WORKERS TO DEMAND MAKING MAY 1 NATIONAL HOLIDAY

Jakarta, April 30 (ANTARA) - Workers grouped in the Federation of United State Enterprise Worker Unions plan to take to the street on May 1 to press their demand for the government to declare Labor Day (May 1) a national workers' holiday.

"We will deploy 3,000 to 5,000 workers in a peaceful demonstration tomorrow," FX Arief Ppayuono, the federations' presidium chairman said here on Thursday.

Arief said through the peaceful demonstration the workers would call on the the government to immediately declare May 1 as a holiday.

He said the demonstration would take place at the Hotel Indonesia roundabout in Central Jakarta and at Jakarta International Container Terminal in Tanjung Priok, North Jakarta.

By declaring the day as a holiday, the government would be considered more attentive to workers.

"Even in Malaysia, Singapore, Thailand, the Philippines and China May 1 has already been declared a national holiday," he said.

Arief said in the Old Order era May 1 was also being commemorated and declared as a holiday.

He expressed concern over lingering negative stigma among the public that workers' movement was identical with left or communist movement.