Mid-May mayhem boost arms business
By Christiani SA Tumelap
JAKARTA (JP): The capital is officially a million miles from the Wild West of cowboy films because carrying guns or even sharp weapons on the streets will see you end up in jail.
But nightmares of the mid-May mayhem that pierced the hearts of many people have left the public with one certain message: arm yourself rather than be forced to suffer in the anarchy of another riot.
Many Jakartans, especially middle- and upper-class people, are now increasingly equipping themselves with weapons of self- defense.
The arms vary. Semiautomatic M-16 assault rifles, revolvers, machetes, tear gas launchers, sleeping-gas spray guns and even antirape corsets have all hit the market in the last 10 weeks.
A 31-year-old financial analyst of Chinese origin said he now always carried a palm-sized tear-gas spray gun which he bought in America two years ago.
"Who would have known that this stuff would mean a lot to me now. I bought it because it looked funny.
"It passed the customs check at the airport because the officers had no idea what it was. It looks more like an asthma inhaler," the Chinese-Indonesian, who asked for anonymity, told The Jakarta Post last week.
Protection schemes differ from family to family, depending upon people's economic status and personal background.
Hasan, a 55-year-old father of two sons and a daughter who lives in Joglo, West Jakarta, said he armed each member of his family with a machete to be kept both near their beds and in their cars to protect themselves from attackers.
"I keep my faith and believe that nothing bad will ever happen again, but taking precautions is always the best option," said Hasan.
He also keeps a gun in his house but refuses to give any details about it.
Underwear
Among the self-defense equipment, the antirape corset -- fortified with a combination lock -- is perhaps the most unique.
According to shop owner, Simon Sanjaya, who claims to have invented the item, thousands of women, mostly Chinese-Indonesians from Jakarta and ranging from as young as nine to 60 years old, have bought the chastity belt costing Rp 100,000 (US$7.15), from his store in the West Java capital of Bandung.
One of the his assistants, Santi, told the Post last weekend that more than 1,000 corsets had been sold in each of the two months since the May riots.
The corset is made of 0.6-millimeter stainless steel tailored with artificial leather to fit the waist and groin.
"We always encourage interested buyers to come here in person because the corset is made to fit the body. It is supposed to be worn without any underwear at all.
"However, most women prefer to wear it inside their underwear," Santi said.
"Please, don't forget the combination numbers or else you'll have to cut it with pliers and get a new one," she reminded.
Besides the antirape device, the shop in Rajawali Plaza also offers sleeping-gas canisters and sharp-weapon proof vests and jackets.
Harmful
According to Santi, the sleeping-gas canister -- shaped like a portable fire extinguisher -- is not yet selling well.
Priced at Rp 7 million, the tube, weighing approximately 30 kilograms, is designed to be connected to pipes installed on the outside wall of a house or building.
With a pressure of 70 atmospheres, the gas causes anyone who stands in the two-meter spray-range to fall asleep for about eight hours in just 20 seconds after inhaling the colorless and odorless fumes.
"The gas is actually similar to that used for medical operations by anesthetists," she said.
But, Santi admitted, many visitors worried they might not be able to use it properly and, instead, could become an unwitting target of their own security system.
Similar to the antirape corsets, the stabproof vests and jackets costing between Rp 200,000 and Rp 650,000 each are also proving popular.
Designed in various sizes and materials, the vests and jackets include a 0.5-millimeter metal plate in both the front and back and sleeves (for the jacket).
Another device selling well in Jakarta is a gas ejector stick.
Offered at Rp 1 million each, the gas which shoots out from the 48-centimeter long, 4.7-kg stick, can paralyze a large group of targets for between 10 and 20 minutes as it affects the respiration system and eyes.
A salesman of a company which distributes the "gun" from an office on Jl. Gajah Mada in West Jakarta said the weapon is sold complete with a legal license issued by the police.
"You'll get the item only after we get the license. We have a contact to arrange the document," he said. (cst)