Thousands join May Day rallies in Jakarta

JAKARTA, May 1 (UPI) -- Thousands of labor union members rallied Saturday in the Indonesian capital, Jakarta, to mark International Labor Day.

There were large demonstrations outside the presidential palace and the Labor Department building, the news agency Bernama reported. They demanded guarantees of lifetime healthcare and pensions.

President Susilo Bambang Yudhoyono was not in the capital, instead spending the day with auto workers in West Java, The Jakarta Post reported.

At the presidential palace, protesters burned an 8-foot-tall mouse effigy, dancing around it during the fire.