Street traders want expulsion put off until Idul Fitri
Street traders want expulsion put off until Idul Fitri
JAKARTA (JP): A group of sidewalk vendors operating along Jl. Matraman Raya in Jatinegara, East Jakarta, went to the office of the National Commission on Human Rights yesterday to complain about the city administration's plan to expel them from the area.
The delegation consisting of 63 vendors was led by Masrizal, coordinator of the Jatinegara sidewalk traders. They were received by the Commission's secretary general Baharuddin Lopa.
Masrizal told Lopa that the head of the Jatinegara subdistrict, acting on behalf of the East Jakarta mayor, had instructed them to stop their trading activities along the street as of Wednesday.
Masrizal said that they have to leave the areas they have occupied for almost 17 years because the mayoralty plans to put pot plants along the sidewalks.
He said the local traders realized that they could not indefinitely run businesses on the sidewalks in the area and must someday look for other locations. Moreover, a newly established department store will start business soon, he added.
The traders, Masrizal said, requested permission to continue trading until the upcoming Idul Fitri but the city authorities rejected their plea.
Masrizal claimed that all sidewalk traders, who have for a long time sold sundries, food, and electronic equipment along the street, are obedient, saying that they each always pays a security levy of Rp 4,500 (US$2) per week in addition to other levies ranging from Rp 5,000 to Rp 200,000.
He said they had spent a lot of money for the procurement of merchandise to be sold in the annual sales boom ahead of the Idul Fitri festivity.
"We'll lose the money if we are not allowed to do business up to Idul Fitri," he said.
In response to the complaint, Lopa will urge the East Jakarta mayor to practice humanism in settling the dispute with the sidewalk traders along Jl. Matraman Raya.
Lopa said the East Jakarta administration should not only consider the beauty aspects of the city.
"The East Jakarta administration must also provide a substitute location for the sidewalk traders to continue their businesses instead of just sweeping the traders aside," he said, while reading the rights commission's letter to the East Jakarta mayor.
He said that the city administration must at least let the venders continue trading until the Idul Fitri celebration.
"The East Jakarta administration must equally put forward its development program as well as prosperity of small scale business traders," he added.
Lopa guaranteed that the rights commission will take serious action regarding the matter. He ordered one of his staff members to prepare a letter and to immediately deliver it to East Jakarta authorities.
However, he reminded the traders that the commission could only deliver the letter and advise the authorities and nothing more.
He also asked the traders to remain calm and avoid perilous actions that would cause all parties, including the traders, difficulties. (imn)