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Indonesia Roundup No 34 - September 25-October 1, 2006

[Indonesia roundup is a weekly compilation of actions, demonstrations and protests taken from Indonesian language news sources produced by the INDOLEFT News Service and the People's Democratic Party (PRD). Please note that actions already covered by English language media sources are generally omitted. Compiled and translated by James Balowski.]

Actions, demos, protests...

  • Students arrested at demonstration in Jakarta
  • West Kalimantan hospital staff take strike action
  • Acehnese protesters blockade road, demand compensation
  • Student protest in Makassar almost ends in clash
  • Maspion workers protest over mass dismissals, outsourcing
  • Residents oppose government plan to dispose of Lapindo mud
  • Makassar students oppose plan to dump Lapindo mud in sea
  • Student call for investigation in to corruption at BRR
  • Bandung workers demand payment of outstanding wages, severance pay
  • Former Hotel Indonesia employees demand pensions
  • Greenpeace activists 'dump' Lapindo mud during action in Jakarta
  • Bandung students call for quick resolution to mud disaster
  • Yogyakarta student oppose rice imports
  • Shipyard workers strike, demand resignation of director
  • Protesters demand CSIS be disbanded
  • Residents oppose mining operations in Lengowangi
  • Victims of mud disaster refuse relocation
  • Farmers oppose closure of Calo Dam floodgates

    • Students arrested at demonstration in Jakarta

    A demonstration at the South Jakarta District Court on September 25 demanding the release of Faung, a student from the Syarif Hidayatullah Islamic State University who is on trial for insulting the president, has ended in chaos.

    The demonstration started peacefully but protester became angry when they were not allowed into the courthouse grounds. The students then unleashed their anger by battering down the front gate. When police tried to take control of the situation protesters and police started pushing and shoving each other. Three students were arrested and taken away.

    Earlier the students held a theatrical performance in which they brought a wooden cage with the writing "A victim of Suharto's cruelty". Inside the cage was a student playing the role of a prisoner who the students threatened with pistols made from the stems of banana trees.

    The students also questioned the justice promised by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono (SBY) during his election campaign. "Where is the justice that SBY said he would uphold during his administration. When the reality is that he arrests activists", said one of the demonstrators. (Detik.com, 25/9/2006)

    West Kalimantan hospital staff take strike action

    The entire staff of the Abdul Aziz Singkawang Public Hospital in West Kalimantan went on strike recently demanding that the hospital's director resign from his post for acting in an unfair and authoritarian manner. Although doctors are still treating existing patients and emergency cases, the strike, which has now entered its forth day, has brought hospital services to a stand still. Disgruntled staff even walled off a number of wards. (Liputan 6, 25/9/2006)

    Acehnese protesters blockade road, demand compensation

    Residents in the Leupung sub-district of Greater Aceh blockaded the Banda Aceh-Lamno highway using wood and barbed wire on September 25 demanding compensation for land cleared for the construction of the road. As a result only two-wheeled vehicles were able to pass through.

    According to Leupung resident Marwan Yunus, they blockaded the road because the government has yet to pay them compensation for land cleared for the construction of the highway, which had previously destroyed by the tsunami. "We will not reopen the road until the government pays the compensation", said Yunus.

    Leupung sub-district head Baharuddin Aji meanwhile admitted that this is not the first time residents have blockaded the road saying that compensation had already been included in the October regional budget by that local resident had become "impatient". (Aceh Kita, 25/9/2006)

    Student protest in Makassar almost ends in clash

    Hundreds of students from the Alauddin State Islamic University in the South Sulawesi provincial capital of Makassar demonstrated on September 26 over the expulsion of two of their colleagues. The two students, Syamsuddin and M. Yusri, who are leaders of the Student Executive Council (BEM) were expelled from the campus for organising earlier demonstrations against rectorate policies.

    Violence almost broke out when campus security personnel tried to prevent the students from sealing off the rectorate building. Earlier, the students had blockaded a road in front of the campus by setting fire to old tyres. (Liputan 6, 26/09/2006)

    Maspion workers protest over mass dismissals, outsourcing

    Hundreds of workers from the company PT Maspion IV demonstrated again on September 27 over the dismissal of 365 permanent employees from Maspion's Ishizuka division that produces glass and chinaware.

