Nethy Dharma Somba, Timika – Strikers have finally returned to work after a long work stoppage at giant copper mining company PT Freeport Indonesia (PT FI) in Papua, following the signing of a Joint Working Agreement (PKB) between the PT FI Mining, Energy and Chemical Workers' trade union and the company's management.

Mining activities have resumed as observed by The Jakarta Post on Thursday and Friday. On Thursday, the Post arrived at the processing plant, which was virtually deserted, with only two employees seen working. The rock crushing plant has begun operations again. Of the four plants, only two plants were in operation at that time.

Mining materials from the open pit and underground mines in Grassberg were being channeled by conveyor belts to the plants to be processed into concentrate and made ready for shipment.

On Friday, the number of workers in the field appeared larger, especially during the shift changeover at 5 a.m. local time (3 a.m. Jakarta time), when those who had just finished their shifts gathered at the tram terminal to wait for buses to return to their barracks, while incoming workers alighted from buses to board trams taking them up to the Grassberg open-pit mine. Workers have also resumed activities in the underground mines.

At around 6 a.m., a larger convoy of buses arrived at the location. Not all the miners had started working because many of them were still in Timika. Some of the strikers have not yet returned to Tembagapura, while those who did not strike returned to Timika or applied for vacation due to the internal problems at the mine.

After the signing of the PKB, a new problem seems to have arisen, with conflict breaking out between those workers who went on strike and those who did not.

Some of the striking workers are believed to have intimidated and assaulted those who did not strike, thus causing fear among many workers, prompting them not to report to work. "I was hit and accused of being a traitor but I did not fight back," said one employee.

The abuse toward non-strikers is due to a sense of injustice among those who fought for their demands by striking, seeing the fruits of their struggle also benefiting those who chose not to strike.

"We were given a choice whether to strike or not and those who refused were allowed not to strike. I opted not to strike and remain working in the mine due to my responsibility and duties and for the sake of my family, but it turned out this way," he said.

The workers have called on the management to immediately take steps to resolve the issue. Due to escalating levels of intimidation and abuse, the plant was closed for a day and re-opened following a meeting between the management, workers' unions and workers.

PT FI employee development executive vice president Djoko Basyuni said he had met with the workers' unions and employees for consolidation so that everything could return to normal.

Prior to returning to the mines following the strike, Djoko said the management carried out a reconciliation program, but acts of violence continued. Djoko expressed regret because the workers had promised not to resort to intimidation over the PKB.

"Let's respect what we agreed upon and return to work for collective progress. If there are still differences, they should be discussed amicably," he said. The PKB was signed at the Hotel Crown Plaza in Jakarta on Jan. 25.