Summary and links to news stories of workers' struggles around East Asia during November 2013 and related resources. The most important stories appear on my Twitter feed as soon as I find them: http://twitter.com/spartacusnews.
Protest against new secrecy law in Tokyo
This month there has been news from Cambodia, China, Indonesia, Japan, Malaysia, Myanmar, Philippines, Taiwan, Thailand.
For reports of workers struggles in Mandarin, as usual I urge you to check Jasmine Revolution and JTTP.cn with the help of a translator website if you need it.
The most important stories:
Cambodia 4: Strike continues over repression and pay at SL garment factory in Phnom Penh (link 1)
Cambodia 12: Protest by striking workers over wages, conditions and intimidation at SL Garments factory in Phnom Penh (link 1) (link 2) (link 3) (link 4) (link 5) (link 6) (link 7) (link 8) (link 9) (link 10) (link 11) (link 12) (link 13) (link 14)
Cambodia 14: Protest by workers for wage rise at Alim Cambodia Co. Ltd. garment factory in Phnom Penh (link 1)
Cambodia 21: Strike against managers and for benefits at Alim garment factory in Phnom Penh (link 1)
China 1: Strike by teachers and protest by students over pay, benefits, pensions and student fees in Lianyungang, Jiangsu (link 1)
China 1: Strike by hospital workers over violence in Zhejiang (link 1) (link 2)
China 18: Strike over unpaid wages by construction workers of Wellfield Engineering at Lohas Park, Hong Kong (link 1)
China 22: Strike and protest over Microsoft takeover and sackings at Nokia factory in Dongguan, Guangdong (link 1) (link 2) (link 3) (link 4) (link 5) (link 6) (link 7)
China 26: Strike over wages at ASM semi-conductor factory in Shenzhen, Guangdong (link 1) (link 2)
Indonesia 6: Strike for rise in minimum wage nation wide (link 1) (link 2) (link 3) (link 4)
Myanmar 4: Strike over sacking and CCTV at Handsome garment factory in Dagon Seikkan, Yangon (link 1) (link 2)
All reports ordered by country and date:
-Analysis
6: Frustrations lead to confrontation as workers take to the streets (link 1)
14: Bringing the boss to the bargaining table (link 1)
14: The making of a labour activist (link 1)
16: Taiwan's White Shirt youths take on political parties (link 1)
20: Moving forward: Workers discuss strategies for the future (link 1)
28: Wildcat strikes push China to write new anti-labour laws (link 1)
Cambodia
4: Strike continues over repression and pay at SL garment factory in Phnom Penh (link 1)
12: Protest by striking workers over wages, conditions and intimidation at SL Garments factory in Phnom Penh (link 1) (link 2) (link 3) (link 4) (link 5) (link 6) (link 7) (link 8) (link 9) (link 10) (link 11) (link 12) (link 13) (link 14)
14: Protest by workers for wage rise at Alim Cambodia Co. Ltd. garment factory in Phnom Penh (link 1)
15: Protest against hydroelectric project (link 1)
19: Protest by villagers against eviction for rubber plantation in Kulen, Preah Vihear (link 1)
20: Protest for release of land rights activist in Phnom Penh (link 1)
21: Strike against managers and for benefits at Alim garment factory in Phnom Penh (link 1)
25: Protest against eviction by sugarcane company in Chheb, Preah Vihear (link 1)
China
1: Protest over land grabs in Aba, Sichuan (link 1)
1: Strike by teachers and protest by students over pay, benefits, pensions and student fees in Lianyungang, Jiangsu (link 1)
1: Strike by hospital workers over violence in Zhejiang (link 1) (link 2)
5: Protest over lead pollution and for release of protesters in Renhua, Guangdong (link 1)
5: Protest over forced eviction in Tuokou, Hunan (link 1)
8: Bomb blasts outside Communist Party HQ in Taiyuan, Shanxi (link 1) (link 2) (link 3) (link 4)
9: Strike for respect of rights and in solidarity with sacked workers at Hengtong Rubber Factory in Shenzhen, Guangdong (link 1)
14: Workplace action against merger at Cooper Tire factory (link 1) (link 2)
14: Protest against forced evictions in Haitangwan, Hainan (link 1)
