Jakarta – The Jakarta Police have announced they will ban all rallies commemorating May Day after workers in the capital city said they planned to hold protests on April 30, in spite of the coronavirus pandemic, against the omnibus bill on job creation being deliberated in the House of Representatives.
Jakarta Police spokesperson Sr. com. Yusri Yunus said such rallies would violate the large-scale social restrictions (PSBB) policy implemented by the Jakarta administration to clamp down on the transmission of COVID-19.
"The PSBB has regulated physical distancing and the National Police chief's edict has clearly banned mass gatherings. So, we will not issue any permit for the protest," Yusri said on Monday.
Yusri said police officers would forcefully disperse protesters if they insisted on going ahead with the rallies.
"Yes, we will disperse them. We have informed them [about the policy], I hope they understand," he said as quoted by kompas.com.
Previously, two large labor groups, the Confederation of Indonesian Trade Unions (KSPI) and the Indonesian Labor Workers Assembly (MPBI) had announced their plan to hold massive protests in front of the House and the Office of the Coordinating Economic Minister on April 30, the day before May Day, which falls on May 1.
KSPI head Said Iqbal said workers would comply with the physical-distancing policy during the rallies. They would also wear masks and bring hand sanitizers.
"We will demand three things during the rallies: to reject the omnibus bill, to stop job layoffs and to give full compensation and Idul Fitri holiday bonuses [THR] for workers who are staying at home," Said Iqbal said.
He went on to say that the notification letters about the May Day rallies were sent to the Jakarta Police and the National Police headquarters on April 17, but the letters were rejected.
Said Iqbal said the labor unions would cancel their plan to stage the mass rallies only if the House ceased the deliberation of the omnibus bill on job creation during the COVID-19 pandemic.
Workers, activists and members of the public have criticized the House and government for trying to push through the controversial bill.
The bill, which seeks to concurrently amend 79 laws including the 2003 Manpower Law, has been vehemently opposed by labor unions, which have condemned the bill for cutting labor rights and benefiting employers.
The deliberation of the disputed omnibus bill on job creation has met further resistance as the country faces massive layoffs as a result of the economic slowdown caused by the coronavirus pandemic.
Jakarta, the province hardest-hit by coronavirus, has recorded 3,097 people infected, making up nearly half of the country's official tally of 6,760 confirmed COVID-19 cases as of Monday. At least 590 people in the country have died from the disease, of which 287 were reported in the capital. (nal)