International unions, medical experts, and victim support groups are rallying behind Indonesian asbestos eradication activists and consumer advocates who are facing a major legal attack from the asbestos industry.
The Indonesia Asbestos Fibre Cement Manufacturers’ Association (FICMA) launched a massive lawsuit against several asbestos activists and the consumer group LPKSM Yasa Nata Budi. The case, which began in Jakarta’s Central Court in August 2025, is being seen as a clear case of corporate bullying against workers and activists through a Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation (SLAPP).
FICMA is seeking nearly 790 billion Indonesian Rupiah (around AUD $72 million) in damages and compensation for future lost profits from those seeking to warn the public on exposure risks of white asbestos. Their lawsuit comes after activists and LPKSM won a landmark 2024 Indonesian Supreme Court case, which mandates health warning labels on asbestos roofing products. To attempt to delay the introduction of the labelling decision, and it would seem punish and silence those who exposed the dangers of white asbestos the industry has brought this legal action.
A deadly industry using intimidation
Asbestos is still used in manufacturing in some countries, including Indonesia, even though all types of asbestos are known carcinogens that kills more than 200,000 people every year. The World Health Organisation (WHO) and the International Labour Organisation (ILO) have both confirmed that all forms of asbestos cause cancer, including lung, larynx, ovarian, and mesothelioma.
Despite this overwhelming evidence, FICMA is relying on discredited studies funded by the asbestos industry, which falsely claim that chrysotile asbestos can dissolve in the lungs and therefore does not cause disease. They are also misrepresenting decisions from international conventions, such as the Rotterdam Convention, where chrysotile asbestos’s listing onto the convention has faced over 20 years of industry and producer country blocking, despite it being recommended and supported by over 90% of countries present.
This lawsuit is not just about silencing one activist group; it’s part of a broader international lobbying effort by the asbestos industry to try to protect its last key market, Asia, and build profits at the terrible cost of workers’ lives, the environment and the future economies of these countries left with the burden of clean up and compensation costs.
Global unions, medics and victims fight back
The asbestos industry’s legal attack has provoked a strong national and international response. Indonesian expert witnesses have strongly refuted claims of the industry with local and international evidence. Dozens of statements have been sent to be presented to the court in support of the defendants from around the world. These include:
- Trade unions from Australia, Sweden, Germany, Canada, UK, the European Trade Union Council, along with the Global Building and Woodworkers Union (BWI).
- Medical experts and scientists, including members of Collegium Ramazzini — an independent international academy of 180 occupational and environmental health specialists.
- Victims’ and support groups such as Asbestos Council of Victoria/GARDS (Australia), Asbestos Diseases Society of Australian (ADSA), Korea’s Asian Citizen’s Centre for Environment and Health, the Brazilian Association of the Asbestos-Exposed, and the UK’s Merseyside Asbestos Victim Support Group.
- Australian research institutions like the Asbestos and Dust Diseases Research Institute (a WHO Collaborating Centre).
- NGOs and global coalitions including Union Aid Abroad–APHEDA, International Pollutants Elimination Network (IPEN), Pesticide Action Network (PAN), International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS), and the Asian Ban Asbestos Network (ABAN), Global Asbestos Forum.
All of these groups have reaffirmed the scientific facts: asbestos is deadly, and strong action is essential to protect workers and the public. Many have also stressed the global consensus on asbestos exposure health risks, with 72 countries already banning all types of asbestos import and use, including chrysotile.
Leo Yogapranata from LPKSM Yasa Nata Budi welcomed the outpouring of global solidarity:
“This global support proves that asbestos is not only a legal issue, it’s a matter of humanity.”
Similarly, Darisman, Coordinator of the Indonesia Ban Asbestos Network, described the lawsuit as a clear attempt to pressure activists through industry-backed legal intimidation:
“Our solidarity will be stronger. The world has seen that asbestos is a real threat to public health.”
Join the efforts to support workers across the world
If the asbestos industry succeeds in silencing these advocates, it could set a dangerous precedent for workers’ health and communities in Indonesia and other countries where asbestos is still legal to import and use. The WHO recently reported that asbestos is responsible for 70% of all occupational cancers worldwide.
This is more than a legal fight; it’s a fight for truth, public health, and the right to speak out. You can support activists in Indonesia and elsewhere in Southeast Asia by joining Union Aid Abroad–APHEDA here and supporting our campaign Asbestos. Not here. Not Anywhere
The Asbestos. Not here. Not Anywhere campaign receives support from Australian trade unions, individual donations, the Australian Government via Australian Aid, Australian NGO Cooperation Program (ANCP), the Asbestos and Silica Safety and Eradication Agency (ASSEA) and the International Ban Asbestos Secretariat (IBAS).
