Labor party to elect board members next week<\/p>\n
JAKARTA (JP): The Indonesian Workers Party (PPI), a new
\npolitical party established by labor activists, is to assemble
\nnext week to elect an executive board.<\/p>\n
Party cofounder Wilhelmus Bokha said the party's maiden
\nworking meeting would be held here Sunday, and a list of
\ncandidates to lead the party had already been drawn up.<\/p>\n
He declined to reveal the candidates' names and refused to say
\nwhether his name was included on the list.<\/p>\n
\"Wait until Monday to see,\" he told reporters after meeting
\nwith Trisakti University deputy rector Komang at the university's
\ncampus in Grogol, West Jakarta.<\/p>\n
He also said the party's statutes were near completion and
\nwere expected to be ready soon, after which party executives
\nwould officially register the party with the Ministry of Home
\nAffairs.<\/p>\n
The party was officially established Monday by a number of
\nlabor activists, including former labor minister SK Trimurti,
\nformer chairman of the Federation of All-Indonesia Workers Union
\n(FSPSI) Imam Sudarwo, FSPSI deputy chairman Wilhelmus Bokha and
\nSalam Sumangat, secretary-general of the labor union's logging
\nand forestry department.<\/p>\n
Under the reign of former president Soeharto, only two
\npolitical parties -- the United Development Party and the
\nIndonesian Democratic Party -- and Golkar were recognized and
\nallowed to participate in elections.<\/p>\n
However, the current era of reform and the resignation of
\nSoeharto has introduced a new frontier in Indonesian politics.<\/p>\n
This week alone the establishment of at least four political
\nparties has been announced. PPI and Musyawarah Kekeluargaan
\nGotong Royong (MKGR), a former Golkar founder which on Wednesday
\nbroke away and formed its own party, are among the most notable.<\/p>\n
Minister of Home Affairs Syarwan Hamid called on newly
\nestablished political parties to suspend their activities until a
\nnew law on political parties was issued.<\/p>\n
Meanwhile, former FSPSI chairman Bomer Pasaribu was foreboding
\nin his reaction toward the establishment of PPI, saying it should
\nnot be exploited as a vehicle for its founders' own political
\ninterests.<\/p>\n
\"During the Old Order era, workers were politicized. They were
\nused as political targets in general elections and then they were
\nleft behind,\" he said in a statement here yesterday.<\/p>\n
Bomer, former legislator of the ruling Golkar, hailed the
\ngovernment's endorsement of the possibility of independent labor
\nunions besides the FSPSI, and the government's plan to ratify the
\nInternational Labor Organization's Convention 87 on workers
\nrights.<\/p>\n
However, he asserted that workers needed only two or three
\nindependent unions because the presence of two many labor unions
\ncould be counterproductive.<\/p>\n
\"We should learn from India, which has 69,800 labor unions.
\nThe presence of too many unions will likely affect workers'
\nbargaining position with their employers,\" he said. (rms\/23)<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/labor-party-to-elect-board-members-next-week-1447893297",
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"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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