Learn more from taxi drivers!

It is a universal fact that taxi drivers always "know" what is the reality of the state of their country. Or do they?

For example, in England in the mid to late 1980s no taxi driver ever had a kind word for Mrs. Thatcher. You would think the government was due to fall at once, but I bet you half or more actually voted for her party. After she had gone, and John Major moved in, the tuned changed to: "Now, if Mrs. Thatcher was in office, this government would have taken action."

Similarly in Singapore, at least until this crisis hit the republic, the taxi drivers never had a word of praise for the government -- "P.A.P. = Pay And Pay, that's all we ever do."

"But don't you have a government apartment? Isn't schooling good here?" "Oh yes, but that's different, look what a bowl of mie (noodles) costs, S$3.50." Nevertheless the P.A.P. received about 65 percent of the vote in the last election.

In Australia, it is difficult to make a case, as no driver seems to speak English. If I was Albanian, Greek or Chinese, I might get somewhere.

Then we come to Indonesian taxi drivers, who at times are very vocal. As soon as they discover I am English, we are off into the realms of Lady Di, M.U. (Manchester United), and what a good colonial power the British are. "If the British had been here, we would have been like Malaysia, Singapore, Hong Kong." I forebear answering: "What about Myanmar, Bangladesh, Ghana, Nigeria, etc.?"

Then, we get on to Krismon (the monetary crisis). "Terrible for taxi drivers. We make no money, all because of the students demonstrations. They ruin our business." I mention that there are more new taxi companies. How come, if they are all making losses? I do not get an answer to that. In fact, I think they do have hard times, and on some days insufficient fares, but some employment is surely better than nothing.

What I have learned though is that Krismon is far less felt outside of Jakarta, especially since the rains have been adequate in the dry season, and a good rice crop came in. In particular those drivers who come from Sulawesi, Central, West and South Sumatra and large parts of West and Central Java, they all were very happy for their relations in such places, which shows that not all is gloom and doom in Indonesia. "Why don't you go back to your village?" "Oh, no, Jakarta's the place." You can't win.

Perhaps political leaders should get out of their Mercedes and travel by taxi more often. They could well learn a lot.

DEREK C.S.

Jakarta