Nightspot workers protest closure of working place

JAKARTA (JP): About 100 karaoke hall workers staged a rally on Friday to protest a move by the city administration to seal off their place of employment due to alleged nonpayment of taxes.

The workers, from Monggo Mas karaoke and singing hall on Jl. Hayam Wuruk, West Jakarta, named the city administration as the guilty party in the alleged wrongdoing.

"The agency were discriminative in sealing off our place of work. Other nightspots were not sealed off because they agreed to negotiate the amount of taxes to be paid," the workers said while reading a prepared statement in front of the City Revenue Agency building on Jl. Kebun Sirih, Central Jakarta.

"We regret the agency officials' failure to work in a transparent manner. Why didn't the agency collect entertainment taxes from 1994 until 1998? Meanwhile, we have already paid the 1999 and 2000 entertainment taxes," they added.

The agency has claimed that the Monggo Mas, owned by businessman Ivan Gultom, has failed to settle its debts from 1994 until 1998, worth some Rp 74.6 million (US$ 8,700). The nightspot had only paid Rp 5 million of the overall debt when the officials closed the building.

Agency chairman Deden Supriadi met six people representing the protesters to explain the reasons behind the closing of the building.

"Actually, the owner could have prevented the building from being sealed off if only he had agreed to pay half of his debts. He could then have paid in installments to settle the remainder," he told the protesters.

"The closure of the building is in line with the prevailing procedures.

"We sent two warning letters to him (Ivan), but he ignored then. We had no other choice but to seal the club off," he said.

Deden denied that his officials had met with owners of other nightspots and negotiating the amount of entertainment tax payable, saying they discussed only the way the tax should be paid.

"As soon as the owner pays half of his debt, we'll open the seal to let him back in business," he said.

In response, representatives of the workers said they accepted Deden's explanations.

"We've only been working for a few months and we don't know much about the past," Dadang, one of the representatives, said.

"But we urge the agency to open the seals so that we can work again as usual," he added. (nvn)