Denpasar – Scores of workers in the Balinese provincial capital of Denpasar from the Unity for a People’s Independent Nation (Perkasa) demanded that the Bali provincial government immediately form an independent labour supervisory committee.

“We are calling on the government to immediately form this committee and be prepared to do this and signify it in writing”, said Bali Indonesian National Front for Labour Struggle (FNPBI) chairperson Ikhsan Tantowi in conveying their demands before Bali provincial government regional secretary I Wayan Suasta in Denpasar on Tuesday.

Tantowi said that the current supervision of labour cases in the Island of Gods is very low, as are the number of supervisors. Yet, according to Tantowi, there are a huge number of labour problems in Bali which represent a time bomb that could explode at any time.

“In addition to demanding the formation of the committee and resolving labour cases, we also call for the nationalisation of mining companies that are under the control of foreign parties”, he said. Tantowi explained that this is in order to establish and independent nation in different sectors of national live and to uphold Article 33 of the 1945 Constitution.

The workers, he continued, also reject the harmful National Social Security Program Law and are calling for the abolition of contract labour systems. “We are prioritising many things, particularly in realising the standardisation of a national reasonable living cost index. We are also demanding the realisation of free healthcare and schooling”, he said. (KR-IGT/B012)

[Buruh tuntut pembentukan komite perburuhan independent – Antara News. Selasa, 1 Mei 2012. Slightly abridged translation by James Balowski.]