Jakarta – May Day protesters briefly stopped their 100,000-people march, from the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle to the Bung Karno stadium, at the Constitutional Court, in order to voice opposition to the government's fuel policies, on Tuesday.

"We workers are legitimate Indonesian citizens. Our taxes contributed 35 percent to this year's state budget. And what do we get? The farmers get fertilizer. The fishermen get diesel. The poor get direct cash assistance (BLT). We get a big zero. A big zero," chairman of the Confederation of Indonesian Workers' Union (KSPI), Said Iqbal, said via loudspeaker.

"The government says that they have to cut fuel subsidies because of increased global fuel prices. We reject that," said the chairman of the Confederation of the All-Indonesian Workers' Union (KSPSI), Andi Ghani Nena Wea. "We reject Article 7, Clause 6a."

Andi referred to the clause in the 2012 revised state budget which allows the government to increase the price of subsidized fuels if Indonesian Crude Prices (ICP) increased by 15 percent within six months.

The government has been struggling to find a way to avoid overspending on fuel subsidies.

The government was forced to suspend plans to implement a policy to increase fuel prices by one-third from Rp 4,500 (49 US cent) a liter, initially scheduled for April 1, after mounting public pressure and a political drama within the House of Representatives.

Now it is seeking another option – banning subsidized fuel for private cars with engine capacities greater than 1,500 cc. A cabinet meeting led by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was held last Tuesday but no decision was made.

The government previously considered implementing a ban on official cars using subsidized fuel on May 1 and on private cars in Greater Jakarta in August. (png/swd)