    Ismail, the coordinator of the Federation of Metal, Electronic and Machinery Trade Unions (FSP LEM), said that outsourcing is threatening their jobs and that they are concerned that permanent employees in the other divisions will be also replace by outsourced labour. "Because of this therefore we reject the dismissals and are asked for an end to outsourcing at Maspion", he said.

    "As well as not inviting us to negotiate to determine severance pay, the management also went to our families' homes to hand over the money. The families at home who didn't know anything about it were the ones that signed for and received the severance pay", said Ismail. (Kompas Cyber Media, 27/9/2006)

    Residents oppose government plan to dispose of Lapindo mud

    Dozens of residents from Maduro, Wates Negoro and Kunjorowesi went to the Regional House of Representatives (DPRD) in the Central Java city of Mojokerto on September 27 to oppose the government's plan to dispose of mud from PT Lapindo Brantas in abandoned sand and rock mining sites in the Sekantong area of Mojokerto. Aside from the acrid smell, the residents also said they were concerned that water seepage from the mud would pollute their wells when the wet season arrives.

    The residents, who said they were angry because the plan to dispose of the mud was made before obtaining permission from the Mojokerto regional government, threatened to mobilise even more people to close off the area if no meaningful action is taken within seven days. DPRD members who met with the protesters said that they would convey the residents' complaints to the relevant parties. (Liputan 6, 27/9/2006)

    Makassar students oppose plan to dump Lapindo mud in sea

    Opposition to the government's plan to dispose of the Lapindo mud outflow in the sea has also come from environmentalist in Makassar. Hundreds of students demonstrated in front of the Muhammadiyah and the Makassar State University on September 27 saying that the disposal of the mud would damage the ecosystem and result in a decline in fish catches. The students also called on the government to take immediate action against those that caused the Lapindo mud disaster and to resolve the problem without causing financial loss to local residents or damage to the environment. (Liputan 6, 27/9/2006)

    Student call for investigation in to corruption at BRR

    Student from Nias island in North Sumatra under the banner of the Nias Development Forum (FPN) demonstrated at the North Sumatra DPRD on September 27. They were calling on lawmakers and law enforcement officials to investigate a suspected corruption case at the Nias Rehabilitation and Reconstruction Agency (BRR). The protesters said that aside from delays in the construction of housing and infrastructure post the Nias earthquake, those houses that have been build are not fit to live in. (Liputan 6, 27/9/2006)

    Bandung workers demand payment of outstanding wages, severance pay

    Hundreds of workers from the musical instrument factory PT Tiga Negeri Raya in the West Java provincial capital of Bandung demonstrated at the Bandung DPRD on September 27. They were calling on the company to pay outstanding wages and severance pay after the company closed down in August. They added that the reason for the closure is still unclear. (Liputan 6, 27/9/2006)

    Former Hotel Indonesia employees demand pensions

    Around 100 former employees of the Indonesia Hotel demonstrated against the hotel’s management at its offices in South Jakarta on September 27. They were demanding the payment of pensions owed to some 800 employees amounting to 3.7 billion rupiah that they believe has been embezzled by the management.

    In negotiations with the management, workers asked that they sign an agreement that the wages would be paid immediately, but this was refused. Sujono, a representative of the protesting workers said that according to the stipulations of the Jakarta Labour and Transmigration Office, the pensions should have been paid on March 21. This was also upheld in a court order issued by the Central Jakarta District Court on September 19. (Tempo Interactive, 27/9/2006)

    Following the meeting, the management said that 3 billion rupiah had already been transferred to cover the pension payments but refused to provide any documentary evidence saying they had not expected the protesters to come to the offices.

    Greenpeace activists 'dump' Lapindo mud during action in Jakarta

    Activists from the international environmental group Greenpeace held an action in front of the offices of the Coordinating Minister for People's Welfare in Central Jakarta on September 27. The protesters, who were calling on the government to address the Lapindo mud disaster in East Java, brought 700 kilograms of Lapindo mud in 25 buckets which was poured out onto the ground in front of the building. (Kompas Cyber Media, 27/9/2006)

    Bandung students call for quick resolution to mud disaster

    Students in Bandung held a theatrical action on September 28 depicting the suffering of the victims of the Lapindo hot mud disaster. The students, who pointed out that the Lapindo mud outflow had now been going on for four months, said the problem must be resolved quickly. They also called on the government to protect the residents of villages in Porong that have inundated with mud and for Lapindo to pay appropriate compensation. (Liputan 6, 28/9/2006)

