City facing serious social problems

City facing serious social problems

JAKARTA (JP): The capital is facing the prospect of buckling
under the strain of a number of serious social problems resulting
from sharp increases in the number of jobless people coupled with
the arrival of migrants from other parts of the country, a
government official has warned.

Sabar Sianturi, the chief of the manpower ministry's Jakarta
office, said here on Thursday that growing numbers of the
unemployed coupled with the continued arrival of migrants would
cause formidable problems unless the city administration took
immediate action.

"On the one hand, the number of jobless is expected to
continue to rise, while on the other hand more and more people
from other cities and islands will continue to come here in
search of a livelihood," he said.

Sianturi said that according to data compiled by his office,
the number of unemployed people in the city was now thought to be
around 825,000, pointing out that the real figure could be much
higher.

He also said that data showed that Jakarta's population was
now officially 9.6 million, but said the true number could be
double that.

Sianturi said that around 60 percent of the city's true
population had no permanent job or was unemployed, while last
month alone, 300,000 migrants from other cities arrived in the
capital in search of work, he said.

"Now most intersections in the capital are swarming with
beggars and street singers and the crime rate in the city is on
the rise," he said.

He admitted that massive job losses resulting from the
economic crisis coupled with poor prospects of reemployment and
rising prices of basic commodities had left many people facing
destitution.

"The situation is like a ticking time bomb. It could explode
at any time over the coming months...," he said, adding that
rioting could be sparked by mounting frustration over the absence
of signs of an economic recovery in the near future.

Sianturi urged the city administration to take action to help
minimize the worst affects of economic hardship and unemployment.

He said that the government should act to stop the inflow of
migrants to the capital because their presence could only worsen
the situation here.

"Neighborhood chiefs should be on alert for newcomers in their
areas and take action to prevent them from committing crimes," he
said.

He urged the government to launch a campaign to improve life
outside the city so that jobless people would return to their
home towns voluntarily.

He said that the transmigration ministry should also continue
to resettle people on less densely populated islands.

Sianturi expressed concern that many transmigrant families
from Jakarta returned to the capital because of poor conditions
in resettlement areas.

He said that his office would continue with training programs
for unskilled workers and new graduates and would encourage labor
export companies to send unemployed people to work in other
provinces and abroad.

"We have sent many workers to industrial zones in Batam and
many others overseas," he said, adding that 400,000 unemployed
people left the capital to work overseas in 1998.

Sianturi also urged the government to continue to help the
jobless through the social safety net program for as long as the
crisis lasts.

"We have carried out a number of labor-intensive projects.
Such projects will continue in the coming months," he said,
adding that his office had thus far employed 26,000 people
through the projects. (rms)