Jakarta: Headache remains

Jakarta: Headache remains

To most people coming from the rural areas, Jakarta's allure
lies in more than its glitter. It is a city of hope and
opportunity that holds the promise of a better life. Of course,
such hopes are often not substantiated. However, the fact that
Jakarta is becoming an ever greater lure to the rural populace is
causing serious headaches for the city administration.

The ugly side of urbanization is symbolized by the mushrooming
of shanty towns, counteracting the governments efforts to
modernize the city. Indeed, turning Jakarta into a modern
metropolis has become something of a mission sacre, since Jakarta
is not only the seat of government of a fast developing nation
but also an important industrial hub and cultural center.

Ironically, the city's advantages have also become its
weaknesses. The slum areas are a major eyesore and the rush of
unskilled labor into the city continues unabated, making the
already gaping social gap more and more apparent. The soaring
crime rate, the shortage of clean water and the lack of an
adequate traffic system have made the problem even worse. One
governor after another since the birth of the New Order
government in the late 1960s has tried their best to conquer all
the problems, but with little success.

The present governor of Jakarta, Surjadi Soedirdja, disclosed
in his statement welcoming the 467th anniversary of the city,
which occurs today, that he would try hard to curb the migration
of unskilled people from the rural areas, rid the city of the
ugly slums and build apartment buildings to house the squatters.

His predecessors tried to improve the poor sectors of the city
by introducing kampong improvement projects. The program, which
started in 1984, has scored some impressive results. Apartment
buildings have risen all over the city, even in areas where
poverty prevails. Yet the overall population situation has grown
worse.

In his program to combat this problem, Surjadi said he would
order the entire city apparatus to try to quickly detect the
emergence of any new slum pockets and that he would work together
with other provincial administrations in an effort to deter
unskilled people from moving into Jakarta.

We recognize a serious and admirable intent in Governor
Surjadi's. Nevertheless, we hope the governor will be more down-
to-earth in his observation of Jakarta's populace. Plans to
utilize the city apparatus to curb the mushrooming of the slums
have failed through a number of gubernatorial administrations.
This is because the officers in charge at the subdistrict and
district levels have failed to cooperate. They not only allow
newly arrived squatters to occupy government land and erect
shanties there, they also provide them with ID cards.

This is also the case with land belonging to the railway
company, much of which has been occupied by squatters for
decades.

We wish Governor Surjadi every success in the execution of his
programs, but making every officer toe the government line is no
easy job. Many mayors are even reluctant to check the situation
on the spot.

What makes his job even more difficult is the fact that this
influx is merely one of the negative sides of inequitable
development. As long as the rural population are unable to make
ends meet in the provinces, migration into the urban areas
remains the rural population's best hope for a better life.

Those people believe that Jakarta is a place of affluence
where the streets are paved with gold. The reality is that many
of these people will be living in shanties on streets paved with
asphalt, because apartments and houses are out of their price
range.