'70s casinos a world away from today
'70s casinos a world away from today
Rendi A. Witular, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Only the blue tiles on the row of three shabby buildings on
Jl. Kemenangan III in Glodok, West Jakarta, give a hint of their
past.
While others may have forgotten what used to stand on the
spot, "Lao Tao" remembers. The 56 year old let out a sad sigh as
he toured the former site of Taosebio, the first legalized casino
during Ali Sadikin's tenure as governor in the late 1960s.
"These three buildings used to be a casino covering a 1,260-
square-meter lot which could accommodate 1,000 visitors per day,"
he said of the buildings, now the site of a pet shop and
residences.
Lao knows the story better than most: he owned the building
back when the street it was on was still called Jl. Petak
Sembilan and he became a stakeholder in the casino, which took
its name from the old adjoining Buddhist temple.
He, other casino employees and security officials remember the
golden decade of casinos in Jakarta as a world away from the
unruly situation of underground gambling today, even as Governor
Sutiyoso has proposed a "discourse" on the issue of establishing
casinos in Kepulauan Seribu (the Thousand Islands).
As with so many of his decisions, Sutiyoso seems to have
misjudged public sentiment, especially among Muslims, in calling
for the localization of casinos.
But, in the tightly controlled society of Soeharto's New
Order, casinos were kept in their designated place. The
charismatic and well-liked governor, Ali Sadikin, was able for a
time to fend off the protests against legalized gambling before
he ended his tenure and fell out of favor with the strongman.
Taosebio was opened in September 1968 by Ali based on a
gubernatorial decree from the previous year licensing the
operation of casinos.
Like Sutiyoso's proposal for the island casinos to be places
for high rollers only, Taosebio was always an exclusive joint.
"Most players were affluent Chinese. Native Indonesians, based
on their darker skin, were not allowed to enter the casino, even
if they were non-Muslims," Lao said.
"The casino was owned by a consortium of several croupiers.
The most prominent croupier was Aipyang Jingo, who was also known
as Aipyang Player. He was the license owner of the casino."
As roulette, blackjack, baccarat and other games (including
some of the casino's invention) were played out in its cavernous
rooms, Taosebio was the pioneer and model for the capital's
casinos. Ali and other city officials often visited to make
inspections of the facilities.
In 1970, the casino moved to a new three-story building at Jl.
Hayam Wuruk no. 127A, currently the Gracelil Building, and
underwent a name change to PIX, the acronym of Petak IX.
Apyang's consortium later built another casino in the Sarinah
building and at the Djakarta Theater, both in Central Jakarta.
Other casinos were found at the Jakarta Fair, Proyek Senen Lotto
Fair and Krekot, the racetrack at Pulo Mas, East Jakarta, Hai Lai
Toto in Ancol, North Jakarta, Princen Park on Jl. Mangga Besar
and the greyhound racetrack in Senayan, Central Jakarta.
Ali justified the legalization of casinos as a means to fatten
up the city's coffers for development projects, and they came
through in contributing huge amounts to the budget.
In 1979, PIX and Hai Lai alone contributed Rp 10 billion in
revenue to the administration, or 10 percent of its domestic
revenue.
"Li Chen", who was Taosebio's treasurer from 1968 to 1981,
said the casino contributed Rp 1.1 billion annually (equivalent
to about US$2.75 million at exchange rates in the 1970s) to the
administration from its total revenue of some Rp 3 billion.
Projects funded by revenue from the casino included the
building of 2,000 km of roads across Jakarta, including the
widening of Jl. Sudirman, Jl. Thamrin, Jl. Gadjah Mada and Jl.
Hayam Wuruk in Central Jakarta; construction of Ancol recreation
park, Taman Ismail Marzuki and Ragunan Zoo. Also funded were
urban renewal projects, schools, markets and public health
centers.
Although he could not be reached for comment due to illness,
Ali wrote in his book Bang Ali, Demi Jakarta 1966-1977 that
permits were given by tender. The business was tightly monitored
by a team from the administration and the city police to ensure
continued contributions and to protect local residents from the
negative impact of the opening of the business.
"The revenue of the casino was strictly supervised by the
administration," Li said. "No graft nor manipulation occurred.
Moreover, unlike today, in which gambling business needs backing
from the police and the military, no extra money was divvied up
for such officers. They didn't dare enter the gambling rooms."
"My rank was corporal at that time and there were 10 of us,
led by a brigadier, in guarding the place," said Brig. (ret)
Suratman, who was stationed to guard the casino three times a
week.
"We were not allowed to enter the room unless we were called.
When the guards needed help in guarding the place, they would
call us. But fighting between gamblers rarely occurred."
The 65 year old said he only received food money in guarding
the place.
"We guarded the place officially, not in the sense of backing
the place. No hoodlums or prostitutes dared operate in the
vicinity of the place. It was so well organized."
However, the casinos were unable to stem the rising tide of
public opposition. Following a 1973 ministerial instruction for
their closure, there was Law No. 7/1974 revoking all gambling
permits.
But the practice was still rampant until the government issued
Regulation No. 9/1981 outlawing casinos.
Of course, the government could not legislate behavior,
especially among those who consider gambling part of life's
efforts to improve their luck, such as ethnic Chinese and other
Indonesians.
Gambling has moved underground, allegedly with backing from
the security authorities, and proliferated to the point where
covert gambling dens are to be found in downtown Jakarta.
While the emotional and seemingly endless debate over what to
do about gambling continues, Lao Tao hangs onto his memories of a
brief time when casinos were kept in order.