Hundreds rally against planned fuel price hike in Medan

By plinplan on May 16th, 2008 @ 23:05:05

Medan, N Sumatra (ANTARA News) - Hundreds of people coordinated by the National Liberation Forum (FPN) gathered outside the North Sumatra Provincial Legislative Assembly (DPRD) here Friday to express their opposition to the government`s plan to raise fuel oil prices.

The crowd, consisting of students and mass organization members, carried posters and banners that also expressed their rejection of the government`s direct cash assistance (BLT) program for the poor.

Wealth gap widening between the rich and the poor, SBY-JK govt failed

A spokesman for the demonstrators, Johan Merdeka, said the government led by President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono and Vice President Jusuf Kalla had failed to lead the country. Its policies had not sided with the people, the workers, farmers and urban poor in particular.

“As things are, no significant change has happened in the country`s conditions. The people are now even living in greater difficulties as evident in the increasing unemployment and poverty rates,” he said.

The arguments the government had cited to justify its plan to raise fuel oil prices by 30 percent made no sense and appeared only to be an attempt to manipulate the people`s awareness, because, in reality, the planned fuel oil price hikes would definitely affect all sectors of the people`s economy, Merdeka said.

Robert Simanjuntak, the rally`s coordinator, said “It`s time for the people to offer resistance to the SBY-JK government which seems to be just a puppet of imperialism whose policies only favor the owners of capital.”

Therefore, he said, the masses grouped in FPN also demand the writing off of Indonesia`s foreign debt and the nationalization of the mining, oil and gas industries.(*)

Like this Post? Subscribe to our RSS Feed.

Bookmark this article!