Jakarta, the stressful metropolis
Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Jakarta is a city of stress with various problems including security, yet it still attracts many people who come to try their luck here.
This was the conclusion reached in a seminar to commemorate Jakarta's 476th anniversary held by Kompas on Tuesday.
A panelist in the seminar, Yayat Supriyatna, an urban planning expert of Trisakti University, said that Jakarta was a stressful city as it was overcrowded, and had a myriad of social, political, and economic problems.
"Jakarta is really a stressful city, it is a really unhealthy place to live," Yayat said, adding that the high crime rate was also a reflection of the stressful condition.
Yayat attributed the stress to accumulative problems facing Jakarta residents since 1997 economic crises. Among them were the bloody May riots in 1998 which led to the resignation of former president Soeharto, the general election in 1999, and the massive flooding which affected most areas in the capital in early 2001.
In spite of such stressful conditions, Yayat remarked that people remained in the city because they, especially those who came from low-income brackets, had no other choice.
Governor Sutiyoso who was also present in the seminar as a panelist, added that Jakarta was still a magnet that attracts many people to come to try their luck. This has made Jakarta overcrowded -- with 14,000 people per square kilometer.
"In Tambora (North Jakarta) and Senen (Central Jakarta), more than 20,000 people reside in those areas respectively," said Sutiyoso.
Jakarta's population stands at about 18 million people by day, and 11 million by night, due to the people who commute daily to the city to work.
Sutiyoso blamed the crowded city on the continuous influx of migrants that reached 290,000 annually.
In an effort to curb the flow of migrants to the city, Sutiyoso has launched controversial ID-card raids, targeting the poor, especially those without a home and a proper job.
Meanwhile businessman Sofyan Wanandi who also chairs the Association of Indonesian Employers Association (Apindo) remarked that Jakarta is clouded by big problems like unemployment and sluggish foreign investment due to the tarnished security image of the city.
"Jakarta is still a sick city which has yet to recover from the crisis," Sofyan asserted.
Sofyan added the urban problems had worsened due to the city administration's policies which failed to address the residents' interests, particularly the lower-income groups.
"The administration should prioritize programs affecting the people, like how to tackle traffic congestion or solve the problem of floods, rather than spending massive amounts of money for constructing a water fountain, for instance," said Sofyan, referring to the water fountain at the Hotel Indonesia traffic circle that cost Rp 14 billion.
Other panelists in the seminar, Rachlan Nashidik of the human rights watchdog Impartial, Let. Col. Apang Sopandi, spokesman for the Jakarta Military commander and Jakarta Police spokesman Sr. Comr. Prasetyo, also drew attention to the rising crime rate.
"Next year there will be increased security problems," said Prasetyo, citing the heightened political tension ahead of the 2004 general election.
Prasetyo explained that the police faced a major challenge in fighting crime due to limited personnel.
"The ratio of police personnel to the civilian population is still far from the ideal ratio of 1:350. The current ratio is 1:925," Prasetyo said.
Currently, Jakarta has 20,895 police personnel.