    Yogyakarta student oppose rice imports

    Students from a number of campuses in the Central Java city of Yogyakarta demonstrated at the Yogyakarta State Logistics Agency (BPS) offices on September 28 against the government's plan to import rice. The protesters, who ended the demonstration by burning several sacks of imported rice, said that the importation of rice would threaten the continuity of domestic rice production. (Liputan 6, 28/9/2006)

    Shipyard workers strike, demand resignation of director

    Around 400 employees from PT Indonesia Shipping Industries (PT IKI) in Makassar went on strike on September 29 in protest against the attitude of the executive director, Ir Amirullah Pase, who they said was authoritarian.

    The protesters began the strike at 10am by sealing off the entrance to PT IKI to prevent company directors from entering their offices. They also put up banners and posters with demands such as "The executive director must resign" and "Starting from this second, the management is prohibited from entering the grounds of PT IKI".

    In a press release the strikers said that there had been a manipulation of financial reports by Pase because the reality on the ground was different from the information contained reports. "The reports are always good. Whereas the companies debt is increasing", said one of the employees, Usman.

    This is the third action by the employees who also went on strike on September 23 and 24. The protesters threatened to continue the strike if their demands are not met. (Detik.com, 29/9/2006)

    Protesters demand CSIS be disbanded

    On September 29 protesters from the Peoples Opposition Front (BOR) demonstrated at the offices of the Center for Strategic and International Studies (CSIS) accusing the body of supporting the New Order regime of former President Suharto and misrepresenting the history of Indonesia’s founding President Sukarno. BOR chose to hold the action outside the CSIS auditorium to coincide with a seminar titled “Re-examining 30 September 1965 as an Historical Event”.

    “We are demanding that CSIS stop publishing written works or holding seminars that distort the history of Brother [Su]Karno. If not it would be better if it were disbanded”, said BOR chairperson Ana Nurhasanah at the CSIS offices in Jakarta.

    In speeches they also demanded that the government correct distortions in the historical account of the Indonesian Communist Party (PKI) and called for the arrest of the authors of the book “The Sukarno File”. “We are also asking for an end to the restrictions on the activities of all [former] members and children of the PKI”, added Nurhasanah. (Detik.com, 29/9/2006)

    Residents oppose mining operations in Lengowangi

    Residents living in the vicinity of the Lengowangi oil exploration site at the Suci village in the Manyar sub-district of Gresik, East Java, have collected signatures for a petition opposing mining operations. Although mine operator East Java Joint Operating Body Pertamina-Petrochina have been socialising the benefits of mining activities, residents say they are more concerned about their safety.

    The residents, most of whom come from the residential areas of Gresik Kota Baru and Griya Kembangan Asri, oppose the mine because of fears that it will result in a disaster similar to the Lapindo hot mud outflow in Porong and the hydrogen sulfide gas discharge at the Sukowati Bojonegoro oil well.

    The secretary the Suci Village Manyar Sub-district Residents Forum of Concern, Agus Wiyono said that copies of the petition had been sent to the House of Representatives (DPR), related government departments and Pertamina-Petrochina. “We don’t need socialisation. We want safety. We do not want a disaster to occur as happened in Sidoarjo and Bojonegoro”, said Wiyono on September 29. (Kompas Cyber Media, 29/9/2006)

    Victims of mud disaster refuse relocation

    Residents from four villages in the Porong sub-district of Sidoarjo demonstrated on September 30 against the government’s plan to relocate them outside of Java. The protesters, whose homes have been inundated with mud and are no longer considered inhabitable, say they prefer compensation to being relocated.

    The residents held the protest on top of a mud containment dam because the public cemetery they had originally intended to use had also been flooded. After holding prayers they gave speeches in which the said they no longer trusted Lapindo and demanded compensation for their land and homes. (Liputan, 30/9/2006)

    Farmers oppose closure of Calo Dam floodgates

    Some 2,000 farmers from four regencies protested the closure of the Calo Dam floodgates in Sukoharjo, Central Java, on October 1. The farmers, who came from the regencies of Sukoharjo, Karanganyar, Sragen and Wonogiri, are attempting to prevent the closure of the dam because they say they will not have enough water to irrigate their crops. (Liputan 6, 1/10/2006)

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