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  Issue No 96 Official Organ of LaborNet 18 May 2001  

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International

Jagath at the Solidarity Cafe


When the brave workers at the Shangri-La Hotel in Jakarta marched on May Day, a Sydney unionist was by their side.

 
 

Jagath with Shangri-La Hotel Workers

Jagath Bandara is a Sydney hotel union organiser who has just returned from Jakarta, Indonesia, where he took part in solidarity demonstrations with Shangri-La Jakarta hotel workers who have been involved in a bitter struggle with their employer since the end of last year when they were locked out of their workplaces.

Here Jagath tells of his visit to Indonesia and what he learned from sisters and brothers in the hotel industry in Indonesia.

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" On the 30th of April, around 7.30pm, I arrived in Indonesia at the Jakarta Air port. Frankly I was worried, cautious and nervous because I just didn't know what will happen when I arrive.

I was very aware the fact that I was going to a very troubled society, a land in turmoil ever since the Suharto-regime was toppled. A land where workers have only just started to flex their muscles as free democratic unions were not really allowed under Suharto.

But as soon as I got out from the customs at the air port I relaxed a little bit. There were 4 people wearing IUF T-shirts ( the IUF is the union international for hotel workers) and they sidled up to me and asked me very politely, very mannered :"Excuse me, are you Mr Jagath Bandara from Australia"

When I said "yes" they quickly accompanied me to their old car and put my luggage in to the boot and off we went into town.

The Solidarity Caf�

Half an hour later, around 8.00 pm, I was visiting the visited the Shangri-La Solidarity cafe which was located very close to the hotel from where these workers had been ejected last year over a dispute about pension monies.

The Shangri-La hotel workers set up this cafe soon after the dispute started to raise money for the striking workers and to build solidarity links to the community.

All over the cafe they've got 'decorations' mainly union slogans, messages of solidarity and big banners telling the world about their problems

The local Indonesian media have given the caf� heaps of free and often sympathetic publicity and noting that Jakarta people who visit the Solidarity Cafe can expect to get a five star hotel meal without the rip-off tourist prices as they'll pay only the local's price.

I had some delicious traditional Indonesian "nasi goreng" meals at the caf� cooked by the striking kitchen staff from the hotel.

The caf� was a big success. It was open around the clock. I noticed there were some quite well dressed people among the patrons. The workers told me some of the well-dressed patrons were actually house guests at the Shangri-La hotel who had come across the road to have a good, cheap meal .

A May Day rally to remember

The next day I woke up around 6.00am. Around 7.00 am a comrade from the Shangri-La picked me up to visit the Shangri-La hotel union's office.

The union office is just two to three houses away from the Shangri-La hotel itself. Security guards employed by the hotel can keep a close eye on the goings-on at the union office.

The topic of conversation today was a protest at a Labour Court hearings into the five month-long dispute. The members discussed how they should behave if there was any provocation, any attacks from the police or management supporters. They even appointed a few people to protect me if any management thugs, who regularly turn up at demos, decide to target the foreigner.

There were are about 300 workers at the union office meeting. They all welcomed me warmly. I felt they appreciated even this small act of international solidarity that my visit represented.

From the union office we all got into busses to go to the Central Jakarta Courts. At the the Court there were more bus loads of workers. They had came there from Bandung, a city 180 kms away from Jakarta.

There were hotel workers at this demo from the Sheraton Bandung, the Hyatt Regency, the Grand Hyatt, the Regent, the Holiday Inn, the Pamata hotel as well as cleaners and shop assistants from the Indonesia

They had all come to show support to the Shangri-La workers. There were more than 2000 workers here chanting slogans to a perfect rhythm, singing, handing out flyers about their struggle to the public.

Every hotel was represented by their union banners and flags to show who was there providing support to the struggle of the Shangri-La striking workers.

May 1 is not a public holiday in Indonesia but despite the hotels management resistance these workers voted with their feet and chose to not to go to work but to get out onto the streets and demonstrate their support for their comrades' struggles at the Shangri-La.

Each hotel has its own local union with an elected Secretary, President, Treasurer and a steering Committee which meets at least once a month to plan their activities. In every hotel workplace the workers have their own union office on premises. They run their activities from this office inside the hotel.

