Traders occupy major
Traders occupy major
road after market fire
The Jakarta Post
Jakarta
Hundreds of traders occupied sections of Jl. Wonokromo in the
center of Surabaya after fire razed their kiosks in a nearby
traditional market on Sunday.
The traders erected makeshift kiosks, causing traffic
congestion. Despite grumbles from motorists, police opted to wait
and see before taking any measures.
Antara reported that the traders were selling whatever they
could save from the fire, which began around 5 a.m.
"We have to keep running our businesses, otherwise we would
not be able to feed our children and wives," one of the traders
said.
Chief of Surabaya Police Sr. Supt. Ito Sumardi said he
understood the traders had to survive, but he did not expect them
to occupy the road.
He lamented the failure of the market owners, the mayoralty
public order agency and the mayoralty administration to swiftly
resettle traders.
"I have contacted the deputy mayor to ask him to resolve the
matter immediately, but I have not been able to reach him," Ito
said.
Spokesman for the market operator Putut Subagio said the
mayoralty administration had planned to move the traders to a
plot belonging to the operator of Mangga Dua shopping complex,
near the office of state oil company Pertamina.
No casualties were reported during the market blaze, but most
of the merchandise, including electronic goods, gold jewelry,
meat and clothing, could not be saved as the fire spread quickly.
The sellers complained about the late arrival of the fire
brigade, who only managed to douse the raging fire after five
hours, once the two-story building had already been gutted.
A number of traders linked the fire to a plan by the mayoralty
administration to build a shopping center on the land where the
traditional market stood.
But police and other officials denied the speculation.
Ito Sumardi told the traders not to speculate over the
incident, saying they should await the result of a police
investigation.
Deputy mayor Bambang Dwi Hartono also denied the accusation,
although he admitted that an investor from Singapore had
expressed interest in constructing a shopping center at the
location.