Community overcomes problems by working together<\/p>\n
Evi Mariani, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta<\/p>\n
With a tap water crisis looming, millions of residents in the
\ncrowded and chaotic capital have reason for concern.<\/p>\n
But not Ramelan, 66, and his wife, Saminem, 57, and 23 other
\nfamilies who live on the tiny and crowded Gg. Setia in Kebayoran
\nLama, South Jakarta.<\/p>\n
Blessed with adequate groundwater but lacking space, the
\ncommunity of 107 people has been managing its precious water
\nsupply carefully for almost 40 years.<\/p>\n
\"Since the 1960s, we have used public wells, six bathrooms and
\nsix toilets. Every house here only has a tiny area for washing
\ndishes and laundry. But for other things, we use the communal
\nfacilities,\" Ramelan, who hails from Yogyakarta, told The Jakarta
\nPost.<\/p>\n
Each family on Gg. Setia rents their modest wooden house from
\na landlord, whose house is located on the corner of the tiny
\nstreet.<\/p>\n
\"When we first came here in the 1960s, the landlord arranged
\nthe communal sanitation facilities,\" Saminem, a homemaker, said.<\/p>\n
Years later, although the economy had improved and they could
\nafford privacy and their own facilities, the families decided to
\nmaintain the communal facilities.<\/p>\n
Since 1997, the community, assisted by donated building
\nmaterials from the municipality, has improved the facilities.<\/p>\n
In 2002, when a prolonged dry season lowered the groundwater
\nlevel, the community decided to dig an artesian well.<\/p>\n
\"Thank God, the quality of the groundwater here is good,\"
\nRamelan said, adding that in 2001 tests found the quality of
\ntheir water met government standards.<\/p>\n
And all of the families in the area want to keep it that way.<\/p>\n
\"Once, one of our neighbors built his own toilet at the back
\nof his house. After discussing it with others, we asked him to
\nclose the toilet. Fortunately, he was quite understanding,\"
\nRamelan said.<\/p>\n
\"The problem is, if each house had its own toilet, septic tank
\nand well, it would get too crowded and all of the septic tanks
\nwould pollute the groundwater,\" he said.<\/p>\n
With the current arrangement, the distance between the
\ncommunal wells and the septic tank is about 20 meters, above the
\nminimum distance of 15 meters required by local sanitation
\nstandards.<\/p>\n
Ramelan said some people from the water company once visited
\nthe neighborhood to do some measuring, but they never came back.<\/p>\n
According to the latest reports, as of December 2004, tap
\nwater services provided by PAM Jaya, in a joint venture with PT
\nPAM Lyonnaise Jaya of France and PT Thames PAM Jaya of Britain,
\ncovered just slightly more than three million people in the
\ncapital, out of a total population of 8.7 million.<\/p>\n
\"I don't know about the rest of the community. But for myself,
\nI'm pleased with the current arrangements, even though we don't
\nhave a private toilet and bathroom. The distance from our house
\nto the facilities is not very far,\" Ramelan, a retired police
\nofficer, said.<\/p>\n
Ramelan said he heard tap water customers often complain
\nabout the poor service.<\/p>\n
\"My brother-in-law is a PAM customer. He tells me the tap
\nwater sometimes stops all day, particularly in the dry season.
\nSometimes it only trickles at night,\" Ramelan said.<\/p>\n
\"We are happy with this. We only pay Rp 10,000 (US$1) a month,
\nwhich also covers the cost of cleaning equipment like brushes and
\ndisinfectants.\" Saminem said. \"I think a family uses an average
\nof 5,000 m3 water a day if they do laundry.\"<\/p>\n
Compared to tap water, the community pays very little for
\nwater. The cheapest rate for tap water is currently Rp 900 per 1
\nm3, and the highest is Rp 12,150. Tap water rates are likely to
\nbe raised 25 percent next year.<\/p>\n
Every month, Ramelan added, 15 people were assigned to clean
\nthe public toilets.<\/p>\n
\"We were named the best neighborhood because of our good
\nsanitation and community health,\" Ramelan said with pride.<\/p>\n
\"But on top of that, we actually won because of our sense of
\ncommunity,\" Saminem added, also proudly.<\/p>\n
Saminem, who rents two small houses for Rp 50,000 each per
\nmonth, pointed at a wall built from wooden planks.<\/p>\n
\"We can dismantle the walls all the way from the left end of
\nthe row to the right,\" she said.<\/p>\n
She said the arrangement was useful for the community when
\nthey threw parties for weddings, circumcision ceremonies or any
\nother communal gathering.<\/p>\n
Almost all of the 24 families, or 107 people, who live on Gg.
\nSetia originally came from Central Java or Yogyakarta, like
\nSaminem and Ramelan.<\/p>\n
Judging from their modest yet adequate belongings, the people
\nof Gg. Setia are not among Jakarta's poor. But obviously,
\nfinance-wise, their lives are not as easy as those of their rich
\nneighbors just one kilometer away in the posh Permata Hijau.<\/p>\n
But they keep on smiling. Clearly, working together the people
\nof Jakarta can thrive.<\/p>\n
Caption:
\nJP\/Evi Mariani
\nRamelan points to a sign that reads, \"Please, take off your
\nshoes\", in front of the communal toilets.<\/p>",
"url": "https:\/\/jawawa.id\/newsitem\/community-overcomes-problems-by-working-together-1447893297",
"image": ""
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"sponsor_url": "https:\/\/okusiassociates.com"
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