Tripatra workers agree to end protest

Workers of PT Tripatra, the main contrator of the country's largest oil producer PT Caltex Pasific Indonesia (CPI) agreed here on Tuesday to end their protests after the company expressed its readiness to meet their demand.

The agreement was made in tough negotiations mediated by the local legislative council (DPRD), which arranged a special meeting to hear the workers' complaint and responses from the company and related parties including the local manpower office, PT Caltex and the police.

Tripatra, which handles most of Caltex production and exploration activities, agreed to reemploy a number of workers, recently sacked by the company due to their involvement in protests and to pay their suspended salaries for December.

The workers, on the other hand, agreed to negotiate their other demand including an increase in their wages and allowance.

The protests strarted two weeks ago when Kosasih and his friends protested Tripatra management for its unfair treatment against them.

The men had been arrested by the police for allegedly stealing the company's equipment but they were later freed due to the lack of evidence. The men then demanded the company to rehabilitate their names and reemploy them but their protests were left unheeded. They continued their protests, which later gained wide supports from most of the workers in major oil operations in Duri and Dumai.

The demonstration started growing larger and larger beginning last week as thousands of the company's workers showed their symphaty to Kosasih and his friends, causing a total halt to the company's activities. (*)