James Balowski – Tens of thousands of Indonesian workers held a nationalstrike on 31 October and 1 November. Police reported that protests wereheld in 50 towns and cities in 15 provinces.

Max Lane previously providedanalysisof, and background to, the strike. Here James Balowski sifts throughin more detail the particular actions that took place across the archipelago.

Aceh and Sumatra

Hundreds of workers from the Aceh Labour Alliance rallied at the RegionalHouse of Representatives in Indonesia's northern-most province on 28 October,calling on the Aceh government to increase the regional minimum wage (UMP)from 1.7 million rupiah a month to 2.3 million (around US$200).

They also called for labour representatives to be involved in the deliberationon a draft by-law on labour, for the abolition of outsourcing in state-ownedenterprises and for the government to act against companies refusing topay the minimum wage. "Their labour is used when needed, but when they'renot needed any more, they get sacked straight away, without severance pay.This is what we are referring to as unjust", one of the worker representativestoldSerambiIndonesia.

The Jakarta Post reportedthat around 1,000 foreign investment companies across 26 industrial estatesin Batam, Riau Islands, shut down almost all their operations on 31 October.Several industrial estates deployed members of the paramilitary youth organisationPemuda Pancasila (PP) in front of factories to prevent protesters fromforcing management to allow other workers to join the strike.

At the Executive Park industrial complex, dozens of workers tried todemolish the entry gate. An attempt by protesters to blockade Batam's internationalairport and several ports failed due to a huge police presence.

In the central Sumatran province of Jambi, workers from the Confederationof Independent Trade Unions  protested against a decree by the governorsetting the province's minimum wage at 1.5 million rupiah. "A minimum wageof 1.6 million rupiah must be introduced because our KHL (reasonable costof living index) is set at Rp1.6 million", the confederation's Jambi regionalcoordinator, Roida Pane,toldthe Post on 31 October.

In Lampung province, hundreds of workers descended on government officesdemanding the UMP be raised to Rp3.7 million. "The cost of living rightnow is very high, it is reasonable to ask for 3.7 million rupiah", saidlocal worker Robin. "The government should pay attention to workers, notjust its civil servants", he added, referring to the huge government expenditureon the Indonesia's bloated bureaucracy.

"A wage of 1.1 million is not enough to meet daily needs in a month,let alone those that have families", People's Movement coordinator DeniKurniawan was quotedby Antara News.

In the North Sumatran capital of Medan, workers rallied to oppose theprovincial government's decision to raise the 2014 minimum wage by just10 percent. "The prices of staple foods and other goods have increasedby at least 30 percent. Therefore, we demand a 50 percent increase andreject anything below that figure", trade union leader Minggu Saragih toldthe Associated Press.

Saragih said workers would launch massive strikes that would cripplethe province's economy and called on 1.6 million union members to stoppaying motorcycle tax until the governor revised the decision.

West Java

The 31 October JakartaPost reported that more than 50,000 workers rallied in the West Javacities of Bogor and Depok, demanding that the minimum wage be increasedto Rp3.7 million and that outsourcing be eliminated. Three major retailers- Giant, Carrefour and Tip Top - were closed due to the strike.

In Bogor, workers protested the Bogor regent's proposed UMP of Rp1.7million, saying that it was far from enough to meet daily needs. In Depok,workers blocked the city's main thoroughfare for around an hour. All IndonesiaWorkers Union Depok chairperson Sugino said fuel price increases had forcedworkers to demand the salary adjustment. "This year alone we have experiencedfuel and electricity price hikes. We are only just surviving", he toldthe Post.

In Bekasi, around 5,000 workers blockaded the main road in front ofthe mayor's office, demanding wage rises. Nanang, one of the workers' representatives,said that that they were demanding a 50 percent increase in the UMP or2.1 million for Bekasi City, based on the basic cost of living followingrecent fuel price hikes. "A minimum increase of 40 percent, we could agreeto", she was quoted as saying by newsoutlet Tempo, adding that although workers were aware that the blockadedisrupted traffic, it was the only effective means to get employers toagree to their demands.

Jakarta

Workers in Jakarta launched a two day strike on 31 October as the Jakartawage council - which is made up of labour, employer and city administrationrepresentatives - met to set the regional minimum wage for 2014. Workersrefused to attend the meeting, saying the deliberations were based on aKHL that was out of date.

 "Our protests are concentrated in industrial areas", KonfederasiSerikat Pekerja Indonesia (KSPI - Indonesian Trade Union Confederation)chairperson Said Iqbal toldthe Jakarta Globe. Iqbal said that 2 million workers in 20 provincesjoined the strike including 250,000 workers in the Jakarta industrial areasof Pulogadung and Cakung and 300,000 in the Jakarta satellite city of Bekasi.

In South Cikarang several workers were seriously injured when they wereattacked by paid thugs from the PP. "This morning, at 8.15am, there wasa clash between workers and [Pemuda Pancasila], who did not like the rally",Jakarta police spokesperson Senior Commissioner Rikwanto toldthe Jakarta Globe on 31 October.

Rikwanto said the clash involved 15,000 workers and 500 members of PP,who claimed that the strike would affect their livelihoods and the investmentclimate in Indonesia. "Eight persons were injured, hit by stones or stabbed.Four workers and four security guards [were hurt]", he said. The PP wasestablished by the army in 1959 and used to carry out the Suharto dictatorship'sdirty work. The organisation still has close ties with the military andpolice and has been linked to racketeering and extortion.

