A new trend?

A new trend?

Now that the holidays have passed and the celebrating is over,
Jakarta has begun returning to normal. On Tuesday, according to
one newspaper report, nearly 46,000 people arrived at the
Pulogadung bus station after a long and grueling journey from
various regions of Java. Huge crowds were also reported to have
packed other bus terminals and railway stations. Officials
estimate that most everything in the city should be back to
normal by today.

The city's return to its usual state is an occasion for mixed
feelings. On one hand many will miss the brief respite from the
chronic traffic jams and the jostling for space that is so
characteristic of Jakarta. On the other, for many this means that
business can now get back on track. Government offices, banks and
shops will open up and be regularly staffed to serve the public.

Of course, this kind of seasonal movement is nothing strange
to Jakarta. Every year around the great Islamic holidays of Idul
Fitri, also known as Lebaran, the same phenomenon occurs. What
strikes us is the present tendency for this to happen around all
major holidays.

In a sense, it is to be expected. Economic development has
brought about greater affluence and more Indonesians than ever
are enjoying incomes that allow them to take their holidays away
from home. A more extensive road network and more satisfactory
air and sea transport facilities make it possible for people to
travel in relative comfort to even the most remote areas of
Indonesia.

This phenomenon, however, invites a number of questions.
First, will the trend towards longer holidays become routine? Are
we going to see similar shifts in population during every major
holiday, or every time two or more official holidays occur in a
row? Second, is this kind of behavior in line with our objective
of becoming a developed, modern nation?

One can imagine the frustration of a modern business
executive, who, once or twice a year, or perhaps more often, is
faced with a personnel vacuum during every extended holiday.

The questions are worth pondering, especially since it is the
stated intention of the authorities, led by President Soeharto
himself, to establish a greater sense of discipline in
Indonesians. Indeed, it is difficult to imagine how we are ever
going to build a modern society without a proper sense of
discipline, from the upper echelons of society down to the
layman.

It has been argued that on certain occasions long vacations
are unavoidable, especially at Idul Fitri, when tradition demands
that younger people pay their respects to their elders and
forgiveness be asked and offered to friends and relatives.

If this is the case, we believe the government should regulate
business and civil service activities so that the drive towards
modernity and the demands of tradition are made to fit each
other. But extending vacations on each and every holiday seems
rather extravagant for a country in the process of development
and in the midst of a national discipline drive.