After officially receiving their first eviction notices on Thursday, some residents of Kalijodo have begun packing while others still have no idea where to go should the evictions planned for March go ahead.

Those who were packing mostly had the option to stay with relatives while the rest have nowhere to go, as promised low-cost rental apartments (rusunawa) have yet to be confirmed.

Kalijodo is the longtime home to a well-known red-light district and is located in both North Jakarta and West Jakarta.

Thirty-one-year-old Maisaroh could not hide her anxiety when officials from Penjaringan subdistrict of North Jakarta '€” where most of Kalijodo is located '€” visited her and checked her identity card and documents related to the land on which her home stands. '€œIs this your house or do you just rent it?'€ asked Muhammad Andri, secretary of Penjaringan subdistrict.

'€œThis is my house, sir,'€ Maisaroh replied as she passed a folder containing documents such as family card, tax invoices and electricity bills. She also showed her North Jakarta ID card.

Andri, who arrived with dozens of military, police and Public Order Agency (Satpol PP) personnel, jotted down information in his notes before leaving for another house.

The officials visited the residents to deliver the first notice and to check who among the affected residents is eligible for a rusunawa unit after the planned evictions. The first notice is normally issued about 10 days before the eviction eventually takes place.

'€œIf the administration demolishes my house, how can I feed my family?'€ asked Maisaroh, who earns money from renting her house'€™s garage as motorcycle parking for customers of nearby cafes and bars.

'€œI will lose my income. Besides, my two children also attend a nearby elementary school,'€ she said, adding that on average she received Rp 200,000 (US$14.84) a night from renting the garage.

Maisaroh lives in the house with her husband, two children, two younger siblings and her mother, who also runs a small kiosk in front of her house.

'€œWe have been living here since I was a child more than 20 years ago.'€

Unlike, Maisaroh, 50-year-old Atun is ready to leave, having started to pack her belongings and taking them to a relative'€™s house after she received the notice.

'€œWhat can I do? I have to pack these items, if not the administration will damage them and I will suffer even more,'€ she said as she placed items in a cardboard box.

Atun lives in a small house which she also uses to sell cigarettes, coffee and basic foods. '€œI plan to temporarily stay in my relative'€™s house until I can find a place to stay,'€ she said.

Both Maisaroh and Atun have rejected the administration'€™s offer to relocate them to an a rusunawa because they fear will not be able to pay the rent.

City administration data show that Kalijodo has 3,052 residents, 1,405 of them have jobs related to the area'€™s nightlife.

This includes 450 prostitutes, 300 waitresses, 100 security guards and parking wardens and 300 support workers such as cleaners. The remainder have jobs or businesses unrelated to the area'€™s nightlife.

Governor Basuki '€œAhok'€ Tjahaja Purnama said recently that the administration would turn Kalijodo into a green area as it sits within the administration'€™s map of open green space.

On Thursday, a councilor from the Gerindra Party, Muhammad Sanusi, criticized the city'€™s hasty move to clear Kalijodo. '€œThe administration should first familiarize residents [with its plans] and have a dialogue with them,'€ he said. '€œSticking circular letters in people'€™s doors is not familiarization,'€ he said.

Sanusi said Kalijodo had serious social problems, so the approach needed to be deeper and more comprehensive.

'€œBringing in the police and army to evict people is a cowardly action,'€ he said.

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