KSPI to Announce Presidential Candidate of Workers' Choice

Jakarta (Antara) - The Confederation of Indonesian Labour Union (KSPI) will soon announce a presidential candidate of workers' choice during the commemoration of the International Labor Day on May 1, 2014. "We will announce a presidential candidate who received the support of our 1.4 million members, including workers and teachers from all over Indonesia," KSPI's President Said Iqbal said here on Friday. The announcement will also coincide with the commemoration of national education day on May 2, 2014, he added. KSPI had set the criteria for Indonesian president of workers' choice, including being able to boost the Indonesian economy and make Indonesia a self-reliant nation, which is free from foreign pressure and dominance, he said. "We need a firm, brave and nationalist leader. In the manpower sector, for instance, he/she must be able to encourage labor wage hikes so that their salaries will be equal to those of neighboring countries, such as the Philippines, Thailand and Malaysia, and to abolish the outsourcing of employment," he added. He said the presidential candidate must adopt a pro-people policy that ensures low-cost housing and free medical care, provides higher education within the reach of the public in general and creates adequate means of public transportation. (*) Reporting by Hanni Sofia