Today, May 1, coinciding with the commemoration of International Labour Day, the Greater Jakarta Joint Labour Secretariat (Sekber Buruh) again took to the streets. This was done as a protest and as our responsibility to convince the majority of people that this beloved country is still living in misery.

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.

Adan Bakar, Lampung – A May Day action in the South Sumatra city of Lampung ended in chaos on Tuesday after scores of protesters were involved in a clash with public order agency officers (Satpol PP). As a result one student was injured.

Ismoko Widjaya, Harry Ondo Saragih, Medan – Around 2000 workers blockaded a road directly in front of the Polonia Airport in the North Sumatra provincial capital of Medan on the afternoon of Tuesday May 1. As a result traffic from the city center was paralyzed causing a 5 kilometre traffic jam in both directions.

Baban Gandapurnama, Bandung – Thousands of workers and other groups, which took to the streets to commemorate International Labour Day or May Day at the Gedung Sate governor’s office in the West Java Provincial capital of Bandung, voiced almost identical demands.

Angling Adhitya Purbaya, Semarang – Commemorating May Day, thousands of workers from the Workers Challenge Movement (Gerbang) held a protest action at the Central Java governors’ office on Jl. Pahlawan in the Central Java provincial capital of Semarang.

Jakarta – As many as 100,000 workers from an alliance of trade unions held May Day action in front of the State Palace in Central Jakarta on Tuesday May 1 demanding welfare for the working class.

Taufan Mustafa, Banda Aceh – A demonstration commemorating International Labour Day in the Achenese provincial capital of Banda Aceh on Tuesday May 1 began with a convoy from the Raya Baiturrahman Mosque to the Aceh governor’s office.

Bagus Kurniawan, Yogyakarta – Thousands of students and workers in the Central Java city of Yogyakarta commemorated International Labour Day or May Day on Tuesday May 1.

Chazizah Gusnita, Jakarta – May 1 is not just for celebrating International Labour Day. In Papua, people commemorated May as the day Papua was annexed into the Unitary State of the Republic of Indonesia (NKRI). More than 1300 people took to the streets.

Akhirul Anwar/JIBI, Jogja – Scores of people from the United People’s Committee (KBR) held an action in front of the Beringharjo Market on Jl. Ahmad Yani in the Central Java city of Yogyakarta on the afternoon of Friday April 27.

Man: There’s a natural balance: There is the sky and the earth, there is day and night, those who are poor and those who are rich, and there are things that go up...

Kid: And things that fall!

Oris Riswan Budiana, Bandung – Around 60 women from the West Java Regional Women’s Committee (KPR) celebrated International Women’s Day in the West Java provincial capital of Bandung with a protest action on the grounds of the Gedung Sate building on Jl. Diponegoro.

Atmi Pertiwi, Jakarta – Twenty or so women from the Women’s Justice Forum (Forum Keadilan Perempuan, FKP) distributed around 500 stickers on busses and city public transport vehicles at the Kampung Rambutan bus terminal in East Jakarta on March 6. Written on the yellow stickers was, “Stop rape and sexual harassment”.

In the home and in the streets, women are being raped. The government and the parliament are ignoring cases of rape and are complicit in sexual violence against women.

PT Freeport Indonesia, a subsidiary of Freeport McMoran Cooper and Gold – of which 90.64 percent of the shares are owned by Freeport CEO James R. Moffet – is the largest mining company in the world. Freeport contributes 95 percent of the entire production of gold by Freeport McMoran and a significant percentage of its copper production.

Jakarta – The tales of the New Order regime’s successes, which are being used as a selling point for the Golkar Party, are misleading.

Jakarta – Foreign domination of strategic economic sectors is spreading and deepening. It has been suggested that the government reorganised strategic economic development so the benefits are more evenly felt by the ordinary people and greater competitiveness in the face of global competition.

M Hernowo – Case of human rights violations that took place around the time of the fall of the New Order regime have still not been fully resolved. Moreover President Suharto’s decision on May 21, 1998 to release his grip on the reigns power, which he held for 32 years, has been taken advantage of by some groups.

Novi Christiastuti Adiputri, Jakarta – The Nusantara Marijuana Circle (LGN) held a long-march through the Farmers Monument area in Central Jakarta on Saturday May 7 to commemorate the Global Marijuana March (GMM).