Leading up to May Day each hotel union local ran campaigns to educate the members in the work place about the issues involved and got them ready to commit to the Shangri-La solidarity rally.

In some hotels, where they have reasonable management, the union agreed to, and even organised, a skeleton staff to ensure the hotel operated without any disruption to the guests.

Many of these shop-floor union activists are quite knowledge about the goings-on in Australia. Several of them asked me about the Pauline Hanson.

These workers knew quite a bit about our unions and they wanted us to work closely with them to help them to improve basic working condition for Indonesian workers.

After the court hearing

Well the court hearing was adjourned. Once again. These industrial wrangles move very, very slowly in Indonesia.

The protesters decided to show they were angry with the slow pace of the authorities by marching to the National Monument in Jakarta where all rallies are traditionally held - and where the large May Day rally was held this year.

From here the assembled unionists - more than 10000 - agreed to march off. Most went on a march to Parliament House to press their demands on Indonesian MPs for legislation to promote union rights.

But a significant number joined us and marched up the street to the nearby Shangri-La hotel to show support and join the 2000 hotel workers who had been involved all day in the Shangri-La solidarity rallies.

Thugs and military at Shangri-La

When we arrived the main gates of the Shangri-La there already was there a huge military presence.

They were kitted out, fully armed and standing and walking around in a very provocative manner.

The workers firmly sat down on the ground in front of the hotel and began singing and chanting union slogans and songs.

At one stage I notice one man in civvies prowling around, holding a gun. The gun was deliberately and clearly visible. One of the striking hotel workers told me that they knew him well. He was one of the para- military thugs employed by the Shangri-La management.

At the rally I met one of the workers. He is 55 years old and he has two young children. Even though he has financially in real difficulties because of this long unending dispute he said that he would never give up.

Comrade Oddie, a spokesperson for the Shangri-La workers told me that this struggle is important to all the hotel workers in Indonesia.

He pleaded with me to tell Australian unionists to continue to support them because he said if they lose then Shangri-La workers, employed by this hotel chain throughout the Asia-Pacific, would lose as well.

The rally outside the hotel wound up around 6.30 pm when we moved to the nearby union office. There I gave the union the donations I had collected from their fellow hotel workers in Australia and other unionists.

They asked me to thank the Australian union movement and also said they are ready and willing to support Australian workers as well.

These unionists are very energetic. They have a lot to offer Indonesia.

Because of a culture of corruption among politicians and senior bureaucrats they have a harder and riskier struggle. They are actually risking their lives every time they go out to achieve basic human rights, their right to bargain collectively, their right to have a free, representative union recognised.

If you want to send personal messages of solidarity to the workers at the Shangri-La hotel here is a good e-mail contact point at the IUF offices in Indonesia.

[email protected]

If you want more history of the Shangri-La dispute then please click here.


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*   Issue 96 contents

In this issue
Features
*  Interview: The Enabler
On the eve of the release of his latest book, Beazley�s brain on the back-bench, Mark Latham, talks about putting the social back into socialism.
*
*  Unions: Flogged To Death
One third of Australian workers now work in conditions that would be deemed illegal in Europe. While in our workplaces so much is being done by so few with so little the Howard Government leans on its shovel reports Noel Hester.
*
*  Corporate: Nike's Six Broken Promises
A new international report on the labour practices at Nike have placed their stated commitment to ethical employment under the microscope.
*
*  International: Jagath at the Solidarity Cafe
When the brave workers at the Shangri-La Hotel in Jakarta marched on May Day, a Sydney unionist was by their side.
*
*  Education: The Battle for Free Thought
The recent sacking of Dr Ted Steele at the University of Wollongong has focused attention on the need for vigilant defence of employment rights and academic freedom.
*
*  History: Federation and Labour
The labour movement�s role in the 1897 Federal Convention and the subsequent referenda process has been largely forgotten.
*
*  Satire: Addict Stops Using Smack After Talk With Parents
A 21-year-old heroin addict has agreed to give up his habit after his parents told him that using drugs was wrong.
*
*  Review: Rouge or Red?
Mark Hebblewhite argues that the new Baz Luhrmann blockbuster isn't without its class analysis.
*

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Letters to the editor
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»  Letter to Canberra
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»  A Fowler Smell
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»  Who Saved May Day?
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