Modest day care center may have to move

According to data from the Jakarta branch of the Central Statistics Agency, the number of working women in the capital is 1,041,366, or about 31.5 percent of the 3,379,202 people working in Jakarta. However, many working places do not provide day care centers or special rooms for breast-feeding mothers. The Jakarta Post's Leony Aurora has been looking into this issue. This is the third of four articles.

One thousand rupiah (less than 11 U.S. cents) can go a long way at the Kramat Jati wholesale market in East Jakarta.

It is enough to rent a pair of boots to brave the wet roads, pay the parking fee, or, surprisingly, leave a child for half a day at the local day care center, where the child will receive a meal and a snack.

Twenty-eight children were having their lunch -- rice, soup and fried tempeh -- sitting on a mat at Tunas Jaya I day care, not far from the traditional market's gate, when The Jakarta Post visited them over the weekend.

There was no smooth wallpaper, the toys were worn out by the dozens of tiny hands that touched them every day and the swing was rusty and broken. But the children, aged between one and five years, had a sparkle in their eyes and ready smiles.

"We make the best of what we have, under the circumstances," said Ibu Taryono, the center's executive director.

The child care facility was established by the Dharma Wanita (women's association) of city market operator PD Pasar Jaya, supported by the wife of former Governor Surjadi Soedirdja, in December 1992.

"At that time, we noticed that many children of women who peeled shallots were left sleeping on top of the mounds of shallots," said Taryono.

Work was not a matter of choice for these women, she added. "Many had been abandoned by their husbands."

With an income of Rp 6,000 a day for peeling 12 kilograms of shallots or Rp 10,000 for cutting the stalks off 50 kilograms of various other spices, it is hard enough to make ends meet. Babysitters are simply out of the question.

The day care facility charges Rp 1,000 for half a day, from 8 a.m. until 11:30 a.m., and Rp 2,000 for a full day, until 4 p.m. PD Pasar Jaya covers the rest of the operational costs by providing a monthly grant of Rp 4 million.

Up to 40 kids are taken care of by the six employees, including two kindergarten teachers, in Tunas Jaya I.

Dini, 28, makes cassava chips in the mornings when her son is in the day care. After she picks up two-year-old Rian, she can watch him while doing household chores.

"It's really cheap here," she said. "The only additional cost is for notebooks when they (children) join the classes. That's like Rp 10,000 a year... much cheaper than sending them to kindergarten."

Tunas Jaya I has two one-hour classes for children aged three to four and four to five every morning. "We introduce colors, numbers and letters," said Titi, one of the teachers.

"Our children can go directly to elementary school," Taryono noted proudly. "That's our added value."

However, after 12 years of service in the community, the center's existence is being threatened by a plan to move the market.

"I've seen a small building with a 'day care center' sign at the back of the market," said Taryono.

The space is very limited, Titi added. "It's only enough for the chairs," she said, while the day care center already has five beds and other furniture.

The new place does not have a kitchen nor a playing ground. Its door opens directly to a busy street and it is flanked by two shelters for street children, for boys and girls. "I don't think they will be a good influence on the children," said Taryono.

Although there has been no confirmation that they would be moved there, Taryono fears the worse. "We're at the mercy of whoever's in charge. A different person means different policies that we have to follow."

For now, the modest day care center continues giving the much- needed service, hoping that whoever is in charge will not let children go back to playing among and sleeping on mounds of shallots.