Tanah Abang still teeming with hoodlums, prostitutes
Tanah Abang still teeming with hoodlums, prostitutes
JAKARTA (JP): The 262-year-old Tanah Abang market is again in
the spotlight because of its complicated problems of street
vendors and hoodlums.
The authorities, comprising officials from the city
administration, police and military officers, have vowed
umpteenth times to sort out the problems.
Their words, so far, have led nowhere.
The number of hoodlums has been rapidly increasing in the area
in line with the massive growth of sidewalk traders,
streetwalkers and brothels, gambling dens, sellers of stolen
goods and dimly lit drinking stalls.
Officially, the area houses a four-story building where more
than 3,000 textile and house appliances traders run their
business and a bus terminal, which serves over 600 buses and
minivans per day.
Due to a lack of supervision, over 1,350 informal traders
cover the sidewalks with portable wooden tables, offering goods
such as handkerchiefs, belts, shirts, kimonos and bras to
commuters.
This unfavorable situation has turned Tanah Abang market into
one of the most congested areas in the city.
Passersby, commuters and drivers have often complained about
the traffic chaos.
To many, the Tanah Abang hoodlums, prostitutes, street vendors
and gambling den operators appear "untouchable" to local
authorities.
History
The area was most likely named Tanah Abang by troops from the
Mataram kingdom of Yogyakarta when they came to Batavia (now
Jakarta) in 1628 to attack the Dutch colonial rulers.
According to a book titled Pasar Tanah Abang 250 Tahun (The
250 Years of Tanah Abang Market) issued by city-owned PD Pasar
Jaya, the Dutch used the Tanah Abang area as a base camp for
troops.
At the time, Tanah Abang was a hilly area surrounded by swamps
and the Krukut River.
The book says it is possible that the Mataram troops named the
area after the red earth covering most of the area.
Tanah means earth, abang means red.
Batavia, including the Tanah Abang area, was at the time
mostly owned and managed by the Dutch.
In 1733, the area was owned by a wealthy Dutch named Justinus
Vinck.
In 1735, Vinck was granted a license to open a market on his
property. The license allowed the Tanah Abang market to open only
on Saturdays, but it was changed to Wednesdays in 1751.
The Dutch determined that only textiles, household goods and
vegetables were allowed to be sold at the market. Most of the
vendors were of Chinese descent.
Vinck built several access roads, including the roads which
passed through Prapatan Kwitang near the Senen market, to help
vendors and suppliers transport their products to and from Tanah
Abang.
In 1740, a bloody riot took place in Tanah Abang and a number
of Chinese vendors in the market were killed and their stalls
burned. The remaining venders withdrew to the outskirts of
Batavia, causing a slow down in the city's economic activities.
In a bid to boost the economy, the Dutch tried to coax the
Chinese back by granting them a few privileges, including
allowing them to collect levies from other vendors in the market
and allowing them to open opium dens in the area.
But Batavia's governor general in 1811, Raffles, abrogated
Chinese's privileges in levy collection. Raffles said only the
government was allowed to collect levies.
The administration, however, did nothing about the opium dens,
which were in alleys around the market and many visited them to
get high without fear of being caught by security officers.
In 1945, the Jakarta administration was appointed to manage
the market.
During Japanese occupation, market activities decreased
dramatically. Times were hard and the market attracted those down
on their luck. Beggars mostly occupied the market.
Nowadays, there is hardly any place for beggars. Clout now
rules the market and what room there is belongs to those with
enough money to give to the hoodlums and undisciplined officials.
They are the survivors of the market area. (cst)