How the people of Jakarta view their changing city

JAKARTA (JP): Today marks the 469th anniversary of Jakarta, home to over 9 million people and a multitude of problems. There is thus a chance for both its residents and authorities to reflect on their achievements and failures -- for which both the citizens and those in authority are responsible. There cannot be an effective government without a cooperative community, and there is no public cooperation without a clean government.

The following are comments and reflections from Jakarta residents on the occasion of the city's anniversary:

Ali Sadikin, Jakarta governor from 1966 to 1977: observed that urbanization remains one of the biggest challenges of the city as the increasing population creates more problems, ranging from homelessness to unemployment.

The Dutch colonial government designed Jakarta as a town for 600,000 people, Ali said. When he was governor, there were 3.4 million people in the city. Today, Jakarta is home to more than 9 million people and there are another 1 million people in its suburbs, Bogor, Tangerang and Bekasi (Botabek), who flock to the city during the day to work.

"Urbanization creates poverty. People move to the city for a better living, but they end up as poor urbanites," Ali said.

He said that to curb urbanization, there should be a balance of development between urban and rural areas, as well as the western and eastern parts of the country.

"The city administration alone will not be able to deal with the problems of urbanization. These problems should be handled by the central government," he said.

As Jakarta becomes more and more crowded, the administration is planning a giant reclamation project in the Jakarta Bay, which is expected to be able to accommodate 1 million people.

"I don't know if this will solve the problem. I wonder why the administration doesn't build more satellite cities in Bogor, Tangerang and Bekasi, where people can live and work," he said.

"If there were more businesses in Botabek, the residents wouldn't need to find jobs in the city."

Transportation is another major problems in Jakarta. New toll roads have been built, but they don't ease traffic much. There is even congestion on the toll roads during rush hour.

"Mass rapid transportation is a must for a city with a population of more than 1.5 or 2 million," Ali said.

"When I was governor, I proposed the construction of a subway, but the National Development Planning Agency rejected the proposal, saying they had no funds."

The construction of the first subway in Jakarta is scheduled to start in 1998. The 14-kilometer-long subway will connect Blok M in South Jakarta and downtown Kota.

"I don't think that the subway will make any difference. What's the use of a 14-kilometer subway? The London Underground is more than 350 kilometers long," Ali pointed out.

He also expressed concern at the lack of public transportation vehicles and their poor service. Certain buses are always crowded and people often have to wait for a long time.

"When I was governor, I traveled around the city for two days by public bus. I knew the 'agony' of taking public transportation. So, I ordered an increase in the bus fleet," he said.

He called for better public transport, to encourage people to take buses instead of driving their cars; this would ease traffic jams, he said.

Hendra, President Taxi driver: Generally, Governor Surjadi Soedirdja has done an excellent job for this city, even though there are several problems he has yet to solve. The traffic jams for example. Actually, if everyone in the city obeyed all the rules and regulations, in line with the National Discipline Drive, there would be no such problems. Given the stubbornness of Jakartans, who basically do not like to follow the rules, the authorities should be more consistent in taking action against violators. I can understand it's hard to govern a city of 10 million people.

Ira Miranti, insurance company employee: Certain parts of Jakarta are beautiful and clean. But some areas in the city are very overcrowded, slum areas, where housing and garbage exist side by side. This is especially crass in poorer areas. This should not happen. In Tanah Abang, for example, there are apartments for the lower class. There are a lot of flowers and plants and it does not appear shabby at all. If all the slum areas of the city could be like that, Jakarta would be very beautiful.

Hotman Siahaan, noted sociologist sees Jakarta as an inhuman city.

"Jakarta is becoming cold and inhuman," said Hotman.

Jakarta has been transformed from a pleasant residential area in the l950s and l960s into a busy business and industrial center.

The city center is bristling with high-rise office buildings, hotels, apartments and entertainment facilities, Hotman said. A mass of housing complexes and slums were demolished to make way for them, he added.

More and more Jakartans are now moving to Bogor, Tangerang and Bekasi (Greater Jakarta) to make way for various development projects in the capital.

To work in Jakarta, some people spend two hours getting to work. Unfortunately, public transport is still very poor.

"The city government is not able to provide adequate public transport. Traffic jams and crowded buses have made life in Jakarta hard. You can imagine, people have to stand in a crowded bus for two hours before getting to work," Hotman said.

This puts physical and mental pressure on people. No wonder, many people in Jakarta suffer from serious stress which can affect their productivity and relationships, and even lead to criminal behavior, the sociologist said.

"We can't change the present situation unless the central government changes its development policy," Hotman said.

Hotman said Jakarta has long been the country's economic center. Thus Jakarta has grown into a dream city for millions of urbanites who see no future in their hometowns. Urbanization is inevitable, he said.

"We cannot stop people from coming to Jakarta while the government starts so few projects in other cities," Hotman said.

Jakarta, he said, should remain the business center, but the government should improve the public services: transport, housing, electricity and water.

Currently, development in Jakarta mostly favors the rich, he said. "Jakarta has many toll roads now, but there are only few proper sidewalks for pedestrians," Hotman complained.

"I say Jakarta is a crowded and unpleasant city to live in. Happy anniversary." (raw/sim/24)