INDONESIA: Unionist wins international award

BY MAX LANE

Militant trade union leader and former political prisoner Dita Sari has been awarded the Raymond Magsaysay Award, considered an Asian Nobel Prize, for being a "leader of new forces in Asia".

The chairperson of the Indonesian National Front for Workers' Struggles, Dita Sari told the People's Democratic Party's August 8 issue of Our Tasks, that she was "very moved [by the award] but also even more convinced of the path of struggle I have chosen."

"I am moved because it means the democratic struggle in Indonesia has won international recognition and support, at the very least in Asia. I am sure this award is not just for me personally but for the FNPBI and the PRD and all the democratic forces that have fought militantly for democracy and the people's welfare."

She also said that she was partucularly pleased that the first winners of the prize in the new category were women, herself and Cambodian activist Oung Chanthol.

"This proves that the involvement of women in the struggle is also being acknowledged and supported internationally", she remarked.

"It is also a warning to the Megawati government that the anti-democratic practices that have started to occur again will attract wide international attention."

From GLW issue 460