Riot victims find it hard to rebuild business

Riot victims find it hard to rebuild business

By Stevie Emilia

JAKARTA (JP): The sky over the city is blue once again. There
is no more gray smoke rising from burning shops, houses and
offices as was the case during the recent riots.

But grief still hangs in the air. It is as black as the gutted
remains of buildings, silent witnesses to the looting and burning
of more than 5,000 shops and malls.

Most of the property belonged to Indonesians of Chinese
descent.

Hendrawan is one of the many victims who lost his source of
income within a matter of hours. His shop in Pasar Minggu, South
Jakarta, where he sold spare parts for cars, was set ablaze by
looters on May 14.

Sifting through what remains of his shop, he collects
blackened spare parts and uses both hands to dust off the ashes.

"I want to start my business again but I don't know whether
it's possible," Hendrawan, who returned from his hometown in
Purwokerto, Central Java, last week, said.

Before he started selling spare parts in Pasar Minggu six
years ago, Hendrawan ran a car repair shop from his house. He
decided to turn it into another business with the hope of making
a better living.

He bought a 20-square-meter shop worth Rp 65 million after
obtaining a 10-year loan with his house as collateral.

"I still have to figure out how to pay my loan for the next
four years, or the bank will confiscate my home," the 41-year-old
father of four said.

At the moment, he is preparing the necessary documents, such
as those from the district office and the fire department, to
persuade the bank not to confiscate his home. He had no insurance
for loss or damage of the shop and stock.

"I need more time before I can continue paying my loan."

Getting another loan is out of the question.

"See for yourself, how can I convince a bank to give me a loan
now? Maybe I will try to persuade my relatives to give me a loan
to restart my business, but, under the present conditions, it
won't be easy."

In the meantime, Hendrawan must find a way to put food on the
table for his wife, who does not work, and their children.

"With no business to run, I don't know how long I can go on
living like this."

Indonesia's ethnic Chinese, who account for 5 percent of the
200 million people here but are said to dominate the economic
sector, are often the scapegoats for public anger.

During the recent riots, many stayed in their homes as they
had no place to go. The wealthy ones managed to flee to other
countries, some holed up in the Thousand Islands and at Soekarno-
Hatta International Airport, while others stayed with relatives
or friends in a place they considered safer.

Now that the situation is cooling down, some have already
returned to the city -- only to find debris instead of the
houses, offices, or stores they left behind.

Lina Herlina, 45, another Indonesian of Chinese descent who
ran a grocery store at Pasar Minggu market, has no plans to
continue her business.

Starring at her gutted store, she could identify nothing but a
blackened iron chair and shelves.

"I don't think I will start my business again, I don't have
money to start again, this is all I had," Lina, who managed to
get out of her store when the mobs started looting the market,
said.

"My priority now is how to survive the situation."

Only two months ago she paid up the three-year rent for the
shop. Now her family must depend solely on her husband's small
salary as a bookkeeper at a pharmacy.

"I was trying to start my own business to earn extra money for
raising my children.

"And I still don't understand why they burned down my shop,"
Lina said, adding that she had a good relationship with other
shop owners and customers living near the market.

Maintaining a good relationship with neighbors is a must,
especially if you belong to the minority. But during the recent
riots this rule did not apply, primarily because there were
allegations that those who started the incidents were people from
outside the area.

Unity

Several eyewitnesses saw the same people inciting the riots,
according to Rosita Sofjan Noer, businesswoman and deputy chair
of the Coordinating Body for National Unity (Bakom-PKB). They saw
those people unlock stores and shops with special "cutters"
before provoking the mobs to loot and burn.

She believed the looting was well-organized and urged the
Armed Forces to thoroughly investigate the case.

"The Armed Forces has to start determining who was behind
these riots."

Bakom is a forum of public figures from various ethnic groups
established in 1977 to promote national unity.

They members include tycoon Liem Sioe Liong, alias Soedono
Salim, and his son Anthony Salim, hotelier Sukamdani Sahid
Gitosardjono, banker Usman Admadjaja, scholar Juwono Sudarsono,
researcher Harbrinderjit Singh Dilon, scholar Bachtiar Aly, and
businessman K. Sindhunatha.

Rosita said the recent tragedy reflected a decline in
society's sense of unity and nationalism. The looting and burning
of stores, shops and malls belonging to those of Chinese descent
revealed the social jealousy of certain groups.

Like many people, the rioters believed the inaccurate
stereotype that all Chinese are rich. The fact that many of those
rich people prefer to live exclusively and do not want to mix
with the indigenous people adds to their animosity.

Rosita said Bakom had assigned 80 people to gather data about
the number of victims and the material loses.

"The data is expected to enable related ministries to
determine the necessary steps to help the victims."

No less important is the government's efforts to protect all
citizens, regardless of their ethnic background, to create a
feeling of safety and certainty, she said.

"It's important to give them a feeling of certainty and safety
before they rebuild their businesses," Rosita said.

Chinatown

President B.J. Habibie last week toured Jakarta's Chinatown in
Glodok, West Jakarta, and the shopping centers in Klender, East
Jakarta, and Cempaka Putih, Central Jakarta, all of which were
damaged in the riots.

He promised that the government would help traders in all
possible ways. He also convinced traders of Chinese descent of
the government's intent to provide equal treatment for all.

His words have yet to become reality, but many have great
expectations of him.

Amir Tjipta, one of the traders, has started cleaning up his
gutted store in the Glodok electronics market.

"I've started cleaning up my store because now I feel secure
after the President himself paid us a visit," he said.

Glodok was the worst-hit area during the recent riots. Over
3,800 kiosks and a 150-room hotel were burned and looted in the
neighborhood. About 65 people died in fires in a number of Glodok
shopping malls, while 45 others were seriously injured.

Amir wishes he could soon restart his business.

"Being a trader is the only thing I know but now, with my shop
gone, I have to start all over again. And I really hope that the
President will not forget his promise to help us," said the man,
who has three children and a wife to support.

He expects the President to help traders get bank loans. "I
put all my money into my store and I don't have enough savings to
start again," Amir said.

If he fails to get a loan, he would be forced to wind up his
operations completely. "Maybe I will try to get money to renovate
the store and then sell it. But, in the current situation, I know
it's not easy," said Amir.

The city administration has promised to speed up the
processing of permits for renovations to buildings destroyed
during last week's rioting.

The West Jakarta mayoralty even said that victims of the riots
could rebuild without a permit. In South Jakarta, they are
allowed to do so, on the condition that the design of the new
building is the same as the old one.