Rindu Alam, the violator that inspired others

Rindu Alam, the violator that inspired others

Bambang Nurbianto, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

When discussing the thousands of illegal villas and buildings
in the West Java tourist resort of Puncak, it is necessary to
mention Rindu Alam restaurant, the first prominent violator of
the 1963 presidential decree on development in Puncak.

The building is easily spotted by motorists making their way
from Jakarta to Bandung, sitting prominently on the side of the
main road at the top of Puncak, at an altitude of 1,200 meters.

The restaurant was constructed in July 1980 by the late
Ibrahim Adjie, the former West Java Siliwangi Military commander.

The restaurant is popular with travelers, for apart from its
location halfway between Jakarta and Bandung, it also offers a
good view of the surrounding area.

There was actually a building constructed in the area where
Rindu Alam now sits in 1971, namely Eisei, a private Japanese
pharmaceutical laboratory. But the laboratory has since been
demolished.

Since Rindu Alam's construction, there have been several
attempts to demolish the restaurant by government officials.
Former president Soeharto reportedly once summoned Ibrahim and
asked him to tear down the building.

But Ibrahim said that he asked the president to give him five
years to demolish the building so that he could recoup the money
he had invested in its construction.

Ibrahim, who was also a former ambassador to Britain and
Switzerland, said in September 1980 he was given the right to use
the state land from the West Java administration, while a
building permit was obtained from the Bogor regency
administration.

According to former home affairs minister Rudini, however, the
permit issued for the location was only for a parking lot and a
rest area, not a restaurant.

Former public works minister Poernomosidi once said the
restaurant should be demolished, stressing that it was the
responsibility of the central government to issue building
permits for the area, not the regency administration.

But the restaurant continues to stand today, becoming
something of a monument to the violation of environmental
regulations.

And many people believe that the presence of the restaurant
encouraged others to build illegal villas and buildings in Puncak
over the years.

The Bogor administration, which has the authority to tear down
the restaurant, remains unsure as to what action it should
take. The head of the Bogor Public Works Agency, Adrian Aria
Kusumah, said he could not find any documents relating to Rindu
Alam.

"How can I talk about law enforcement while the documents for
Rindu Alam are still missing," Adrian told The Jakarta Post
recently.