[sustran] Re: FW: Update, Jakarta Issue [LOCOA]

[Sujit Patwardhan]

1 October 2001


Hello Friends,
I am always amazed by the naive faith people have in "Governments' 
intentions". Though I don't know everything about the problem highlighted 
by Paul (Barter) it is obvious isn't it that the Government is acting in an 
inhuman manner and striking out against the poor, when their efforts should 
actually be directed at improving their lot. This is a common trait with 
all Governments, in developing as well as in the developed world as should 
have become clear from what the US President is doing (in this case under 
the excuse of stamping out terrorism). Ignoring people's protests against 
expanding and destructive motorways in the UK during the seventies (?) the 
government went ahead and built the roads which ultimately did not benefit 
the population as a whole. I'm sure there will be tons of such cases from 
countries of the third world .

Paul's (Butarbutar) suggestion "to have a balance(d) information, please 
check also with government why they do all of this. I am sure they don't do 
that just for fun, it must be a
reason." makes me wonder if he has ever tried to interact with any 
government representative on a controversial issue.

Is it our experience that the government is ever AT ALL interested in 
explaining what it is doing?  Particularly to those holding a different 
viewpoint? Is it our experience that documents, project reports, 
calculations, cost benefit analysis, on basis of which such action is 
initiated are ever given out to ordinary citizens? Is it our experience 
that the voice of the weak and the powerless even reaches the rulers and 
policy makers who time and again try to justify their anti-people drives in 
the name of progress, development and modernization when actually all that 
these schemes succeed in doing is to line the pockets of the powerful, the 
rich and those close to the rulers, at the cost of thousands who are robbed 
out of their meagre livelihoods.

Of course they don't do it ONLY for the fun. There are many good reasons... 
the main one is to use their power and their position for their own benefit 
rather than for the benefit of the common man in the street.

Mahatma Gandhi whose birthday (2nd October ) will be celebrated with much 
fanfare in my country tomorrow, characteristically had a very simple way to 
judge if any policy should or should not be implemented. "Look at the 
poorest and the weakest man out there, and see if HE will benefit from what 
you are planning to do". Sadly we still need to heed what the old man had 
said so many years back.
--
Sujit Patwardhan
Parisar.
Pune, India



