REPUBLIKA.CO.ID, JAKARTA -- The Coordinating Minister for Maritime Affairs, Luhut Binsar Pandjaitan, has said Garuda Indonesia airlines will operate normally without any pilots' strike during the Eid-al-Fitr holidays. He assured that all is under control.

"I think these pilots have a conscience, they will not go on strike in this fasting month of Ramadhan and Eid-al-Fitr," Luhut said here on Tuesday.

The ministry set up a task force to mediate with the airlines management, the Garuda Indonesia Pilot Association (APG), and the labour union (Sekarga). The Transportation Ministry, the State Enterprises Ministry and the Manpower Ministry are part of the task force.

"Hopefully the problem can be solved before July," said Luhut. The conflict between the pilot association, the labor union and the airlines management was due to miscommunication, he said.

Meanwhile, the Garuda Indonesia President Director, Pahala Mansury, praised pilots' decision not to go on strike during the peak Eid-al-Fitr homecoming season. "Because in peak season, we give the best services in air transportation. We should not do it at the expense of public interest," he said, adding that the airline management was open to personal as well as institutional communication.

"We hope that we can improve communication and we are always open for such communication," Pahala said.

The APG and Sekarga threatened to go on strike unless the government stepped in and helped solve managerial problems at the country's flag carrier. They said the company's performance continued to decline and blamed it on managerial problems.

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