Love thy neighbor ...

Tomorrow, on Jan. 17, the Jakarta City Administration plans to close down all the kiosks selling flowers and ornamental fishes on Jl. Barito, South Jakarta. These kiosks are located next to our office. Therefore, it is only logical that we have a "soft spot" in our heart about them--thus, the following Question & Answer as conducted by a colleague of mine.

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‘You can be sure there's a conspiracy involving big capital behind it’

Time is running out for the flower and ornamental fish sellers at the end of Jl. Barito in South Jakarta. On the spot where their modest kiosks now stand, a park will soon be built. For residents who are familiar with the place, the demolition of the kiosks will be a loss. But those who stand to lose the most are of course the flower and ornamental fish vendors.

The sellers say that in as early as 2005 they heard from hearsay that the city administration was planning to rebuild the old Ayodia Park which once stood and fell into neglect on the spot where the kiosks now stand. At the beginning of 2006, Governor Sutiyoso issued Gubernatorial Instruction No.11/2006, ordering the relocation of the kiosks, but by Gubernatorial Decree No.1533/2006 the sellers were allowed to stay until a new location for their businesses was ready.

Now the vendors feel ignored and unappreciated—as citizens and as tax payers. “We know that a consortium of big businesses is planning to build a hotel across the street,” says Tedy Panji Waseda, chairman of the Organization of Flower Sellers on Jl. Barito. Following are excerpts of an interview we conducted recently with him:

Q: Going back to the beginning, how did your and your colleagues initially set up business here on the spot of the old Ayodia Park?

A: Back in 1968 we all sold flowers and plants in a location at the back of the Pertamina Hospital. In 1970, the South Jakarta mayor – Adiwijaya at the time—made us move here, and the location was officially opened by Governor Ali Sadikin. Our business ventures were officially coordinated by the Jakarta Agency for Small and Medium Enterprises, and for a while before that by the Jakarta Agency for Economy and Development. But for all the 37 years that we were here we never had their help in any form whatever. On the contrary, we had to pay them.

Q: What about management—the process of administration?

A: Everything was above board. Only a few of the now-elderly traders who were with us from the start are still here. But when I asked them about their papers they said they had lost them. But as officially recognized street vendors our permits were renewed every year by the governor.

Q: When did you first hear that all vendors here would be relocated?

A: Actually plans existed since 2000. The mayor at that time proposed a model for the park that was almost identical with the one we made, but it was rejected by the governor. Since then we had been asking ourselves, what actually was going on? Nothing happened for a long time, but then, on Jan. 9, 2006, we heard of an instruction from the governor to his subordinates to relocate us. The fire which broke out here in 2005 was used as another reason. We should have been relocated in August 2006, but we had made a huge flower arrangement to represent South Jakarta in the Jakarta anniversary celebrations that year, and it was a huge success. It won us an award from the Indonesian Museum of Records for the biggest flower arrangement at that time. It was 156 meters long and 3.5 meters high. Perhaps the city administration didn't feel comfortable relocating us at that time.

Q: And then, what?

A: Late last year, they mounted their pressure. Well, until the recent gubernatorial elections everything was quiet, but after that the pressure mounted.

Q: In what way? Did they explain things, or was there a warning, or what?

A: Besides spreading the news among us, they began building a new site for us on Jl. Radio Dalam. Only once did they come with an explanation and that was on Jan.4. The budget they had for this so-called socialization from January to December was Rp500 million. We did meet with them several times during that time, but we told them that wasn't socialization; we came to negotiate. Today, the City Council allocated Rp2 billion to build the kiosks at Jl. Radio Dalam, and fencing in this site will cost Rp500 million. I don't know where that money goes.

Q: What is it that you want to achieve by staying here?

A: I only want to act like a good citizen. We earned money for the South Jakarta mayoralty. We now want to hold a dialog with the governor as the one who gave us the permit. We too have a concept for the park, without removing people. And our plan was made by someone who is an expert in ecology. What we want the public to know is that we have made good and civilized efforts. When we know that we are right, we should have the courage to stand equal with anybody—no matter if they wear uniforms and are powerful.

Q: What is your final hope?

A: To meet the governor as the issuer of our permits. Couldn't he postpone and revise his decision? In his campaign speeches Pak Fauzi said Jakarta was for all of us. Well, shouldn't he be willing to receive his own citizens who are in trouble? But of course we know that there are other intentions behind it all. After all, isn't his governor an extension of Sutiyoso, who has to find money for the upcoming presidential election? We haven't seen the documents, but friends working in banks have told us that a certain consortium is planning to build a hotel on Langsat Park. Hasn't it always been like that? Whenever people are cleared off a site, you can be sure there's a conspiracy involving big capital behind it.