Speaking at a press conference later in the day, Iqbal said that inaddition to the PP, the Sons of Bekasi Association and the Bekasi Associationof Waste Companies were also involved in the attack. He also noted thatthe media had tried to portray the incident as a clash between strikersand local residents and paint the workers' actions in a negative light.

"[They were] thugs who were paid, slashing and stabbing with machetes,samurai [swords]. This is clearly what was caught on television", he toldVivaNews.

Workers are calling on police to question the leaders of the organisationsand for the Bekasi police chief to be sacked for allowing people to carryweapons. If the police fail to act, said Iqbal, then workers would takeup the fight. "We will go up against them in the context of defending [ourselves]not attack. What kind of country is this where black employers work withcriminals", he said.

Following a gubernatorial decree endorsing the wage council's decisionto raise the minimum wage by just 11 percent, on 2 November thousands ofworkers descended on the Jakarta city hall, saying the meagre increaseconstituted an economic injustice. The protesters, coming mostly from industrialestates in Cilincing, Pulogadung and Cakung, forced their way onto cityhall grounds and threatened not to leave until the governor annulled thedecree.

Jakarta Labour Forum secretary general Muhammad Toha said they weredisappointed with Governor Joko Widodo for signing off on a UMP of Rp2.4million. "We will keep fighting, we will stay overnight to protest hereuntil the governor changes the decree", he toldthe Jakarta Post.

Central and East Java

In Demak regency, Central Java, around 3,000 workers from the DemakLabour Movement (Gebrak) rallied in front of the Regional House of Representatives(DPRD), demanding wage rises. "We don't agree with the UMP proposed bythe Demak regional government of 1.28 million. We are demanding a minimumwage of 1.515 million", PT Etercon Farma Sayung worker Supriadi was quotedas saying byTribuneNews.

"We have tried lobbying four times, but there was no result. It's asif the regional government and the DPRD don't care", said Gebrak chairpersonJangkar Puspito.

DetikNews reported that hundreds of workers from the Federasi Serikat PekerjaMetal Indonesia (Federation of Indonesian Metal Workers) in the provincialcapital of Semarang blockaded the Java north coast road on 30 October,demanding that the governor agree to a 3 million rupiah minimum wage. Actioncoordinator Somad said they plan to hold even bigger actions in front ofthe Semarang city hall, which will be followed by a rally at the governor'soffice, where workers from several different parts of Central Java willgather and demonstrate.

Scores of students from the Student Struggle Centre for National Liberation(Pembebasan) - which is affiliated with the People's Liberation Party -held an action in solidarity with the national strike in the city of Yogyakartaon 1 November.

The rally, which was held in front of the Yogyakarta Presidential Palace,was marked with the lighting of 1,000 candles. "Almost all workers in thecountry are taking action. Moreover, workers in Jabotabek [Greater Jakarta]are standing firm to fight for their rights. We are here to support theactions by the workers", action coordinator Ajwar toldTribuneNews.

The students condemned the PP's attack on striking workers in Bekasi:"It is very regrettable that in a democratic country there are still effortsto muzzle the people's wishes by acts of thuggery. We condemn this brutalaction", Ajwar said.

A rally was also held by hundreds of workers from the Yogyakarta LabourAlliance (ABY), who blockaded the main road running through the Malioboroshopping district. They then moved on to the DPRD, but after discoveringthat all the lawmakers were away on "working visits", they rallied at theYogyakarta governor's office. ABY secretary general Kirnadi said that theYogyakarta minimum wage is still far from reasonable. "If workers' wagesin Yogya are not raised, then it is reasonable for us to question Yogyakarta'sspecial status. Yogya would be special if workers were prosperous",saidKirnadi in a speech.

Protesting workers in the East Java provincial capital of Surabaya threatenedto occupy the governor's office if their demands for a UMP of 3 millionrupiah were not met. KSPIDeputy Secretary Jamaludin said, "We will occupy the governor's officeuntil the demand for 3 million is met", as around 10,000 workers from Surabaya,Sidoarjo, Gresik, Pasuruan and Mojokerto demonstrated and gave speecheson the road in front of the governor's office.

The workers also called for the annulment of Presidential Instruction9/2013 (which limits wage increases), an end to contract labour and outsourcingand revisions to the KHL.

Kalimantan and Sulawesi

In the South Sulawesi provincial capital of Makassar, a coalition ofstudents, workers and urban poor organisations from Social Solidarity Actionfor the Indonesian People rallied in front of the Makassar Industrial Zone,blockading the main road to the city centre.

National Trade Union Confederation chairperson Salim Samsur said theaction was held to condemn the South Sulawesi governor. "Today around 300workers closed off the road. If our demands are not met, in coming days3,000 workers will close the road", he toldTribuneNews on 31 October.

Around 100 workers in the East Kalimantan city of Samarinda ralliedat the governor's office on 28 October, demanding a 50 percent wage increase."In addition to demanding an increase in the UMP to a minimum of 2.8 millionrupiah a month, we are also demanding that the government immediately abolishcontract labour systems and outsourcing", one of the action coordinators,Yuno, was quoted as saying byAntaraNews.

The workers also criticised the recent presidential instruction, whichby placing a cap on minimum wage increases is nothing but manipulationon the part of the political elite to maintain low wages.