Young men and violence

In an article in the International Herald Tribune on Sept. 18, 1996, Tomas Eloy Martinez, novelist and Rutgers University professor, describes a Latin America increasingly fearful of crime. Rapidly rising crime rates among violent men have created garrison communities surrounded by walls topped with broken glass. That image of glass-encrusted walls must surely strike Jakarta residents as familiar.

Mr. Martinez wonders whether such widespread violence might be the result of the huge gap between rich and poor. The only people who have a chance of economic success are members of the small, powerful elite. This situation leads young people to feel cheated out of their chance to participate legitimately in the fruits of their nation's wealth, creating a belief that the only way to get anything is to take it -- violently if necessary.

That latter image may also become familiar to Jakarta residents. Gangs of schoolboys already fight each other in brawls which seem to have no particular cause. What will happen to these angry boys when they become young men? Will they find jobs that give them the dignity of providing for themselves and their families? Or will they find that such opportunities are only open to the friends of certain officials? Already angry, will they find that their future is determined not by their own ability and hard work, but by some rich and powerful family acting through the government? What conclusion will these young men draw from the August demonstration of what will happen to political ideals when they clash with the party in power? And what will they do about it?

Some people say that the brawls and unrest are due to the influence of insidious western culture. But could the cause be something closer to home? Could it be the growing awareness that dreams of a bright future can only be realized by those who are close to a powerful family? And if they don't happen to be close to a powerful family, what recourse do they have?

Already in Pondok Indah, streets are closed by gates at night. Is barbed wire next?

GARY GENTRY

Jakarta