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JAKARTA: The governor of the Indonesian capital said on Friday (October 9) that he would inform President Joko Widodo of protesters’ demand that a new polarizing labor law be repealed, as a growing number of regional leaders oppose the new legislation.
Thousands of people have taken to the streets of Indonesian cities in the past three days as part of protests and national strikes against a law that they say undermines labor rights and weakens environmental protections.
Clashes broke out in some cities, including Jakarta, where protesters burned public transport facilities and damaged police posts.
“Yesterday I also met with the protesters and had a short discussion with them, I told them that we had heard their voices and I will get the message across,” Jakarta Governor Anies Baswedan told Reuters. He did not go so far as to say that he would join the call for the law to be repealed.
At least four other governors have told protesters that they will write to the president calling for the law to be struck down, according to their statements and local media reports.
The repeal of the law would prevent further clashes “that could prolong instability amid a pandemic and economic recession,” West Kalimantan Governor Sutarmidji said in a statement.
The president has yet to make any public statements following the approval of the employment bill on Monday, but his ministers have defended him, saying the protests were sparked by fake news and that the legislation would improve people’s well-being by giving the welcome more investment.
Jakarta police detained about 1,000 protesters on Thursday, while hundreds were arrested in other cities.
Most of those detained were released on Friday morning, said Yusri Yunus, a spokesman for the Jakarta police.
Police were not expecting a fourth day of protests in the capital on Friday, he said.
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Said Iqbal, president of the KSPI union, which is among the largest group behind the protests, said there was no demonstration planned for Friday, but another union leader on Thursday night pledged to continue demonstrating.
Jakarta resident Nathan Tarigan feared the fighting would escalate.
“I’m afraid that if the government and state stakeholders aren’t wise, they don’t want to listen, something bigger can happen and the state can break down,” said the 50-year-old.
