NEWS - Washington, D.C. Demonstrati

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Subject: NEWS - Washington, D.C. Demonstration Backs Indonesian

Texaco/Chevron Strikers
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Title: Washington, D.C. Demonstration Backs Indonesian Texaco/Chevron
Strikers
Author: ICEM Update No. 41/1999
Date: 01-AUG-1999
Source: <struggs@xxxxxxxxxxxxxx>, DAMN's labor topic specialist
Reference: International Federation of Chemical, Energy, Mine and
General Workers' Unions (ICEM)
http://www.icem.org/update/upd1999/upd99-41.html

American trade union activists demonstrated outside Texaco's Washington
office on Friday in protest over ongoing labour and human rights
violations at an Indonesian oil facility owned jointly by Texaco and
Chevron. The demonstration was sponsored by the US labour confederation
AFL-CIO and by the 20-million-strong International Federation of
Chemical, Energy, Mine and General Workers' Unions (ICEM).

At issue is a strike by 8,000 oil workers at an oil rig owned by Caltex
Petroleum Corp, a joint venture between Texaco and Chevron, located in
central Sumatra, Indonesia. The workers are employed by a Caltex
subcontractor, PT Tripatra, which violated Indonesian labour law when it
refused to make those of the workers with more than two years' seniority
permanent employees and pay them the compensation due to them. The
Indonesian workers are members of the Indonesian Prosperity Trade Union
(SBSI), headed by prominent labour leader Muchtar Pakpahan.

When the company refused to follow a May 1999 directive from the
Indonesian Ministry of Manpower, the workers went on strike on June 21.
PT Tripatra then fired the strikers on July 6 and has been using the
Indonesian army and police to intimidate and harass the strikers. On
July 23, these security forces fired rubber bullets at the strikers,
shooting one man in the head.  They also assaulted several other
strikers.