Night travelers, beware, Lampung 'teeming with thugs'
Night travelers, beware, Lampung 'teeming with thugs'
Oyos Saroso H.N and M. Huzair, The Jakarta Post, Bandarlampung/Palembang
"Don't drive through Lampung province at night!"
This alarming message always rings loudly in the ears of Idul Fitri travelers, whose thousands of cars pass through the province from Jakarta to various cities on Sumatra. The message is necessary as many roads in Lampung run through quiet, dark forests, which are ideal spots for an ambush by thugs.
Due to the dangerous situation on the highways, many annual travelers take various measures so they will not be the next crime victim. Murni, 26, a resident in Labuhan Maringgai, East Lampung, said that she has, over the last three years, chartered a bus with a group of friends for safety reasons. The chartered buses will take them from door to door.
"The bus doesn't even go through any bus terminals. It goes directly to each passenger's home," said Murni, who has been working for years in Jakarta. She and her friends pay Rp 250,000 each for the one-way trip from Jakarta to Lampung.
By chartering the bus, she feels safer because everyone on the bus knows each other, and they are in sufficient number to put off would-be criminals.
Additionally, their chartered bus will not have to stop at Rajabasa Bus Terminal in Bandarlampung, which is notorious for its criminals, thugs, extortionists and general filth.
Many people have become victims of extortion and other crimes at Rajabasa. Although bus terminals on Java also have thugs and criminals, they are not as vicious as those in Lampung, according to one well-traveled Lampung local. "Don't stare at them or reject their request for money. You can be stabbed," warned Suyanto, a long-time resident of Lampung.
The bad reputation at the Rajabasa Terminal has prevented many people from staying overnight in the bus terminal, even though it is a key hub between Jakarta and other major cities on Sumatra.
Most of the recent arrivals to Bakauheni Port in Bandarlampung prefer to stay at the port rather than the bus terminal. But instead of getting to the terminal right away to continue their journey, they stay at the port until sunup before heading over to the bus terminal for the final leg of their journey.
"Sleeping in the port is much safer than in Rajabasa Terminal," said Nur Achmad, 29, who was on his way home to Pekanbaru, Riau province.
Besides the terminal, other areas are also prone to crime, including almost all highways in the province.
According to police data, robbery and extortion have become overly common crimes on the streets in the province, especially after 1998, when the authoritarian Soeharto stepped down.
The thieves often take advantage of the damaged roads on the highways. When they see cars slow down to a crawl in a bid to navigate the gaping potholes in the road, they approach the car, make them stop -- often with weapons -- and take all the valuables from the people inside.
As the crime rate on the roads of Lampung normally increases dramatically during the holy Muslim fasting month of Ramadhan, police officers have been ordered to shoot criminals on sight. The threat seems to be working as there have been just a few reports of such criminal activity so far this year.
However, it also may be a result of travelers taking more pre- cautionary measures by avoiding the roads and bus terminals of Lampung completely.
More and more travelers now prefer to fly home, thereby avoiding Lampung province altogether, if they live elsewhere on Sumatra. Planes may be slightly more expensive than road or sea transportation, but is much more convenient, safer and faster.
At present a Jakarta-Pekanbaru air ticket costs between Rp 350,000 and Rp 400,000, compared to Rp 300,000 for a bus ticket. Pekanbaru can be reached in an hour by plane compared to some 24 hours and a dangerous trip through Lampung when going by bus.