Train crews loyally serve the public on Idul Fitri
Leony Aurora, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Zakir, a conductor on one of Jakarta's electric commuter trains, has been able to spend just one Idul Fitri with his family over the last 29 years because of his work.
"I was very happy when I had a day off on Idul Fitri last year," he reminisced as the chant of Allahu Akbar (God is Great) echoed from mosques the train passed on the eve of Idul Fitri on Monday evening.
This year Zakir was back inside the locomotive for the holiday. His night shift on Monday continued with a morning shift the next day, meaning that he would miss the Idul Fitri prayer once more.
"I am used to it now," he said. "Of course, I am a bit sad that everyone can have a holiday and I can't. But this is my responsibility."
Zakir and partner Tukino, the train driver, man the electric commuter train that travels back and forth from Bogor to the Kota station in downtown Jakarta.
Luckily, they both live in Bogor so they can go home after their last trip. Other crews living in Jakarta have to spend the night at state-owned railway company PT KAI's boarding house in Bogor so they are ready for the 7 a.m. shift.
It is PT KAI policy that operational employees are not allowed to take leave from two weeks before until two weeks after Idul Fitri. During these days, each worker earns an extra Rp 5,000 (59 US cents) a day.
To provide a taste of the holiday, some of the stations provide ketupat (steam rice wrapped in coconut leaves), opor ayam (chicken cooked in coconut milk) and other typical Idul Fitri food for train crews.
"Our wives and children have accepted that this is our line of work," said Tukino. "We have to be ready to be called at anytime, just like soldiers."
For Sutrisno, another train driver, working on the trains is more than a job, it is a way of life.
"If I don't see the train even just for a day, I feel like something's missing," he said.
"The train is my first wife," he said with a laugh. He started working 19 years ago and has been married to his "second" wife for 12 years.
His five children sometimes complain when he cannot go with them to visit their grandparents in Kemayoran, Central Jakarta, for Idul Fitri. He has only celebrated the holiday with his family four times since he began driving trains.
"I feel empty when working on Idul Fitri because I'm not near my family," he told The Jakarta Post.
Approaching the Cikini station in Central Jakarta, he added: "Also, there is no satisfaction in transporting passengers. Most of them have returned to their hometowns," as he pointed to the few commuters waiting to board the train.
Jakarta's electric commuter trains are notoriously overcrowded. Commuters normally have little room to breathe, let alone to sit or move about the car. The situation is usually so bad that some people prefer to ignore the danger and ride on top of the cars.
When the Post was at the train station on Monday, however, it observed that most passengers were able to find seats on the cars.
Sutrisno said he would gladly pay to have someone cover his shift so he could celebrate Idul Fitri at home.
"I will just go and visit relatives and friends next Friday, my day off, for this year's Idul Fitri," he said.