Jakartans greet New Year's with joy
JAKARTA (JP): Like revelers in other metropolises across the globe, partygoers welcoming the new millennium in Jakarta celebrated the once-in-a-lifetime rollover with joy, nods to religion, paper trumpets, firecrackers and fireworks.
The much-feared Y2K computer bug was quickly forgotten as no bug-related problems materialized. Water and electricity, elevators and automatic teller machines in Greater Jakarta operated as normal with no signs of Y2K glitches.
Some people, however, complained about difficulty in using their cellular phones in the first few minutes of the new millennium.
The most significant problem facing millions of Jakartans, particularly those celebrating the arrival of the third millennium on the city's major thoroughfares, at the National Monument (Monas) in Central Jakarta, Ancol Dreamland in North Jakarta and the cafes at Kampung Tenda Semanggi in South Jakarta, was the firecrackers and fireworks set off by fellow revelers.
"Go to hell with the millennium. Those teenagers threw firecrackers on my cart. I don't want to see my only asset destroyed. Go to hell with the teenagers," said Slamet, 31, a fried rice vendor, as he pulled his cart away from Monas minutes before the rollover.
In an alley at Kampung Tenda Semanggi, owners of neighboring restaurants nearly came to blows at dusk following an explosion of fireworks set off by an unknown person.
Police and hospital sources recorded seven serious injuries in Jakarta and two in Bogor, south of here, resulting from fireworks.
At Monas, police seized some 10,000 firecrackers and arrested 19 people for selling the offending items.
To the surprise of some, the city and its surrounding areas saw almost no serious clashes or crimes from Friday evening to Saturday morning. Last week, Jakarta Military Commander Maj. Gen. Ryamizard Ryacudu issued a warning about the possibility of religious conflicts in the capital during the New Year.
On Friday morning, the main streets of Jakarta were virtually deserted. However, anyone who believed the streets would remain quiet throughout the night were proved wrong.
By 8:30 p.m. all of the roads to the 80-hectare Monas park, Ancol Dreamland and Indonesian Miniature Park (TMII) were packed with cars, trucks, buses and motorcycles. The roads in Tangerang, Bekasi and Bogor were similarly congested with revelers.
At 6:50 p.m., the skies opened up and heavy rains blanketed the capital, but the deluge lasted for less than 20 minutes. Many event organizers had hired pawang hujan (shamans who are believed to able to drive away the rain) to ensure this would be one night during the rainy season which would not be wet.
Teenage revelers, setting aside all thoughts of personal safety, rode in the back of trucks, packed into bajaj (three- wheeled motorized vehicle) and climbed onto the roofs of buses to join in the euphoria.
Some of the city's residents spent the night at star-rated hotels, well-known restaurants and cafes, all of which presented the standard entertainment of dinner and live music.
At Planet Hollywood, where guests paid Rp 295,000 for the New Year's package, organizers led guests into a tent where a fortune-teller read them their fortunes for 2000.
At the popular Blok M shopping center, scores of uniformed civilian guards from the Muslim organization Banser NU were seen patrolling the area.
At Ancol, thousands of revelers counted down the seconds to the third millennium. At the stroke of midnight, Governor Sutiyoso struck a small gold-colored gong, triggering a heavy gold stick which struck a 3,000-kilogram gold gong.
As hundreds of camera bulbs flashed, the huge gong thundered and revelers screamed, blew trumpets and danced with joy as the gong was struck six times to mark the start of 2000.
Then came an explosion of light and noise as fireworks were set off and parachutists from the Army's Special Force floated down from the skies.
City Council Speaker Edy Waluyo came onstage to join in the festivities and help mark the beginning of the 21st century.
Some areas of the city remained immune to the excitement of the night. At the illegal Kalijodo brothel complex in West Jakarta, for example, there were few signs of activity.
While others were busy celebrating, scores of people seeking to secure train tickets at Gambir station in Central Jakarta paid little heed to the revelry all around them.
"If we don't queue tonight we might not get the tickets tomorrow since there will be hundreds of people here tomorrow," said Agus Sutomo, 68, who was hoping to buy train tickets so he, his wife and daughter could visit his hometown of Jombang.
At several mosques, including Istiqlal Grand Mosque and Sunda Kelapa Mosque, numerous people, including youths, performed midnight prayers and recited the Koran.
For Christians, a service was held at Bethel Indonesia Church in Jembatan Dua, West Jakarta.
The party began to wind down at around 2 a.m. as the streets began to empty. Spent firecrackers and empty bottles littered the city, and dozens of workers began the task of cleaning up after the millennium celebration as tired revelers waited for taxis and lined up at fast-food restaurants for a post-celebratory snack. (asa/ylt/05/bsr/imn)