Reaction to “Job Creation Law”: workers rights and environmental justice in Indonesia

The relationship of the centralized government and the individuals in which they govern in Indonesia are at the forefront of national news, for demonstrations in response to the passing of the seemingly top-down-orchestrated “Job Creation Bill” have occurred for the past four days in Jakarta. Labor unions and students have occupied the streets in Jakarta as well as other cities (Tangerang, Batam, Malang, and Bandar Lampung), saying that this new bill jeopardizes certain worker’s rights and also a threat to environmental protection measures. Protestors of the bill also claim that in actuality, the amendments made would benefit employers and companies at the expense of workers. Interactions with the police and civilians have escalated since the beginning of the demonstrations, with police pushing back protesters with tear gas and fires set ablaze on the streets (The New York Times video). Amnesty International has criticized the use of force and the  arrests of hundreds of protesters since demonstrations began. It is important that this national strike has also had peaceful protests, as leaders of the national strike “distanced themselves from the violence and said that the city’s protests were not affiliated with the labor action.”

The bill passed at the beginning of the week is a 905-page document that revises 79 laws and amends more than 1,200 articles. A recent article in the Jakarta Post captures the government’s defense of the legislation in response to the protest. President Widodo said the criticism of the law founded on “disinformation and hoaxes spread through social media,” also noting that “big industries” will still be required to go through some form of environmental checks. Despite addressing these criticisms, Widodo failed to acknowledge other concerns of the law — namely the changes in laws that would relax environmental standards — and also the criticisms in grassroot (civil society, labor unions) involvement or transparency of the law. 

In Tuesday’s class we generally identified Indonesia under democracy rule since the fall of Suharto dictatorship, so when initially stumbling into administrative dismissal of people’s demands as “hoaxes,” I was taken aback. This story stuck out to me with how it related to our discussion of politics this week, but also the intersections of globalization with political motives, the tension and relationship with those who are governing and those who are being governed, and lastly the relationship between environment and landscape. What freedoms are being taken away from them, and how might the government’s interpretation of the limits of freedom devalue the perspective of the demonstrators? The New York Times reported that 153 companies were going to  invest in Indonesia once the law takes effect  and quotes Bahlil Lahadalia, the head  of the government’s Investment Coordinating Board  saying “This  is  a law for the future, not the past… There are complaints from businesspeople that it  is difficult  to  get permits due  to overlapping regulations, expensive land and expensive workers. This job creation law is  the answer to that.” Here, we do not see tradition in the eyes of the government  as a dominating force of modernity,  but rather globalization and economic prosperities. Furthermore, we see the  government analyzing individuals as a commodity that needs to be less expensive.