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At 09:48 AM 10/1/01 +0000, you wrote:
>Hi, Paul,
>it is good that you share this information with other people. But I think,
>to have a balance information, please check also with government why they
>do all of this. I am sure they don't do that just for fun, it must be a
>reason.
>
>Thanks,
>
>Paul Butarbutar
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From:   Paul Barter [SMTP:geobpa at nus.edu.sg]
>Sent:   Saturday, September 29, 2001 10:20 AM
>To:     'sustran-discuss at jca.apc.org'
>Subject:        [sustran] FW: Update, Jakarta Issue [LOCOA]
>
>-----Original Message-----
>From: hyowoo na [mailto:locoa2000 at yahoo.com]
>Sent: Saturday, 29 September 2001 10:22
>To: Kirtee Shah; Mr. Leo Shah; Rajesh Shah; Myung Ho Shin; SeungMin
>Shin; Tomoe Shitaba; Johan Silas; Amarasiri de Silva; Teresita Silva;
>Raajen Singh; Dibalok Singha; dickson Singha; Sri Sofjan; Sofyan; Thomas
>Soi; Thomas Steinbugler; Sustran; Amor Tampubolon; Jo Hann Tan; Tibet
>Fund; Edicio De La Torre; UCDO; UDLE; Dennis Upa
>Subject: Update, Jakarta Issue [LOCOA]
>
>
>            UPDATE,August 15 to 26 September 2001
>                   - Jakarta, Indonesia -
>
>A. NUMBER OF CASUALTIES OF STATE VIOLENCE
>AGAINST THE URBAN POOR OF JAKARTA
>
>1. Confiscated becak
>"X Central Jakarta                      1904
>"X North Jakarta                                2283
>"X West Jakarta                         2665
>"X East Jakarta                         2147
>Total number who lost jobs             8,999
>
>This means 8999 people lost their jobs, thus the same
>number of families lost their earnings.
>
>2. Food vendors (evicted, demolished)   71.857
>3. Car wash service (demolished)            40
>4. Houses (demolished)                  1.010
>Total number of people lost jobs        72.907
>
>3. Urban poor arrested/detained
>"X 436 street sex workers
>"X 23 lepers and mentally disturbed
>"X 12 alms collectors
>"X 735 beggars and homeless
>"X 27 difables
>"X 95 stree children
>"X 329 ??informal?? traffic policemen
>"X 250 street musicians
>"X 386 others
>   3.293 Total
>
>4. Houses demolished            1.010
>
>
>B. Chornology of Urban Poor Resistance
>
>5. September 2001-09-26
>Pademangan Subdistrict, North Jakarta
>Confiscation of becak started at 02.00 a.m. One becak
>driver was shot by the police in a physical
>confrontation that followed. Becak drivers, street
>vendors and others retaliated, they attacked
>Pademangan sub-district office, resulted in glass
>windows, the foor and the front gate of the office all
>broken.
>
>Teluk Gong, North Jakarta
>Confiscation operation started by 04.30 a.m. One becak
>driver who alerted his friends by beating the lamp
>post was gang-beaten by around 20 municipality
>security guards; his skull was 10cm fractured.
>7 September 2001: Muara Angke, North Jakarta
>A physical confrontation between becak drivers, food
>vendors and others with municipality security guards
>has resulted in 5 becak drivers badly injured.
>
>11 September 2001: Muara Baru, North Jakarta
>Hundreds of becak drivers demonstrated at the Muara
>Baru village office that resulted in the village head
>agreed to stop becak eviction in the area.
>
>13 September 2001: Jelambar Baru, West Jakarta
>Confiscation of becaks happened in Jelambar Baru the
>day before. Hundreds of becak drivers, food vendors
>and others attacked Jelambar Baru village office. The
>glass windows, doors and roof were broken.
>
>15 September 2001: Municipality Office of East Jakarta
>More than 500 becak drivers, street vendors, street
>children and others attacked EastJakarta municipality
>office, resulted in glass doors, windows and roof were
>broken and 1 bus ruined.
>
>One becak driver was badhly hurt in the head, 4 others
>were detained in the Jakarta police headquarters. They
>were interrogated, beaten and was jailed in a very
>small room together with around 15 more people.
>
>17 September 2001: Kalianyar, West Jakarta
>A municipality team confiscated a number of becaks in
>Kalianyar. Hundreds of urban poor, the majority of
>whom were becak drivers then attacked the village
>office. They threw stones to the building, the glass
>windows and doors of the office.
>
>Three becak drivers were arrested, one was released on
>21 September, the other two were still detained in the
>police precinct of Tambora, West Jakarta. The two were
>beaten.
>
>25 September 2001: Angke, North Jakarta
>1 becak in Angke, North Jakarta and 5 in Kwitang,
>Central Jakarta wre confiscated.
>
>26 September 2001: Sunter, Central Jakarta
>16 becaks were confiscated, the team involved hundreds
>of policemen, mobile brigade, the army and
>municipality security guards.
>
>Sources: UPC (field data and clippings)
>
>
>
>=====
>LOCOA
>  Leaders and Organizers of Community Organization in Asia
>  80-A, Malakas Street, Brgy Pinyahan, 1100 Quezon City,
>  Philippines
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>
>__________________________________________________







-------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Sujit Patwardhan.
PARISAR,
Yamuna, ICS Colony, Ganeshkhind Road, Pune 411 007
Tel: 5537955
Email: sujit at vsnl.com
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In nature there are neither Rewards nor Punishments---
there are Consequences.