Workers' Riot in North Morowali, Ministry of Manpower Deploys Investigation Team

JAKARTA - The Minister of Manpower, Ida Fauziyah, dispatched an investigation team to investigate workers' rioting at the nickel mining company, PT Gunbuster Nickel Industri (GNI) in North Morowali Regency, Central Sulawesi. complete.

The Ministry of Manpower formed an investigation team from elements of the labor inspectorate, mediators, and delivery workers to the PT GNI location.

"The Ministry of Manpower team will continue to assist the Regional Labor Inspection Team to deal with problems that occur. This includes preparing steps to prevent similar incidents", Ida told Antara, Monday, January 16.

Her party has coordinated intensively with the ranks of the North Morowali Regency Manpower Office and the Central Sulawesi Province Manpower Office to find out the causes of the anarchist action.

"We are intensively coordinating with the Central Sulawesi Provincial Manpower Office and North Morowali Regency Manpower Office and asking both parties, namely representatives of the National Workers' Union (SPN) and PT GNI, to immediately mediate to resolve labor issues", she said.

Based on the information collected, Ida revealed that the riots were related to labor issues demanded by SPN representatives, including demands for OSH, wages, and layoffs, so the assumption that the riots were triggered by the presence of foreign workers was not true.

"Some of the workers' demands have been accepted and will be fulfilled by the company. However, we are still carrying out tracing, mediation, and investigations with the local Manpower Office", she said.

She expressed concern over the demonstration which ended in anarchy at the PT GNI location in Bunta Village, East Petasia, North Morowali Regency, Saturday, January 14 evening. The rioting of workers at the nickel mining company caused the death of workers at the project site.

"The Ministry of Manpower is very concerned and sorry for the anarchist actions that caused casualties in the incident", she said.