Pasar Raya, a den of thieves

Sitting in the food court of the Pasar Raya department store (Blok M), drinking a coffee and filling in The Jakarta Post crossword, is one way to enjoy a lazy Saturday or Sunday. Unfortunately, it's not that simple. Recently, I sat in the Cafe de France, ordered a cup of coffee and did the crossword. A friend of mine joined me as planned and we chatted for a while. I had placed my bag by the side of the chair next to the partition so that it would be virtually impossible for someone to take the bag.

I had already lost one bag there some months ago with camera equipment in it and a friend of mine had also been robbed of his wallet shortly after that, so I was being particularly careful. Nevertheless, my bag disappeared during our conversation and I was stunned that someone was able to slip in behind me in full view of the cafe staff and security and somehow grab my bag and walk off undetected.

I have come to the conclusion that Pasar Raya in Blok M is obviously not safe and this was confirmed when I spoke to the head of security, Pak Budi, in his office on the third floor. I was shown a heavy photo album that was literally packed with images of tattooed boys and grown men and women, some of them holding stolen hubcaps or other items in their hands. They were caught by security robbing shoppers or breaking into cars in the parking lot.

I wonder at the number of thieves operating in Pasar Raya if indeed the photo display is only a percentage of criminals caught there. I have since been told that thieves operating in Pasar Raya are known to pick out westerners carrying bags and then look for an opportunity to move in on their prey. It appears to be common knowledge in the Blok M area.

I was also told by Pak Budi that the camera surveillance system that is installed in Pasar Raya to deter theft is not functioning and hasn't functioned for over a year due to the difficulty of getting equipment fixed if it comes from Singapore. "Being fixed" is the answer to my question concerning the security system. That was the same answer I got some six months ago when I had the misfortune of being robbed for the first time in the food court of the Pasar Raya department store. It seems to me that everything in Jakarta is "being fixed" but never actually does get fixed!

JOHN CTORR

Jakarta