Kid: Perhaps the people’s representatives would be smarter and perform better if their new building and comparative studies were here (Sidoarjo), in Wasior, in Mentawai or Merapi, yeah Dad!

1st Man: We live in a disaster prone area so of course we have to be responsive to disasters...

2nd Man: Their response is just a comparative study...

Zely Ariane – If there was an easier way to struggle for their rights, the workers from the PT. Kanefusa Indonesia Federation of Indonesian Metal Workers Union (FSPMI) would probably have tried it.

Alie: It’s your own fault for living in Mentawai, why didn’t you just become the speaker of the House!

Man: Are you evacuating too Mr?

Legislator: A comparative study!

President: What, you want to overthrow me?!

Kid: Mr... the legs on your chair need fixing!

1st Man: We’ve been waiting a year already... how much longer?

2nd Man: There’s still four more years to go...

The newly-formed union SPK-PPBI (Security Workers Union, aligned with the United Movement of Labour Indonesia) is calling for solidarity from unions and individuals.

From an opinion piece in the Jakarta daily Kompas by Ikrar Nusa Bhakti on the first year of President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono’s second term in office titled Before the Catastrophe.

Alie Usman, Jakarta – A meeting organised by the Muhammadiyah Youth Association to address problems of the state and nation, which presented figures such as Rizal Ramli and Romo Magnis Suseno at the Muhammadiyah Central Board office in Jakarta, has ended in chaos.