Samarinda filled with anti-SBSI banners
Tuesday, November 28 2000 - 03:30 AM WIB
The town of Samarinda in East Kalimantan has been filled with anti-SBSI labor union street banners over the past few days as part of intensifying anti-SBSI campaign, the local Kaltim Post daily reported.
The paper said that the banners were being displayed in strategic locations. One of the banner reads: "East Kalimantan is free from SBSI."
The paper did not clearly say who put the street banners, but it quoted local KNPI youth grouping chief Zainal Arifin as saying that the organization would fight against anyone trying to ruin the conducive investment climate in East Kalimantan.
SBSI has been organizing labor strike in several companies that leads to a disruption in production process or blockade of company assets. The latest strike is being held at oil and gas firm PT Vico Indonesia.
The strike held by SBSI has created jitters among businesses. There has been increasing calls that the East Kalimantan administration should curb the activity of SBSI because it is creating a bad investment climate.
The local police has detained Wuaya Kawilarang, the provincial coordinator of SBSI, on grounds that he had provoked labors to create an anarchy at Vico. But SBSI Chairman Muchtar Pakpapahan retaliated by filling a legal suit against the East Kalimantan Police for the arrest of Wuaya. (*)