Thugs divide the capital into areas of control

Abdul Khalik, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

This is the second of a series of articles on thuggery in the capital, which the city administration, police and military have promised to wipe out within one month.

Standing outside in the heat on a Sunday afternoon, a young man stops a van on a busy alleyway in Tanah Abang market, Central Jakarta, and indicates to the driver to open his window and give him some money. Two other young men quickly block the alley, giving the van no chance to pass.

A long queue soon forms behind the van, but the drivers do not complain, indicating that such an incident is common place.

After a long pause and reluctance, the van driver opens his window and hands over Rp 20,000 (US$2) to the young man. Not one of the three men says "thank you".

"Any car passing through the market must pay us for protection or else we won't let them pass, and won't guarantee their safety," Iwan, 19, one of the young men, told The Jakarta Post.

The three are just some of dozens of thugs operating inside Tanah Abang textile market, believed to be Asia's largest.

Indonesians and foreign residents buy apparel in bulk or retail at the market daily.

However, the presence of thugs makes it one of the most dangerous places in the capital. The city is divided into sections, where thugs from different ethnic groups reign supreme.

The three young men, for example, are Betawi (native Jakartans).

However, all market buildings in Tanah Abang are controlled by A Lung or Lulung, a Jakartan of Chinese descent.

"Every security guard here works for him. In fact, he owns a security company to oversee Tanah Abang. He takes care of shop owners while we handle the streets. Outsiders have no place here," Ucu, a prominent Tanah Abang thug, told the Post, adding that a noted tycoon was behind A Lung.

While native Jakartans control Tanah Abang, several ethnic groups operate in other parts of the city of 12 million people.

Senen in Central Jakarta, for example, is controlled by thugs from several ethnic groups. Thugs of the Batak ethnic group in North Sumatra, the Ambonese of Maluku, the Serang of Banten and the Makassarese of South Sulawesi control the market, bus and railway stations in Senen, Central Jakarta.

"There are too many groups here that no group controls the whole area. However, picking pockets, robbery and extortion should be conducted by a particular group," said Husin, a trader from Padang, West Sumatra, who has traded in Senen since the 1970s.

He said the leader of the Serang thugs was named Hasan, a prominent figure in Senen.

The Pulogadung bus station and the Pulogadung industrial area in East Jakarta are undergoing change. The Betawi, who have several strong organizations such as the Native Jakarta Brotherhood Forum (FBR) and the United Native Jakartans (PMB), is beginning to overpower traditional turf rulers, including Arek of Surabaya, East Java, and the Batak. Arek are youths from Surabaya who come to Jakarta.

"Batak thugs still dominate the bus station, but outside the Betawi rule. Now, many companies in Pulogadung pay protection money to Betawi groups or they employ one or two Betawi each year," Rachmat, 45, a Pulogadung resident, told the Post.

The Senayan area in Central Jakarta is controlled by a Makassarese called John, a former military man, while Blok M and Kebayoran Baru, both in South Jakarta, are divided between Arek, the Batak and the Ambonese.

Arek control the northern part of Kebayoran Baru, the Batak have the bus station and the Ambonese have the companies and stores around the market.

"Most Ambonese are debt collectors or security guards at companies and nightclubs, while the Batak and Arek are traditional thugs who pickpocket and extort money from people. Eventually, each group has to buy support from the military, police or bigger groups," Tole, an ex-thug, told the Post.