Indonesia protests against labour law
PROTESTERS clashed with police as thousands of conservative Muslims marched in Indonesia’s capital to demand the revocation of a law they say will cripple labour rights.
Authorities blocked streets leading to the Presidential Palace in Jakarta, where clashes between riot police and rock-throwing demonstrators, including workers and students, broke out last Thursday.
The protests turned violent in some cities across the world’s most populous Muslim nation but calm had largely returned to Jakarta.
Yesterday, the normally clogged streets there were nearly empty of cars, embassies were closed and many businesses were shuttered.
Waving black flags bearing the Islamic declaration of faith, several thousand demonstrators, many wearing white Islamic robes, filled a major thoroughfare.
The Job Creation Law approved by Indonesia’s parliament last week is expected to substantially change the labour system and natural resources management. It
amended 79 previous laws and is intended to improve bureaucratic efficiency as part of efforts by President Joko Widodo’s administration to attract more investment. The demonstrators say the law will hurt workers by reducing severance pay, removing restrictions on manual labour by foreign workers, increasing the use of outsourcing, and converting monthly salaries to hourly wages.
Protest organiser Shobri Lubis told the crowd that they support workers and students in fighting for the rejection of the law.
“It’s undeniable that the Job Creation Law is intended for foreign economic domination in Indonesia and not to side with local workers,” he said.
Clashes broke out in the afternoon when riot police used tear gas to try to disperse protesters who were attempting to reach roads leading to the heavily guarded palace compound and the Chinatown area. Protesters hurled rocks, bricks and bottles.