Official fail to remove flags

Rendi A. Witular, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Central Jakarta's public order officers conducted a cowardly crackdown on illegal banners and street vendors in the city's main thoroughfares of Jl. Thamrin and Jl. Sudirman on Saturday, failing to make the slightest impact on a crowded landscape.

Supported by 130 personnel in 13 operational vehicles, the operation failed to remove any political party flags illegally placed along the streets, nor did they clear the streets of illegal vendors.

Flags belonging to major political parties such as the Indonesian Democratic Party of Struggle, the National Awakening Party and the Justice and Unity Party have long been illegally coloring the city's thoroughfares.

But public order officers did not touch them.

"We don't have the guts to pull down political flags and banners, although they are illegal. I myself don't have the courage to tell you why. These guys seem to have immunity," said Chrisman Siregar, field coordinator of the operation, when asked why he did not remove political items.

Politics, however, was not the only issue to test the officials' flagging courage. They also failed to rid the streets of illegal private banners.

At a crossing bridge in front of the Sarinah building in Central Jakarta, for instance, public order officers were halted by Kebon Sirih subdistrict officials when they tried to take down a large banner reading Damai Ternyata Indah (Peace Is Beautiful), belonging to the Jaya factory outlet.

After some argument, public order officers eventually retreated to their vehicles.

They also failed to remove illegal vendors from the streets, especially those in the Bendungan Hilir area.

Saturday's operation was the last day of a three-day street clearance operation, targeting street vendors and illegal banners, flags and posters.

During the three-day operation, costing the city Rp 12 million (about US$1,150), the officers managed to forcibly remove carts and other items belonging to 81 street vendors.