'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.