Lack of support for Monas rally shows public apathy towards problems
Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
The call went out to protest the fence that is being erected around the National Monument (Monas) park in Central Jakarta, but only 1,000 people answered on Sunday, far short of the 4,000 organizers had hoped for.
The human chain formed by demonstrators only managed to cover half the park -- from the western to the southern end. The demonstration was organized by the Urban Poor Consortium (UPC), the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute (LBH Jakarta), the Democratic People's Party (PRD) and several other non-governmental organizations.
Noted singer Harry Roesly of Bandung, Jakarta Residents Forum (Fakta) chairman Azas Tigor Nainggolan and Indonesian Forum for the Environment (Walhi) chairwoman Emmy Hafild, who had expressed their commitment to Sunday's protest, also failed to show.
UPC chairwoman Wardah Hafidz said the lack of support for Sunday's action showed that many residents were apathetic about the problems in the capital.
She said many people wanted these problems fixed, but refused to get involved and fight to fix them.
"I think it is a kind of public despair in the face of the various problems of life. I received many SMSs from people who supported the action, but not all wanted to be directly involved," said Wardah.
She also said that many activists and political activists preferred speaking in cafes, hotels and other luxury places, but were reluctant to join any street action.
The fencing off of Monas park has been strongly opposed by many landscape architects, environmental activists, urban planners and others.
Rully Besari Budiyanti of Trisakti University's Institute of Landscape and the Environment, said the fence, which will cost the city Rp 9 billion, will reduce the already limited amount of public space in the capital.
"Public spaces are needed by urban residents as arenas for interaction," Rully, the head of the university's Landscape Architecture Program, told The Jakarta Post recently.
The city administration is putting up the controversial fence to control the number of street vendors working in the park.
A number of vendors who have kiosks in Monas park said they were given permission to do business in the park after paying officials from the Public Order Agency.
On Sunday morning, the demonstrators, including political observer Arief Budiman and urban observer Marco Kusumawijaya, joined street vendors, pedicab drivers, street singers and victims of forced evictions.
They held hands to create a human chain, while voicing their opposition of the fence and the recent reelection of Jakarta Governor Sutiyoso. There were also speeches and theatrical performances during the action.
The demonstrators said Sutiyoso, who was reelected on Sept. 11 by the City Council, did not deserve to lead the city because he ignored the plight of the poor.
"The ongoing park fencing project shows the arrogance of Governor Sutiyoso, who considers street vendors, people living in slum areas and pedicab drivers to be the trash of the city, who should be taken out and dumped," said one of the speakers.
Arief said Jakarta's poor suffered the most as a result of Sutiyoso's policies during his first five-year term.