Hoodlums frighten Bogor traders

BOGOR (JP): Most traders and street vendors in Bogor have become increasingly edgy due to intimidation from hoodlums, who they say frequently extort money from them.

They say there is nothing they can do but meet their demands for fear of being evicted from their kiosks.

"I'm too old to resist. If I try to refuse their demands, they could easily force me to fulfill their request," Hamid, one of traders operating in Kebon Kembang market, said on Friday.

"I have to set aside at least Rp 5,000 per day for the hoodlums," he said.

Wang Liang Hoe, owner of a shop selling housewares in Ramayana market, said, "They (the hoodlums) frequently threaten to burn my shop if I do not meet their demands for money."

Some traders say that not all of the hoodlums are bad. Suhcri, owner of a plastic ware shop in Ramayana market, said that it all depended on how they treated them.

If traders treat hoodlums humanely in that their daily needs are met, they are also good to them in return, he said. "It's like raising a tiger... don't let it get hungry. Once it is hungry, it will hurt anyone, including the owner," he said.

Commenting on the hoodlums' behavior, Bogor Police chief Lt. Col. Edmond Ilyas urged the public to report any incidents of intimidation without delay.

"On Wednesday, we arrested two armed hoodlums for trying to extort money from train passengers at Bogor Railway Station," he said.

"We managed to arrest them as soon as we were informed by the public," he said. (24/hhr)