PTDI workers damage court in unruly rally
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.