Demolition of apartments legal: Official

Demolition of apartments legal: Official

JAKARTA (JP): The city's secretary assistant for development
administration H. Prawoto S. Danoemihardjo says that the
demolition of the Rawa Bilal low-cost apartments in Tebet
subdistrict, South Jakarta, is not against the law.

"PD Pembangunan Sarana Jaya has the right to demolish the
apartments because the company has already secured a permit to do
so from the municipal administration," Prawoto told reporters
following a meeting with some of the company's executives at his
office on Thursday.

Earlier it was reported that PD Pembangunan Sarana Jaya, a
city-owned housing developer, did not have the right to demolish
the apartments because the apartments were considered property of
the city administration.

The developer demolished the apartments to make way for the
construction of luxury apartments and a shopping center.

"The city council had no knowledge of the proposal for
demolishing the apartments. As far as I know, the apartments
belong to the city administration," said H. Mansyur Achmad, a
city councilor from commission A which oversees government
affairs.

"The Rawa Bilal apartments no longer belong to the city
administration. They have already been handed over to PD
Pembangunan Sarana Jaya, so the company is free to do whatever it
wants to the apartments," Prawoto said.

According to a decision made by the Central Jakarta District
Court in 1994, PD Pembangunan Sarana Jaya was to give a
compensation rate of Rp 60 million (US$27,272) to each of the
families living in the apartments. PD Pembangunan Sarana Jaya
appealed the decision, however, and up to now the company has yet
to give anything to the families.(31)