Democratic greetings!
The Indonesian people's movements and labour struggle are an inseparable part of the global people's movement and labour struggle. Solidarity is a limitless force, one of the key weapons of the labour struggle.
Today, Thursday May 15, marks the 77th commemoration of the Nakba, the systematic ethnic cleansing, violent occupation and forced expulsion of around 750,000 to 1 million Palestinians from their homes and homeland, and the seizure of around 78 percent of the Palestinian territory in 1948 by Zionist Israel, during the formation of the Zionist state of Israel.
Nakba is also commemorated as the day of the return of the Palestinian people to their homeland. And becomes a momentum of solidarity by the world's people in supporting Palestinian Independence, condemning colonisation, the illegal occupation and genocide carried out by the Zionist Israel supported by the US and its allies.
We, Indonesian workers, the trade union confederations and federations that are members of the Indonesian Workers Alliance Against War and Colonialism, are holding an action to stand in solidarity with the Palestinian people in the ongoing struggle for justice, rights, liberation and genuine independence for the Palestinian people.
We condemn the ongoing Zionist Israeli genocide, colonisation, illegal occupation of 78 percent of Palestinian land and its brutal military campaign in the West Bank, East Jerusalem and Gaza, which has left seven million Palestinians forced into exile.
For more than seven decades, Israeli Zionist colonialism has committed countless atrocities against the Palestinian people, including land confiscations, home demolitions, settler violence, murder and military attacks. Including in the days leading up to the 77th anniversary of the Nakba, where we have witnessed together Israeli forces continuing to launch attacks on Gaza and carrying out forced military attacks on Palestinian homes in Gaza, the West Bank and East Jerusalem.
This Zionist Israeli barbarity must be stopped immediately because it has created the worst humanitarian crisis in the world, and Israel must be dragged before the International Court of Justice as a war criminal and for crimes against humanity. We demand that the British and US imperialists who facilitate and enable this oppression stop supporting and funding the massacre of the Palestinian people!
We also stand with the people of the world and the international labour movement to reject and condemn the imperialist wars led by the US and its allies, and demand the realisation of permanent world peace.
Because as a consequence of war, workers throughout the world are impacted upon and become the victims, including workers in Indonesia, especially workers in countries that are at war and workers in imperialist countries as the countries that supply the weapons and war equipment. They have to work long hours, face dismissals (PHK) and even lose their lives (death). Because war only brings human barbarity, death, destruction and the deterioration of people's lives, including placing more women and children in the crosshairs of military violence, rape, forced displacement (migration) and institutionalised violence.
Therefore, we demand an end to all imperialist wars in all their forms (wars of aggression, proxy and non-proxy wars, including trade wars) as well as military operations under the guise of fighting global terrorism waged by the US imperialists and their allies in Palestine, Ukraine, Syria, Libya, Yemen and other countries, including the current conflict between India and Pakistan, all of which are bringing us closer to a nuclear war between the imperialist powers.
All of this is done to oppress the strategic enemies of the US, for the sale and testing of war equipment, the plundering of vital natural resources and the expansion of control over global territories. The main culprit of all this is the US – the world's number one imperialist – portrayed by President Donald Trump as the true face of the most chauvinist, most reactionary and most barbaric US imperialism.
We also condemn, criticise and regret the attitude of the United Nations as an international organisation tasked with maintaining world peace and security, as well as providing humanitarian assistance in emergency situations such as famine, natural disasters, and armed conflicts. However, in carrying out this task the UN often experiences difficulties, ambiguity and sterility, especially in the case of Palestine.
In the midst of the ongoing tragedy, many parties hope for the UN to be a fair mediator and help Palestine achieve independence, preventing the occurrence of wars of aggression, proxy or non-proxy in various countries. So far however, moves by the UN have often not brought about concrete results and raise the question of why the UN always fails?
We believe that all of this is due to the veto right at the UN Security Council. As the highest body responsible for maintaining international peace, it often fails to reach a common agreement. This is clearly due to the veto power of its five permanent members, especially the US, which often blocks resolutions related to Israel. Therefore, we demand the elimination of the veto right in the UN Security Council, which is the root cause of the failure to create justice and world peace, and which results in the unequal position of each member country in UN membership.
The following are the main demands and position of the Indonesian Workers Alliance Against War and Colonisation at an action in Jakarta commemorating the 77th Nakba rejecting war and colonisation, and supporting Palestinian independence:
1. Stop the war and create world peace.
2. Stop the genocide in Gaza and Palestine, Indonesian workers fully support the Palestinian people's independence.
3. Abolish the right of veto in the UN Security Council.
4. Demand and urge the government of President Prabowo Subianto to actively defend the Palestinian people and nation and implement a world order based on independence, eternal peace and social justice as the goal of the Indonesian nation as stated in the preamble to the 1945 Constitution.
4. We also call on Indonesian workers and workers throughout the world, and the international community, to support and strengthen unity, strengthen the voice of the Palestinian people for their independence, demand an end to the military occupation of Palestine and reject all forms of war and colonialism.
Let us join hands, stand in solidarity and unite in the struggle for a just and peaceful world.
Jakarta, May 15, 2025
With respect, Indonesian Workers Alliance Against War and Colonisation
Contact people:
- Arif Minardi – Secretary General, Confederation of the All-Indonesian Trade Unions (KSPSI), +62 818-4200-60
- Muhammad Rusdi – President, Indonesian Association of Trade Unions (ASPEK), +62 877-7474-2132
- Daeng Wahidin – President, Indonesian Independent Labour Confederation (KBMI), +62 858-8134-1055
- Suharjono – Deputy President, Indonesian Muslim Trade Unions Confederation (K-SARBUMUSI), +62 811-9872-008
- Sunarno – General Chairperson, KASBI Confederation, +62 812- 8064-6029
- Baso Rukman Abdul Jihad – Nusantara Trade Union Confederation (KSPN), +62 852-1718-4799
- Rudi HB Daman – General Chairperson, Association of Indonesian Trade Unions (GSBI), +62 818-7811-75
[Translated by James Balowski. The original title of the article was "Pernyataan Sikap Aliansi Buruh Indonesia Anti Perang dan Penjajahan".]