Houses give dignity to the homeless

By Gin Kurniawan

LAMONGAN, East Java (JP): They were treated like garbage. Pulled from city streets in lightning raids, they were dumped in the jungle -- and thrown in jail when they returned.

Today, in happier circumstances, many of the homeless of the area are residents of the Trisno Mulyo housing project in Sidoharjo village of Lamongan Kota district, Lamongan regency, East Java.

Bitterness characterized their lives when they were homeless. Raids by security and order officers were their nightmare. They occurred frequently, including before the celebration of Independence Day every Aug. 17 or in the hurried cleanups for the national "cleanest city" contest.

People caught in the operations were transported to the jungle or remote areas. Returning to the city and getting caught a second time meant time in jail.

But the homeless people always came back. Their number soared along with the development of industrial estates in Gerbang Kertasusila (Gresik, Bangkalan, Mojokerto, Surabaya and Lamongan).

After an arduous struggle to convince them, they were finally willing to leave the streets and take up residence at Tresno Mulyo (Glorious Love). The project started in 1976, but it took 10 years before they were willing to move into their homes, thanks to the continuous efforts of Imanan, a former employee of the local social affairs office and Amirul Mukminin, an activist of the non-governmental organization Pondok At-Taubat.

"We owe them a lot. Because of them, we now feel that we are human beings," said Karnasan, a resident.

Hints of their past remain. Many formerly suffered from skin diseases. Some of the men bear tattoos, visible legacies from their time on the street. The trauma is not visible, but it is no secret that some of the residents were criminals, involved in theft and murder.

"We were bad people, but Insya Allah (God willing) we have repented," said Markasan, 55, the neighborhood chief.

When living from hand to mouth was their norm, they could not have imagined that one day they would live like regular citizens and own their own homes, Markasan said. They slept on the sidewalk, camped out in front of shops, in shantytowns, under bridges and in prison cells. They scraped out a living however they could -- depending on guts and "skills" -- as scavengers, thieves, street entertainers, pickpockets and prostitutes.

"In the past, we felt that we were not human beings, or at least, we felt isolated," said Suhadi, Markasan's neighbor.

All that belongs to the past. Although some remain scavengers and street musicians, others are becak drivers, water vendors or run food stalls. They have left their lives as criminals and prostitutes behind them. Couples who once lived together have married in mass wedding ceremonies.

"There are still some who are beggars, but you can count their number on your fingers," Markasan, a water vendor, said.

Tresno Mulyo was the brainchild of Imanan, who is dubbed the Indonesian Mother Theresa by residents.

A humanitarian approach is the key to success in getting the homeless off the streets. Imanan and Amirul mixed with the homeless people and ate the same food, which was made in old corrugated iron pans washed with dingy water from the gutter

"If we were not mentally strong, we might have given up. But we could not give up. We did our best to make them live like normal people," said Imanan, who has just recovered from a stroke.

Imanan said the idea to empower the homeless came to him when he was employed at the local social affairs office. He was moved by their terrible treatment by the security and order officers during the raids. Imanan knew that a repressive approach would not work and he suddenly thought he should "house" them. His colleagues dismissed it as a foolish goal which could never be realized.

As a civil servant, Imanan was no stranger to the homeless in town, but the familiarity created problems because the people were suspicious of his motives. They often fled when they saw him.

It was Kartini, a former prostitute, who welcomed his idea and gave him support. Kartini knew Imanan well because he helped her leave prostitution. She agreed to sell her land in Sidoharjo village for the project. Her move was followed by several other residents. The people paid in installments of at least Rp 100 a day. Collection of the payments was coordinated by Pondok At- Taubat.

"With that money, each of them was able to get a piece of land measuring 4 meters x 15 meters. At that time in 1986, the plot of land cost only Rp 90,000," Imanan said.

Today, 91 families comprising 361 members live on Tresno Mulyo, which covers 7,500 square meters. It appears no different from other low-cost housing complexes -- it also boasts a neighborhood chief, a youth organization, a family welfare organization and a house of worship.

The major difference from other housing complexes is the haphazard design of the houses. There is no uniformity as the houses were built by the owners in accordance with their financial capabilities.

Also unique is the fact that most of the residents can play musical instruments, which is more understandable when one remembers that many of them were street musicians and some still earn their living through music.

Thirteen years after the homeless first moved to the complex, the efforts to guide them in their lives away from the streets continue. Activists from Pondok At-Taubat, led by Amirul, regularly hold Koran recital classes and give spiritual lessons.