15: Protest by villagers against inclusion in country park in Kowloon, Hong Kong (link 1)
18: Strike over unpaid wages by construction workers of Wellfield Engineering at Lohas Park, Hong Kong (link 1)
22: Strike and protest over Microsoft takeover and sackings at Nokia factory in Dongguan, Guangdong (link 1) (link 2) (link 3) (link 4) (link 5) (link 6) (link 7)
26: Protest against waste disposal site in Jingzhenyuan, Guangdong (link 1)
26: Strike over wages at ASM semi-conductor factory in Shenzhen, Guangdong (link 1) (link 2)
Indonesia
6: Strike for rise in minimum wage nation wide (link 1) (link 2) (link 3) (link 4)
18: Protest over wages, health care and outsourcing in Jakarta (link 1)
19: Protest by palm oil workers over working condition at sustainability meeting in Medan, Sumatra (link 1)
27: Protest by hotel workers for job guarantees during renovation at Hyatt hotel in Bali (link 1)
28: Protests and strikes by doctors over jailed colleagues (link 1) (link 2) (link 3) (link 4)
Japan
22: Protest against new state secrets bill in Tokyo (link 1) (link 2)
Malaysia
6: Protest by indigenous groups against dam in Sarawak (link 1) (link 2) (link 3)
7: Protest against evictions in Kampung Hakka Mantin, Negeri Sembilan (link 1)
20: Protest by indigenous people from Sarawak against dam in Kuala Lumpur (link 1) (link 2) (link 3)
29: Protest by villagers against development projects in Kuching, Borneo (link 1)
Myanmar
4: Strike over sacking and CCTV at Handsome garment factory in Dagon Seikkan, Yangon (link 1) (link 2)
8: Protest over electricity price in Yangon (link 1)
15: Protest against Letpadaung copper mine (link 1) (link 2) (link 3)
29: Protest over military land grabbing in Yangon (link 1)
Philippines
14: Protest over slow relief efforts for people affected by typhoon in Quezon City, Metro Manila (link 1)
18: 2 year struggle against outsourcing at PAL ends with 600 hundred workers reinstated (link 1) (link 2) (link 3) (link 4) (link 5)
29: Protest by refugees over forced relocation plan in Zamboanga (link 1)
Taiwan
1: Labor activists are jailed for protests, pledge to fight on (link 1)
10: Protest against government in Taipei (link 1) (link 2)
13: Protest by former workers of Hualon over pension payments in Taipei (link 1)
15: Protest for right to organise at Shanghai Commercial (link 1)
Thailand
25: Protest against government in Bangkok (link 1) (link 2) (link 3) (link 4) (link 5) (link 6) (link 7) (link 8) (link 9) (link 10)
Comments
As a friendly suggestion, I
As a friendly suggestion, I really don't think the current anti-government protests in Thailand deserve inclusion here under the banner of workers' struggles. These recent protests are largely about reasserting the power of the monarchist/aristocratic/Bangkok-based elite against the poorer Northern and Northeastern parts of the country, which have consistently voted in Thaksin (or his proxies) because of his quasi-keynesian distributive policies. The leaders of the current anti-goverment protests have explicitly stated that their goal is to remove the elected government of Yingluck Shinawatra, and replace it with an unelected "people's council" composed of appointed leaders. I see nothing in these protests that a libertarian communist should support.
Echoing soe, I would at least
Echoing soe, I would at least suggest that these merit more thorough going attention and nuanced discussion. But I do think they merit attention, so I'm glad they're here, and as usual this is a useful survey of the goings-on!
There's a thread a started awhile back here: http://libcom.org/forums/news/political-unrest-thailand-02122013
Yes, I actually intended to
Yes, I actually intended to put a qualifying comment with those as I agree they are not workers struggles, but included more for giving an idea of the general situation in Thailand. Then I forgot when it came to publishing, but thanks for pointing it out for others!