Meet Jakarta governor's nemesis

Meet Jakarta governor's nemesis

Ahmad Junaidi, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Many activists who fight for the poor in Jakarta have found
themselves on the bad side of Governor Sutiyoso, who has been
known to find fault with the way in which these activists
criticize his public policies and look into allegations of
corruption.

Azas Tigor Nainggolan, the chairman of the Jakarta Residents
Forum (Fakta), a non-governmental organization that fights for
the rights of Jakarta's oppressed, is one such well-known figure.

Tigor entered the public consciousness when his opposition to
some of Sutiyoso's policies landed him in police custody last
year on defamation charges filed by the governor.

The activist had accused Sutiyoso of paying city councillors
Rp 3 billion to approve his 2003-2003 budget. He was detained in
October but later released.

Tigor challenged the authorities to take the case to court so
he could prove his allegations that the city administration was
riddled with money politics.

This was just one incident that cemented Tigor's and
Sutiyoso's relationship as adversarial. He has also come out in
opposition to Sutiyoso's policies on street vendors and spatial
planning, and a number of city bylaws deemed detrimental to
residents.

Tigor defends the poor and the wealthy alike. He has opposed
the eviction of street vendors from the Pulogadung bus station in
East Jakarta, and the administration's plan to build a basketball
stadium in the upscale Kelapa Gading housing complex in North
Jakarta.

His equal concern with both the rich and the poor separates
him from another vocal critic of Sutiyoso, Urban Poor Consortium
(UPC) chairwoman Wardah Hafidz.

It has been rumored that Tigor and Wardah do not get along and
rarely speak to each other.

But Tigor denies this. "We have no problem. UPC concentrates
on the poor, while Fakta doesn't discriminate based on socio-
economic status. We want to make things better for all
Jakartans."

Tigor said Fakta and UPC shared similar concerns but took
different approaches to resolve these concerns.

UPC, Fakta and several non-governmental organizations (NGOs)
set up the Alliance of NGOs for City Budget Transparency (KOTA)
in 2001. They sued the administration and the City Council for
allegedly passing a budget that harmed the poor, but their
lawsuit was thrown out by the courts.

Last year, Fakta and UPC also backed a class action filed by
flood victims against the administration. That lawsuit also was
thrown out.

Tigor, was born in Medan, North Sumatra, on Feb. 9, 1965, and
grew up in a poor area of Matraman, East Jakarta, where his
parents had moved when he was four months old.

Tigor met Tiarlin Afrida, his future wife, in a Matraman
church. The couple have two children, Ignatius Kevin Nainggolan,
6, and Yoseph Madelin Nainggolan, 2.

While attending law school at Indonesian Christian University
(UKI), from which he graduated in 1989, Tigor often took part in
student demonstrations. He and several other activists were
detained for several days in 1988 for protesting evictions.

After graduating from law school, Tigor became the legal
division coordinator at the Jakarta Social Institute (ISJ), a
non-governmental organization founded by Catholic priests to help
the poor.

While still active in the ISJ, Tigor, along with other
activists, set up Fakta in 1998 after the downfall of
authoritarian president Soeharto, becoming the group's chairman.

During last September's gubernatorial election, Tigor joined
forces with activists from Muslim organizations to protest
Sutiyoso's nomination.

"It is common interests that makes us one. Ideology does not
count," he said.

He was arrested three days before the inauguration of Sutiyoso
on Oct. 11, but was later released.

Tigor has built relationships with street vendors, evicted
residents and pedicab drivers, often serving as their lawyer and
defending them in court.

Asked if someday he would set up a law firm, he said: "Yes,
some fellow activists and I have plans to set up a law firm. But
I will still set aside time to defend the poor."

Corruptors will not be defended, he added.

Tigor has criticized former activists from government
watchdogs such as the Jakarta Legal Aid Institute and the
Association of Legal Aid and Human Rights for defending accused
corruptors after they joined law firms.

"I will not be like them. I will be like the few lawyers who
have maintained their reputations while still being able to build
respected law firms," he said.