RI defends record on labor rights

RI defends record on labor rights

JAKARTA (JP): A senior Ministry of Manpower official has called the United States "stubborn" for continuing to criticize Jakarta's record on workers' rights, even after being given an elaborate explanation.

Suwarto, the Director General for Industrial Relations and Labor Standards, said the criticisms, stated by a senior State Department official during his visit here last week, showed that the United States is trying to impose its values on Indonesia.

"The United States, whose liberal democracy has been established for more than two centuries, seems determined to impose its system on Indonesia," Suwarto said on Saturday. "It is ignoring the progress that Indonesia has made under its own system."

John Shattuck, the assistant secretary for the Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, said at the conclusion of his visit last week that the United States remained concerned about labor conditions in Indonesia despite some progress.

Shattuck's visit and subsequent remarks have been criticized by several members of the House of Representatives, who view the comments as an attempt to interfere in Indonesia's domestic affairs.

Shattuck, during his stay, received a lengthy explanation about the labor situation in Indonesia from Minister of Manpower Abdul Latief.

"But he seemed stubborn and would not accept the government's explanation," Suwarto said of the American guest.

Washington will never be satisfied with the labor conditions in Indonesia as long as it uses its own yardstick to evaluate the progress of other countries, he said. "The United States should respect the sovereignty of other countries and appreciate the advances they have made in promoting democracy."

He defended the government's policy of recognizing the All Indonesian Workers Union (SPSI) as the only organization allowed to represent labor in negotiations with management. Suwarto also insisted that this did not mean there is no freedom of association for Indonesian workers. "It was the workers' wish to establish SPSI as the umbrella organization for 13 sectoral unions."

SBSI

The government refuses to recognize the Indonesian Prosperous Labor Union (SBSI), he said, because it was not established by workers.

The SBSI was established in 1992 to challenge the government's one-union policy amidst discontent with the SPSI's ability to promote workers' interests. SBSI chairman Muchtar Pakpahan is now in prison in Medan, North Sumatra, for organizing a worker demonstration that turned into a riot last year.

Suwarto explained that Indonesia had a bitter experience with the presence of numerous labor unions in the 1960s, when, he said, they were exploited by political forces.

One can understand the government's policy towards SBSI by looking at the history of the Indonesian labor movement, he said.

The director general stressed that the government has long been committed to improving the welfare of workers.

Various policies introduced to further this objective have nothing to do with American pressure and threats, he said.

"The two things must be separated clearly. Labor conditions will be improved regardless of the threats and it is the U.S. government's right to give the trade facilities or not," he said.

Washington has threatened to revoke Indonesia's trade privileges under the Generalized System of Preferences unless Jakarta improves its labor record. (rms)