May Day Actions in Malaysia Highlight Workers' Issues and Reject War
Kuala Lumpur (ANTARA) - Commemorations of Labour Day or May Day in Malaysia, organised by various alliances related to International Workers’ Day on Friday, highlighted a range of issues from labour matters to opposition against warfare.
ANTARA’s observations at one of the May Day commemoration points in Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, showed that the alliances visible in the Workers’ Day event in Malaysia consisted of civil society groups, activists, non-governmental organisations, and political alliances.
They raised labour issues such as wage increases and rejection of privatisation that seemingly treats public welfare aspects as commodities.
The workers also addressed opposition to the war in the Middle East, which they deemed to have a significant impact on the labour sector.
They also voiced rejection of corrupt practices that afflict the people, opposed environmental destruction, advocated for education for stateless children, and championed women’s workers’ rights such as menstrual leave.
At least two points of Workers’ Day commemorations took place in Kuala Lumpur on Friday.
The first was the Workers’ Day event initiated by the Malaysian government at Bukit Jalil Stadium, Malaysia, and the one held collectively by workers’ alliances at Dataran Merdeka, Kuala Lumpur.
Malaysian Prime Minister Anwar Ibrahim, in his speech at the government-organised Workers’ Day event at Bukit Jalil Stadium, stated that workers hold an important role in shaping the country’s future direction.
Anwar described workers as the main pillar driving the nation’s economic progress by mobilising the industrial and services sectors, strengthening productivity, attracting quality investments, and ensuring sustainable and competitive growth at regional and global levels.
“The government will continue to ensure that workers’ welfare is maintained and strengthened comprehensively, including today’s announcements that cover protections for cross-border workers, post-natal support, expansion of skills training, assistance for those who lose jobs, and strengthening of social security, particularly for contract workers,” Anwar declared.