Migrant who made good remembers those back home

By Tedy Novan

YOGYAKARTA (JP): Few would guess from Suparjo's simple, inexpensive clothes that he is a successful businessman in the capital.

He is a native of Jeruk Gulung hamlet in the Gedangsari subdistrict of Gunungkidul, a corner of Yogyakarta province and one of the nation's poorest areas.

He once carried a sickle and a hoe, toiled in his parents' small, unirrigated rice field and rode an old bicycle.

Today, the 32-year-old father of three's tools are a cellular phone and a metallic-green Toyota Great Corolla sedan.

Like many others in Gunungkidul, where drought have laid waste to the land for years, he moved to Jakarta to find his fortune.

With few marketable skills and little cash, the fifth of seven children started out in the informal sector, joining the throng hawking vegetables and snacks on city streets or working in factories, homes or at construction sites.

It is a hard life, but Gunungkidul migrants are strengthened by a dogged spirit of survival built from growing up in an inhospitable environment.

"We have only our fighting spirit," he said. "The strain of a hard life is usual for us."

After leaving high school in Klaten, Central Java, Suparjo traveled to Jakarta. He took any job he could find, first working as a door-to-door salesman of Encyclopedia Americana for two months.

"My salary was not compatible with my hard work as a salesman," he said.

He also worked briefly as a civilian employee in the army, but left almost immediately because the monthly pay of Rp 60,000 was insufficient.

Desperate for money, he began selling vegetables from a pushcart in Simprug, South Jakarta. His average daily sales were about Rp 20,000, but he said he never felt self-conscious walking the streets.

"I had no chance of working in an office and I decided to do anything, just so long as it was legitimate."

There were job hazards. Some residents of housing complexes complained his vegetables were not fresh, and others mistook him for a thief. Public order officials often chased him.

He was determined to succeed and took all the risks mangnanimously. His determination led him to establish direct contact with vegetable growers in Sukabumi, Brebes and other areas.

One of his uncles lent him Rp 400,000 in 1987, which he used to rent a site to sell his vegetables at Bata Putih market.

Profits quickly began to soar.

"My daily net income ranged between Rp 150,000 and Rp 250,000," said Suparjo.

Difficulties remained. Security officials often conducted raids, seizing his vegetables and humiliating him before onlookers.

In late 1987, he moved to the wholesale market in Kramat Jati, a more spacious and, most importantly, more peaceful place. Business picked up in 1994 when he started to supply vegetables to the Orchid Hotel in West Jakarta.

"I earned Rp 1 million a day from sales to that hotel alone," he said.

Life improved as he married and rented his first house for Rp 500,000 a year.

He saved enough money to buy his own 200-square-meter home for Rp 60 million in Rempoa, Ciputat, South Jakarta.

He bought luxury furniture, two cars, a Suzuki pickup for transporting his vegetables and a Toyota Kijang van. There is also his sedan, the blaring status symbol for new members of the middle class.

He has also opened a shop selling building materials.

Life is not all plain sailing. Suparjo has also been hit by the monetary crisis. Prices of vegetables have risen 20 percent to 30 percent, and the cost of building materials -- many of which are imported -- have increased by 40 percent.

A veteran of confronting and overcoming hardships, Suparjo refuses to be downcast.

"No matter how bad the situation gets, I will always remain steadfast as I have learned from past events."

He said the crisis would weed out weak businesspeople.

"Crisis is natural selection. Those who strive by their own efforts will reap the fruits, while those who simply beg for help will not."

Suparjo is discreet about his wealth and will not reveal how much he is worth. He employs seven Gunungkidul villagers to help run his businesses.

He has also established an organization to assist the people of Gedangsari. It supplied funding for the construction of a mosque and a stand for spectators at the village hall.

When his hometown was beset by drought several years ago, he organized Gunungkidul residents in Jakarta in donating basic necessities of rice and sugar, plus Rp 2 million.

He also collected Rp 15 million for the establishment of Karya Bakti, a village unit cooperative.

"This cooperative will enable farmers to obtain production facilities at lower prices," said the avid soccer fan.

The Idul Fitri holiday, observed this year at the end of last month, is always a joyous time for Jakarta residents to share their good fortunes with family and friends back home.

Suparjo, who returned with his wife and children, gave cash and small gifts to neighbors.

As always, hope and determination enable Suparjo to keep a positive perspective on Gunungkidul's future.

"I am going to ask my friends to help develop businesses in our village," he said.