'Jamu' vendors to get free trips home

'Jamu' vendors to get free trips home

Damar Harsanto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Over 13,000 herbal medicine hawkers across the capital will
benefit from a free mudik (return home) to their villages as part
of a philanthropic tradition by a local herbal medicine company
who this year will hire 220 buses for the purpose.

"Initially, this was a kind of incentive for herbal medicine
hawkers to sell more of our products. But, later, we adopted this
as part of our corporate social responsibility program," Irwan
Hidayat, the president director of herbal medicine company Sido
Muncul, said at City Hall.

He said that the program would also help alleviate the burden
on the government in providing public transportation vehicles for
holiday makers joining the exodus for Idul Fitri celebrations.

In Jakarta alone, there are over 2.1 million residents who
every year celebrate the festivities in their home towns and
villages. The flow of holiday makers usually peaks in the four
days before Idul Fitri.

This year, Idul Fitri falls on Nov. 3 and Nov. 4.

Irwan said his company had records on all herbal medicine
hawkers in the city and this list would determine those who would
receive free tickets.

"Although this program does not cover all herbal medicine
hawkers in the city, numbering about 16,000 people, we hope most
hawkers can benefit from this program," he said.

"We will cooperate again with bus operator Hiba to provide the
buses. Hiba has been helping us for the last 16 years to
transport hawkers to their home towns," he said.

"The free mudik program will be centered at the Jakarta
Fairground in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta. The program will staged
in two rounds scheduled for Oct. 28 and Oct. 29," he added.

He said that the Minister of Transportation Hatta Radjasa and
Governor Sutiyoso were scheduled to attend and officiate at the
send-off.