Squatters demolish houses

Squatters demolish houses

JAKARTA (JP): Residents of Cengkareng Timur have voluntarily demolished their houses, located on land owned by the state housing developer Perum Perumnas, following an operation carried out by the West Jakarta mayoral administrative advisory board (Muspika).

The head of Perum Perumnas in Cengkareng, the district's military commander and the West Jakarta mayor watched the demolition on Sunday, Antara reported.

Perum Perumnas provided 20 trucks and 100 workers to help the residents demolish their houses and carry their belongings to their new places.

"Their willingness to demolish the houses means that we now have no further obstacles in clearing the area to make way for the construction of apartments," a Perum Perumnas official said.

The official said that only 88 squatters had yet to accept compensation money. He did not reveal how much money was being paid as compensation.

It is not clear whether the squatters agreed to receive the compensation of between Rp 20,000 (US$9) and Rp 50,000 per square meter offered by Perum Perumnas, or whether the developer had acceded to the residents' demand for Rp 200,000 per square meter. (bas)