PTDI workers damage court in unruly rally
Yuli Tri Suwarni, The Jakarta Post, Bandung
More than 1,000 former employees at state aircraft manufacturer PT Dirgantara Indonesia (PTDI) staged an unruly protest on Monday at the West Java High Court in Bandung, damaging the court buildings.
Police said later they had held PTDI's Former Employees Communication Forum head A.M. Bone on charges of damaging a state facility and were looking for other protesters involved in the vandalism.
The laid off workers have held series of protests after the company's management retrenched more than 6,000 employees, due to what it said were serious financial difficulties.
The employees filed a suit to stop the layoffs, which they said were illegal. In February, the Bandung District Court ruled in favor of the workers, reinstating them to their jobs. Later, the West Java High Court overturned the ruling.
Monday's protest began early in the morning when the former employees traveled in a convoy of cars and motorcycles from PTDI's factory at the Husein Sastranegara Air Force base on Jl. Padjajaran to the Bandung District Court
There, the employees filed an appeal to the Supreme Court over the high court ruling.
They then stopped at the West Java High Court and began protesting vocally outside the court house, criticizing the decision by its judges.
Protesters shook the high court gates and damaged them. They also threw objects at the doors and windows of the office and damaged several flowerpots in the office compound. No one was reported injured in the incident.
Police arrived after the protesters had already left the area.
Bandung Tengah Police chief Adj. Sr. Comr. Irwanto said Bone and other unruly protesters would be charged with Article 406 of the Criminal Code, for damaging a state facility. The offense carries a maximum sentence of 2 years and 8 months' jail.
He said the police had held Bone for questioning and were still looking for several other protesters who were alleged to have damaged the court compound.
Sanim Djarwadi, the deputy chairman of the West Java High Court, regretted the incident. "They should have emphasized dialog rather than unruly behavior," he said.
The protest is latest of several staged by workers since February, when presiding Bundung District Court judge Marni Emmy Mustofa ruled in favor of their case.
In the decision, the panel of judges ordered the management to restore the rights of the dismissed employees and allow them to return to work at the company.
Marni said the extraordinary shareholders meeting held by three company directors recommending the dismissal of the employees, was illegal. Regulations required such extraordinary meetings were attended by all five of the company's directors, she said.
While the ruling legally reinstated the workers they were prevented from returning to work when the company locked them out, appealing the ruling to the high court.