Borobudur people are poor despite wealthy region<\/p>\n
Heru Prasetya, Contributor, Magelang, Central Java<\/p>\n
The presence of a world famous tourist and heritage site nearby,
\nthe Borobudur Temple, perhaps gives one the impression that the
\nlocal residents there might be earning a nice living from all the
\ntourist money, but nothing could be further from the truth.<\/p>\n
Although the Borobudur Temple management company PT Taman
\nWisata Candi Borobudur, Prambanan and Ratu Boko rake in huge
\nprofits, Borobudur district's income per capita is the lowest in
\nMagelang regency.<\/p>\n
Last year, nearly 2 million domestic tourists and 107,972
\nforeign tourists visited the world famous Buddhist temple. With
\nentrance tickets of Rp 5,000 for each Indonesian tourist and US$5
\neach for foreigner, PT Taman Wisata should have grossed nearly Rp
\n10 billion and US$539,860 last year in ticket sales alone.<\/p>\n
Each local resident in the district, however, earned an
\naverage of Rp 2 million (about $210) the same year, or an average
\nof Rp 167,241 a month.<\/p>\n
\"The district consists of mostly plateaus, slopes and a
\nmountain range and most of its people are farmers and unskilled
\nworkers. It's no wonder that their income is incomparable to that
\nof PT Taman Wisata's,\" head of Borobudur district Endot Sudiyanto
\nsaid.<\/p>\n
The district is home to some 53,000 people, 20,000 of whom are
\nfarmers, 10,000 are unskilled workers, and the rest were a
\nmixture of civil servants, traders, craftsmen, soldiers, retired
\npeople and unemployed people. Less than 500 residents make a
\nliving from the temple's tourism income.<\/p>\n
\"Most of these 500 people are street vendors and small-scale
\ntraders who find it extremely difficult even to earn Rp 20,000 a
\nday. Suppliers and large-scale traders were mostly from outside
\nof Borobudur district,\" said Endot.<\/p>\n
A source at PT Taman Wisata, which is headquartered in the
\nPrambanan Temple area of Yogyakarta, said most of the company's
\nincome was allocated for the temple's maintenance and the rest
\npaid for employees' salary and financial aid for local residents.<\/p>\n
Endot also admitted that there was a financial aid program for
\nthe district. As far as he knew, financial support of about Rp 50
\nmillion a month had been given directly to the Borobudur district
\noffice, while another Rp 75 million was channeled through the
\nMagelang regency administration, which then was supposed to
\nallocate most of the funds for the maintenance of basic
\ninfrastructure. Other financial support was provided temporarily
\naccording to Borobudur residents' needs.<\/p>\n
Endot expressed hope the plan to build an art market --
\ndespite a large group who is against it -- would help cut down on
\nthe wide wealth gap between PT Taman Wisata and local residents,
\nand help the residents make a decent living from the temple.<\/p>\n
\"I just do not understand why these local people cannot make a
\nliving from the temple and the tourists,\" Endot wondered.<\/p>\n
Perhaps there is hope among some of the people in the district
\nwho support the art market idea, as they have used graffiti as a
\nmeans of expressing their support by defacing the walls of Kujon
\nSquare where the market will be built.<\/p>\n
Under the plan, the Jagad Jawa Art Market (PSJJ) is designed
\nas a \"shopping center\" with 1,200 kiosks inside to accommodate
\nabout 1,500 vendors. The mall-style, three-story building will
\nalso provide information about Borobudur and various tourist
\nfacilities for visitors.<\/p>\n
Once the market is finished, Endot believes tourist buses,
\nwhich usually just pass through the area, will stop in the square
\nfor tourists to browse as a part of the Borobudur experience.
\nFrom the square, a kilometer west of the temple, tourists are
\nexpected to continue the trip to the temple by walking or riding
\ntraditional vehicles like becak (pedicab), delman (horse-ridden
\ncart) or a planned mini-tram. They can also spend time shopping
\nat the art market.<\/p>\n
The planned concept of the art market, according to Endot,
\nwill make the temple less crowded than it used to be, as more
\npeople -- tourists as well as vendors, will be split up on any
\ngiven day, some browsing the market, others taking in the
\nancient, grandiose temple.<\/p>\n
And Endot believed -- amid protests from vendors saying it
\nwould be hard for them to compete with big traders to lease space
\nin the market -- that every local vendor who applies would get a
\nplace in the market.<\/p>\n
So, is it true that the project will benefit local people and
\nvendors, not just a particular group of people? That fear was
\nwhat had incited protests, mostly among Borobudur street vendors,
\nwho fear the presence of the art market would make tourists
\nreluctant to buy their products.<\/p>",
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