Thugs divide the capital into areas of control

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.