Jakarta – Around 200 workers demonstrated in front of the Jakarta World Bank offices on Sunday May 1. The protesters, who came from the National Liberation Front (FPN) started the protest at the Hotel Indonesia roundabout in Central Jakarta then organised a convoy to the World Bank offices at the Jakarta Stock Exchange building.

The action was held as a protest statement against the international financial organisation, which the protesters said intervenes too much in government policies and ends up ensnaring the Indonesian people. In addition to protesting against the World Bank, they also expressed their opposition to the recent fuel price hikes saying that the move was unnecessary.

The government should have addressed world fuel price increases through other more proportional policies such as cutting the wages and allowance for the political elite by 50 percent, taking over or nationalising the oil and gas industry and repudiating the foreign debt the group said. (DOR)

[Translated by James Balowski.]