The miners of seven mines in the Federation of Bosnia and Herzegovina (FBiH) have made a decision yesterday to end the protest in front of the building of the Government of the FBiH in Sarajevo. They stressed that they would not give up their demands and that coal production would be suspended until further notice.
Sinan Husic, the president of the Independent Trade Union of Mine Workers of the FBiH, confirmed that the miners canceledthe protest, but will not continue production because “their demands have not been met”.
“We waited until 3 p.m. for the Government’s response. We did not get it, we understood it as a non-acceptance of our requests. We are going back. We are suspending production. We endured one night, we will not risk our health anymore,” Husic told yesterday.
Furthermore, he pointed out that, regardless of bad weather conditions and the fact that today is the Statehood Day of BiH, they have a strategic commitment and attitude of all workers in coal mines within the concern Public Utility Elektroprivreda BiH to continue in a labor and union fight in a certain way, to achieve the realization of all requirements.
Wives of the miners, other family members, and citizens who show solidarity with miners joined them yesterday morning and offered them help in the form of food, drinks, and blankets to keep them warm. On Tuesday, the miners invited the band “Dubioza kolektiv” to join them in the protests, which they did yesterday.
The miners demand the repeal of the rulebook according to which the amount of the basic salary of diggers in the pit is reduced from the current 850 BAM to 570 BAM, the dismissal of the director-general of Elektroprivreda BiH and the director of the coal mine within that company, as well as the determination of a minimum salary of 1.000 BAM in mining in FBiH.
Once again, the miners invited all workers and citizens to support them and join them in Hamdija Cemerlica Street. This street was still blocked yesterday, and the Ministry of the Internal Affairs of the Canton Sarajevo (CS) announced that they will not unblock it.
Last night, the FBiH Government formed a negotiating team for talks with the representatives of the miners, but the miners refused the negotiations.
The President of the Independent Trade Union of Mine Workers of the FBiH, Sinan Husic, mentioned yesterday that he would not give up his demands and that this was the moment when “they must not be defeated”.
“Several requests from their list are logical and we will accept them, some are not logical and we need to discuss it. It is impossible to replace seven directors from seven mines at once. It would bring the system to collapse,” Djindjic noted.
E.Dz.
Source: BHRT
