Exodus in a gloomy time

Exodus in a gloomy time

The country may have been hit by crisis but for the majority
of our people the show must go on. The hectic days have arrived
when people elbow their way into overcrowded buses, trains, cars
or any other means of transportation available to return to their
family village in time to celebrate the Idul Fitri holiday.

This annual exodus from our larger cities is a part of our
culture and makes the celebration of the Moslem post-fasting
festival look much more monumental compared to that of other
Moslem countries.

Three million people journeyed out to the provinces last year
from Jakarta alone, while the government estimates that as many
as 3.5 million may exit the city this year. Most travel to parts
of Java or cross the Sunda Strait to Sumatra to celebrate Idul
Fitri.

The hardships and inconveniences these people endure during
their trip to the rural areas of the country might sound
unbelievable to newcomers in Indonesia, but for our people the
love for their family is above any sacrifice.

It is important to try to celebrate all of Idul Fitri, which
is called Lebaran here, with the family because it is a time for
people to ask their parents and elders for forgiveness and pay
their respects to their ancestors by visiting their graves.

Their stay in their village is also marked by the joy of
telling their relatives how much better off they are following
their struggles to make ends meet in the urban jungle. To show
their success, they also present relatives with luxury electronic
products.

With this expression of love and the virtue of forgiveness,
the sentimental journey caps people's spiritual cleansing
experiences, which they started at the beginning of the Ramadhan
fasting month. And after spending special days with their family,
they always expect to return to their urban home with renewed
strength and a sense of relief.

But not this year.

The current financial crisis has victimized regular
Indonesians the most. Unskilled workers and street vendors find
it difficult to see what the future holds for them, though they
know it will be bleak.

Their homecoming this time will be marked with a discernibly
decreased ability to spend much money during their visit and an
absence of generous gift-giving since many have recently lost
their jobs. Some of the luckier among them have been allowed by
their employers to take a holiday until April, but with no
guarantee for better days afterward.

However bleak their future, many are still determined
to encourage relatives to leave their village and accompany them
back to the city to find employment. At least, they think, the
shinier urban centers promise better living conditions than many
rural areas which have been devastated by the long drought. Many
people living in rural areas are not only experiencing food
shortages, but are also finding it difficult to get drinking
water.

With increasing problems foreseen as a result of a zero
economic growth, 20 percent inflation and increasing hunger and
unemployment, the inflow of newcomers to Jakarta will undoubtedly
worsen the already fearsome social problems experienced in the
capital.

Minister of Manpower Abdul Latief, after hearing details of
the Jan. 6 draft budget which projected a 4 percent growth, said
that this country would soon have 6.5 million unemployed people.
One can only imagine the impact of a zero growth economy.