Achmad
Faizal, Surabaya – Scores of women workers from various different groups in
East Java held an action on Wednesday May 8 in the provincial capital of
Surabaya to commemorate 20 years since the death of Marsinah, a women worker
who was murdered on May 8, 1993.
In addition to scattering flowers, the workers also handed out flowers to pedestrians and held a prayer procession and a moment of silence for Marsinah. At the end of the action, the workers placed a wreath of flowers with Marsinah's photograph at the PT CPS office door.
Action coordinator Tiolina Dameria said that they hoped that the action would trigger enthusiasm among workers, particularly women workers, to continue fighting to realise the normative rights for workers in their workplace.
"Marsinah is indeed dead, but I am sure that there other Marsinahs who have an even stronger spirit of struggle to [fight for] workers' welfare", she said.
During the action the workers also read out several demands to related parties such as the company, the government and security forces. The demands included a call to fully resolve Marsinah's murder, an end to all forms of workers' slavery, protection for women workers and an end to the involvement of the TNI (Indonesian military) and police in industrial disputes.
"We are also urging the government to make May 8 an annual holiday for Marsinah", said the East Java Indonesian Metal Trade Workers Federation (FSPMI) activist.
Marsinah, a labour activist with the watch company PT CPS, was found dead having suffered terrible injuries in a farmers' shack near the Wilangan Nganjuk forest after being declared missing three days earlier. To this day, the identity of Marsinah's killers remains a mystery.
[Buruh
di Jatim Peringati 20 Tahun Kematian Marsinah - Kompas.com. Rabu, 8 Mei
2013. Translated by James Balowski for the Indoleft news service.
