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Medical associations threaten to strike if health bill passes
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Extra care: A nurse assists a patient suffering from COVID-19 at a hospital in Bogor, West Java, on Jan. 26, 2021. (Reuters/Willy Kurniawan)
T
he Indonesian Medical Association (IDI) and allied groups have threatened to strike if lawmakers pass the omnibus health bill into law, a sweeping piece of legislation that would bring divisive changes to the country’s health sector.
On Monday, seven of the nine party factions on House of Representatives Commission IX overseeing health agreed to bring the bill to an upcoming plenary session for passage.
The IDI, however, wants the bill brought back to the drawing board. If lawmakers press on with the enactment, the country’s largest medical association has threatened, in addition to the strike, to file a judicial review of the bill alleging that its deliberation lacked transparency.
"We will continue our campaign [against the bill], and staging a strike is an option we are seriously considering,” IDI chairman Mohammad Adib Khumaidi said during a press conference on Monday, as quoted by kompas.com. “[The strike] is not for our own interests or for our profession but for the interests of the public.”
Tens of thousands of doctors belong to the IDI, and the potential strike would also involve health workers from four allied medical associations: the Indonesian Dentists Association (PDGI), the Indonesian Nurses Association (PPNI), the Indonesian Midwives Association (IBI) and the Indonesian Pharmacists Association (IAI).
“Frankly speaking, we don’t know the contents of the bill [that was endorsed by Commission IX] or whether or not our opinions have been considered,” Adib said. “It’s clear to see that the [deliberation process] is legally flawed.”
A coalition of over 40 civil society groups has voiced opposition to the bill as well, arguing that there has not been any meaningful public participation in its deliberation.
