Wed, 03 May 2000

Vegetable seller tells of life of endless toil and trouble

By A'an Suryana

JAKARTA (JP): Many people refer to the capital as a magnet since it lures countless daring outsiders. These transmigrants, however, often end up struggling to realize their dreams of a better life.

A great number of newcomers eventually realize that Jakarta is not as easy and friendly as they once thought. Therefore, some people decide to travel to the city alone, instead of bringing their wives and children with them, to look for jobs and business opportunities.

After weeks, months and sometimes years, these men travel back home, mostly with money and a broad smile, to their families.

They can be seen crowding city bus terminals and railway stations during weekends or holidays.

Hasan Basri, alias Acan, 46, a vegetable seller specializing in spinach and water spinach at the Palmerah traditional market in Central Jakarta, is one of these.

"I've been in this business for 25 years," the vendor from Sewawar Legokgunung village, Nopringgo district in Pekalongan, Central Java, told The Jakarta Post recently.

While most residents of Jakarta are in bed by midnight, Acan is usually just starting his busy day, awaiting the arrival of suppliers and, later, his customers.

According to the father of a 19-year-old son, he first came to the capital in 1975 and started selling vegetables at the Petak Jengkol area in Slipi area, West Jakarta.

After five years of running the business, Acan was forced to find another site as the local authorities decided to develop a road through his plot.

"My business area was totally demolished," he said.

From here, Acan moved to a vacant 200-meter by 400-meter plot of land owned by the Army Strategic Reserves Command (Kostrad) on Jl. Palmerah Utara.

Along with 15 other vegetable sellers, Acan lives at the site.

At 11 p.m., Acan and his fellow traders leave their "quarters" with their two-wheeled carts and go to three nearby markets, namely Palmerah, Bintang Mas and Pasar Baru.

Acan sometimes leaves with his cart full of spinach and water spinach, which he tied into bundles in the early hours.

Otherwise, he begins with an empty cart and waits for his regular suppliers at the Palmerah market and then bundles them.

"I usually finish work at 9 a.m.," Acan said.

For every bundle, which he purchases from suppliers for Rp 200, Acan gets between Rp 50 and Rp 100.

"It depends on whether they are regular customers or not, or whether stocks are adequate," he said.

On average, Acan sells 1,000 bundles per day.

"It's not bad for my family. At least I can afford my son's college fees," said Acan, a graduate of an elementary school.

During a midnight interview at his place of business, Acan busily dealt with suppliers and customers.

"When the suppliers have no adequate stocks, I usually go to places like Semper in North Jakarta or Meruya in West Jakarta to get the vegetables," he said.

Acan boasted that his 25 years of experience had provided him with a good knowledge of the business.

He said, however, that he had been unable to expand into other business areas.

"I have no expertise. The important thing is that I can save money for the future of my family."

He said he was now preparing himself for old age.

"I've built a 12 meter by 15 meter house in Sewawar, where my wife Chasmuti lives," he said.

The house, Acan said, was built in stages over a period of 10 years using the money he collected from selling the vegetables.

Once a month, Acan takes a Rp 11,000 bus ride to Sewawar to meet his wife.

"My wife and I then usually visit our only son, Aziswadi, 19, who is pursuing a computer college degree in the Central Java capital of Semarang," Acan said.

In Jakarta, he spends some Rp 50,000 per month as a sort of "rental fee" for the living space at the empty Kostrad land.

The area is dirty, with wild grass growing on the land which is surrounded by a thick brick wall. Some two-meter by one-meter huts, where the vegetable vendors live, are within these walls.

A small building, equipped with a black-and-white television set, was built at the left corner of the area.

"Some intelligence officers often come to the main building to rest.

We are safe here," Acan said.

He insisted he would not stay forever in Jakarta.

"I'll spend the rest of my life in my hometown in Sewawar Legokgunung village. That will be when I'm no longer healthy and my savings are sufficient."