Banned play goes to human rights body

JAKARTA (JP): The National Commission on Human Rights has called on Indonesian laborers to present their artistic performances independent of any political group.

"If workers want to purely demonstrate their artistic talent, they had better be independent and not rely on the facilities offered by any political parties," commission member Roekmini Koesoemo Astoeti said.

Roekmini and Soegiri, also from the commission, met Thursday with 30 players of Teater Sanggar Pabrik, a theatrical group which was prevented from performing their play entitled Surat Cinta untuk Marsinah (A love letter for Marsinah) last Saturday at the Bulungan Youth Center in South Jakarta.

The theatrical group, which claims to be wholly organized by laborers, filed a complaint with the commission on Thursday stating their right to perform had been deprived, despite having obtained a license from the police.

Police forbade the laborers to stage their play last Saturday evening, only minutes before the performance was due to begin. The cancellation disappointed the audience and caused material loss to the group.

The commission said that the ban was probably imposed because the play was sponsored by the Indonesian Prosperous Workers Union, which is critical of the government.

Roekmini agreed, however, that police had violated the workers' right to express their opinions in a play by stopping the performance.

Against policy

She said the authorities shouldn't ban the play, whose theme is not necessarily against government policy, and that they should stick to the presumption of innocence principle.

The theatrical group asked the commission to persuade the government not to ban performances in the future and to simplify the procedure for staging art performances.

"We have ongoing consultations with the government regarding the gathering permit," Roekmini told The Jakarta Post.

The government announced earlier this month that it would abolish permit requirements for virtually all non-political gatherings by the end of the year. The guidelines are still being prepared.

The play is about Marsinah, a labor activist who was murdered a few days after she organized a strike at PT Catur Putra Surya in 1993.

The police have made no comment about the ban.

Gatot Indroyono, one of the founders of the group, told the Post that the play's message is that Indonesia's laborers are suppressed by the rich and the powerful. (03)