this tragedy occurred, not a single OSH officer was available to provide first aid). In fact, GSBI also found information that several workers died from jumping down during the explosion due to difficulty in saving themselves and could not be evacuated because there was no special evacuation route in the workplace during the incident.

Currently various government agencies after the news of the smelter furnace explosion at PT ITSS became national news are racing to send teams to conduct investigations to find the cause of the incident including teams from Coordinating Ministry for Maritime Affairs and Investment, Police etc. In this case GSBI suspects that the results will not be much different from the furnace explosion at PT GNI which claimed the lives of 2 workers in December 2022. Which until now the news of the results of the investigation has never been made public. Because, intimidation after intimidation has been carried out by the PT ITSS company to workers / workers who spread the news of the PT ITSS smelter furnace explosion with the threat of being laid off and so on, the threat is channeled through production leaders in work brefing and WA group messages.

Compensation for workers who died as a result of the deadly tragedy was announced by the company as Rp. 600 million which was previously only Rp. 170 million. For GSBI it is appropriate that workers who died should be compensated to their heirs with this amount. However, of course this is not comparable to the loss of the backbone of the family forever. So, in addition to the compensation, the company and the government must/should guarantee the livelihood of the victim's family and children, including education up to adulthood and the guarantee of getting a job for the family and children of victims who have died.

Indonesia has the second highest deforestation rate in the world, after Brazil. The opening and expansion of large-scale monoculture plantations such as oil palm, timber plantations for pulp and paper, as well as mines for nickel, coal, gold, oil, food estates, etc. in Indonesia, causes widespread forest loss and land degradation. Such practices have resulted in the release of greenhouse gas emissions of around 79% of Indonesia's total emissions and was the fourth largest producer of greenhouse gas emissions in the world in 2015, at the same time uprooting communities from their living space.

The fact is that downstreaming is not as sweet as President Jokowi's idea, which will also be continued by his son Gibran, who is currently Prabowo's vice president candidate who will compete in the 2024 election. In addition to environmental damage, the lives of laborers who work will continue to be the object of the "ferocity" of a work environment that neglects to implement the OSH (Occupational Safety and Health) system if there is no fundamental improvement in improving OSH regulations and the government's commitment to enforcing labor laws. Throughout this time, the deadly tragedy of work accidents will continue to occur in the world of labor.

For GSBI, Jokowi's downstreaming style that will have a positive impact on economic progress and people's welfare is just "nonsense and a big lie" to the Indonesian people. Because in fact it is depriving the people of their rights to living space, labor rights with Omnibus Law on Job Creation and taking the lives of workers in work environment conditions that ignore OSH system, and damage to the environment / land. In addition, it will further strengthen the service of the Jokowi government as a red carpet giver to the oligarchy and foreign monopoly capitalist companies which is a form of its diversity towards imperialism. Because downstreaming without national industrialization as is currently happening will only enlarge and advance industries in foreign countries such as China which accommodates around 90% of Indonesian nickel exports and creates super profits for industries in China. By doing so, it exacerbates injustice in the energy transition agenda and maintains/preserves Indonesia as a producer of raw and semi-finished materials for foreign industries.

On the basis of these facts, GSBI [The Center of Indonesian Labor Struggle] expresses its position and demands to the government of the Republic of Indonesia:

1.       PT ITSS - IMIP and the Government of Indonesia must take full responsibility for the recovery of all victims of the PT ITSS Nickel smelter furnace explosion, and provide adequate compensation as well as livelihood guarantees, and education for the children of victims who died. As well as the certainty of getting a job for the future of the children of the victims who died.

2.       Immediately form an Independent Investigation Team involving elements of Trade Union Organizations, NGOs, Komnas HAM, and ILO to ensure the results of the investigation into the deadly work accident tragedy at PT ITSS get objective results.

3.       Stop the intimidation carried out by PT ITSS against workers who want to report or provide information freely on the working conditions that caused the tragedy of 19 workers died and dozens of workers were moderately-heavily injured due to the Deadly Tragedy of Work Accidents at PT ITSS - Morowali.

4.       Guarantee and Respect the basic rights of workers including the right to freedom of expression, the right to organize, including the right to strike! All of this is guaranteed by Indonesian legislation and also the ILO Convention.

5.       Fully implement and enforce the OHS system in the workplace and ensure the availability of complete and appropriate PPE in accordance with the law.

6.       Impose strict sanctions against OHS violations that are alleged to have become a long-standing practice of PT ITSS.

7.       We demand, stop claiming the nickel downstream project is a clean energy transition project. And we also demand that the Climate Crisis and a just energy transition be resolved fundamentally. Namely, changing the agricultural production system as a whole which requires the elimination of the monopoly power of landlords over rural farmers, and build of national industrialization that serves the advancement of agricultural production systems and increased agricultural productivity for food security and the opening of the widest possible employment opportunities free from foreign investment intervention.

Thus this statement is submitted, to be considered and used as appropriate.

Jakarta, December 27, 2023

Sincerely,

Central Leadership Board 

The Center of Indonesian Labor Struggle  (GSBI)