Taxi passenger assaulted

Taxi passenger assaulted

On Tuesday afternoon, June 6, 1995, at approximately 2.30
p.m., a colleague and I hailed a President taxi on Jl. Pecenongan
in Central Jakarta. Our destination was Jl. Lautze near Pasar
Baru. After we began our journey I noticed the meter was not yet
started and politely reminded the driver to switch it on. He
responded by asking us for Rp 5000 and refused to use the meter.
Perhaps the fact that my friend and I are expats gave the driver
an incentive to try to cheat us.

Well, we politely restated that we expected him to use the
meter, as required by law. After he again refused, we requested
he take us to the nearest police station to resolve the matter.
He agreed, and as we drove towards Jl. Hayam Wuruk the driver,
realizing he would gain nothing by going to the police, stopped
the taxi and ordered us to get out.

We again told him our destination, whereupon the driver
produced a tire iron from underneath his seat and, to our utter
disbelief, smashed my friend's left knee. The driver then got
out, opened my friend's door, pulled him out and began to assault
him with his fists. Why? All because we had asked the driver to
use his meter.

Now hurt and badly shaken, my friend broke away from the
violent, vulgar man only to have the driver strike my friend on
the side of the head with the tire iron, producing torrents of
blood. A nearby policeman and satpam (security guard) were able
to assist us and detain the man, and we all eventually went to
Polda Metro Jaya (Jakarta Police office) where statements were
taken by the police. He is currently in jail, but I wonder: Will
this taxi driver once again be free to bully, terrorize and
assault other hapless passengers because they request the use of
the meter in his vehicle as required by law?

JOHN DI STEFANO

Jakarta