Dozens of street vendors in front of Tarumanegara University, West Jakarta, appeared unperturbed by the heavy downpour that had been showering them for almost an hour.

They prepared and served food and drinks to customers waiting for the rain to stop in the makeshift tents along the sidewalk that weekday afternoon.

When the rain stopped, some of the vendors moved their makeshift tents to the roadside, causing more congestion along the already packed street of Jl. S. Parman.

Angry drivers failed to stop them from taking up the streets.

Just like the rain, nothing could stop the vendors from running their businesses, including repeated warnings from the city administration that they would be evicted.

"It's quite safe to run a business here because there's always someone who will tip us off prior to the operation," said Sinaga, a newspaper vendor.

He said he had been selling newspapers since 1998, and up until now he had never been evicted.

"Last month, we halted business for two days because someone told us the municipality was going to compete for the Adipura (greenest and cleanest city) award," he said.

He said some of the vendors had to move into the alley near the street, while some of them had to stop operating until inspection for the award was over.

Kurniawan, a beverage vendor, said he did not know the person who tipped the vendors, but he was sure that the person was someone in the know.

"Usually the information about an eviction is given before any ceremonial events, such as Adipura," he said, adding that even if they were evicted, the street vendors could just wait for things to cool before setting up shop again.

The vendors occupy the sidewalk and some of them use the roadside along Jl. S. Parman to sell their goods, disrupting the already congested traffic.

Some of these vendors used to operate in an alley beside Tarumanegara University. But as the area became crowded with too many traders, they moved to Jl. S. Parman, in front of the campus.

"I know we cause traffic congestions, but what can we do? The alley is too crowded with competitors," Kurniawan said.

Road users have expressed their concerns and have urged the city administration take firm action to evict the vendors.

"The city administration should evict them or relocate them somewhere else because the vendors are very persistent. Even rain and flood won't stop them from running their businesses," said Anshari, a private car driver.

Kasim, a taxi driver, said the problem with the implementation of vendor evictions throughout the city was a lack of consistency.

"The administration should carry out the eviction plan even when the vendors continue to return after being evicted several times." (fmb)

Popular

Hundreds of kitchens halt services due to 'pause' in free meals funds

Number of forcibly displaced people dips to 118 million: UN

Failed system, fake research