'Govt to blame for migration'

'Govt to blame for migration'

In a bid to keep unskilled migrant workers out of Jakarta, the
city administration is planning to raid residential areas where
they are suspected of living. Some observers have raised concerns
about the policy, arguing that it violates people's rights of
movement guaranteed under the Constitution. The Jakarta Post
interviewed two people on Wednesday for their views on the issue.

Frans Thamura, 30, is an IT consultant and open-source
software advocate. He lives in South Jakarta.

I don't think it's fair for the city government to make
urbanization illegal, particularly because (the government) has
never created a comprehensive program to develop human resources
in other regions.

IT in the regions, for example, is far behind that of Jakarta,
so much so that you can't make a living from IT in the regions.

Why can't the government ever be fair towards people in the
regions? Why won't government officials think about regional
development rather than their own stomachs? They should be
ashamed of themselves.

Afif Farisi, 25, is a Masters Degree student at the University
of Indonesia majoring in information and technology. He lives in
Cibubur, Depok.

Well, I think it puts migrants in a dilemma. On one hand they
need money to survive, and Jakarta is by far the best place for
people to look for money.

On the other hand, migrants don't realize that with their
limited living skills, Jakarta can instead mean disaster, and not
only for these people but also for the city administration.

But I don't think raids and dragnets are the answers, these
methods only create new kinds of "criminals".

I think the best way is to evenly distribute the circulation
of money across the country. If the government could be more
daring in decentralizing businesses and the government, and could
convince investors that the regions are also lucrative areas for
business, perhaps things would be different then.

-- The Jakarta Post