Come to the No Sweat Conference

Saturday November 24
University of London Union, Malet St WC1.
11am-6pm
Speakers include Indonesian Trade Unionist Dita Sari. There will be a discussion on anti-capitalism after Genoa and a debate between Colin Hines and Pete Green on the meaning of Globalisation. There will also be film showings and practical sessions aimed at informing and launching campaigning activity, including a major project t organise sweatshop workers in the east end of London.
Tickets are on sale, priced 5 pounds (if you are really skint / a school student, give us a good sob story and we'll see what we can do).

Dita will also be doing a brief speaker tour, visiting Leeds, Leicester, Manchester, Nottingham and Sheffield. Get in touch for details.

Use the New No Sweat Website

If you go to the website, www.nosweat.org.uk and register as a user you can post articles and comment on messages already there. Since its redesign last month we have had 6,000 page hits, so it's getting the
message out there. Bu the idea is that it is YOUR site. So get registered by entering your details (it will automatically send you a password) and get using it. Features include pictures etc to download
(this section will be expanding soon), news, events, ideas etc.. By going to "easy print" you can print off any article on the website in a presentable format.
So what's stopping you?

News Flash

Dita Sari was arrested again last Thursday. Thankfully she was released the following day, but this sort of state harassment is a regular feature of the class struggle in Indonesia.

One thousand workers from fifteen branches of the Matahari Putra Prima department store were on strike on November 8. They gathered inside the company's headquarters compound to demand a meeting between their union, the Indonesian National Front for Labour Struggles (FNPBI) and management. The workers were seeking payment of various award allowances that the company has not being paying. The workers are being paid a
monthly wage of between $40 and $50 without the obligatory $2 per day food and transport allowance.

The company management refused to meet the union stating that the union was an outside third party presence.

At 3.10pm, workers heard the police commander issue orders to disperse the workers and beat them Scores of police then attacked the workers.
According to a statement issued by the FNPBI on November 9, 31 workers suffered injuries, mainly wounds to the head. Others suffered severe bruising from being kicked while on the ground.

Eight FNPBI leaders were arrested, including FNPBI Chairperson, Dita Sari. Also arrested was the chairperson of the Matahari Branch of the union, Amran Sadat. Four other union branch leaders were arrested as well as three leaders of the district union leadership.

Protest faxes can be sent to:
National Police Headquarters: 62-21-7261771
Jakarta Metropolitan Police Headquarters: 62-21-5225646
or to your local Indonesian Embassy or Consulate

For more info contact TAPOL, the Indonesia Human Rights Campaign, 111
Northwood Road, Thornton Heath, Croydon CR7 8HW, UK.
tel +44 020 8771 2904 fax +44 020 8653 0322
 tapol@gn.apc.org www.gn.apc.org/tapol

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