Jakarta (ANTARA News) - Indonesia is pushing for the endorsement of the revised code of practice on safety and health in opencast mines, the Permanent Mission of Indonesia to the United Nations in Geneva said.

Experts from eight countries, including Indonesia, have revised the code of practice during a meeting held at the International Labour Organization (ILO) Office in Geneva from Oct 16 to 20, the mission stated in a press statement released on Tuesday.

During the meeting, the experts from the governments of the eight countries, along with those representing employers and employees, have intensively discussed and revised the code of practice, which was last published by ILO in 1991, it noted.

The ILO Governing Body is expected to endorse the document of the code of practice at its 332nd session to be held in March 2018.

"ILO has specifically asked the Indonesian government to be involved in the discussion of the revised code of practice, which will later serve as a reference for countries to formulate the occupational health and safety policy in the mining sector," Ambassador Michael Tene, deputy chief of the Permanent Mission of Indonesia to the United Nations in Geneva, remarked.

Tene revealed that the ILOs request reflected its recognition of the Indonesian governments commitment to push for the creation of fair jobs in various sectors, including mining industry.

Ade Kurdiman, secretary general of the Indonesian Association of Mining Safety Professions (APKPI), explained that the code of practice to be published by ILO is important for Indonesia as the mining sector is one of the pillars of development in the country.

"The ILO code of practice contains general principles and specific guidelines to prevent and protect (mining accidents) and corrective efforts related to the occupational health and safety in opencast mines," he pointed out.

(S012/INE)

Reported by Yuni Arisandy

EDITED BY INE.

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