The Jakarta administration is set to evict approximately 1,000 residents of the historical kampung Luar Batang, North Jakarta, to boost tourism in the capital’s Old Town district.

The area to be cleared is tucked in-between the Maritime Museum and Sunda Kelapa Port. The expected tourist revitalization is also to serve the 2018 Asian Games, officials said.

The North Jakarta administration on Wednesday issued its first eviction notice, which called for Luar Batang residents and Pasar Ikan vendors to dismantle their buildings as the administration plans to “revitalize the maritime tourist area”.

The area, located in Penjaringan subdistrict, features several heritage buildings, like Jakarta’s Maritime Museum and the Luar Batang Sacred Mosque.

Jakarta Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama, however, said that the eviction, which the city administration called “relocation”, was more about flood mitigation.

“No, [it is not related to the Asian Games]. We want to wall the coast to anticipate recurrent floods,” Ahok said at City Hall.

Luar Batang and Pasar Ikan, situated on Jakarta’s coast, often experience flooding caused by the high tide, locally known as “rob”.

Ahok said that the administration had been facing difficulty in turning the tide back toward sea due to land subsidence although it had employed two water pumps in the area.

He further said that to deal with the problem, the administration would build a sea embankment to dam the water.

To proceed with the project, Ahok said, the administration had to relocate 1,000 residents in the area to low-cost rented apartments in the capital, like the Marunda apartments in North Jakarta and the Rawa Bebek apartments in East Jakarta.

However, Ahok acknowledge as soon as the project finishes, the administration would also revitalize the area to promote tourism.

He said that it planned to manage street vendors in a commercial area, as well as creating access for tourists to enjoy the city’s northern sea.

Previously, lawyer Yusril Ihza Mahendra, who claimed to be the residents’ lawyer and who also has declared his intention to run for gubernatorial office, accused his archenemy Ahok of planning to remove the tomb of Habib Husein bin Abu Bakr bin Abdullah Alaydrus, who is believed to be the founder of Luar Batang and the historical mosque.

“I will not dismantle the mosque and the cemeteries,” Ahok added. Ahok has called the accusation “slander”.

Separately, Jakarta Development Planning Board (Bappeda) head Tuty Kusumawati said the project was to anticipate tidal floods in the area.

She said that the sea embankment in Luar Batang and Pasar Ikan would be constructed by the Water Management Agency as part of the National Capital Integrated Coastal Development (NCICD) — a collaboration project by the city administration and the central government to mitigate tidal floods in the capital amid the worsening problem of land subsidence.

Tuty said the Water Agency was responsible for building a sea embankment along Luar Batang, Muara Angke and Kamal Muara — all in North Jakarta.

The Luar Batang embankment, she added, would be built to span 1.5 kilometers with a budget of Rp 40 billion (US$3.02 million).

Like Ahok, she said that after the embankment project finished, the administration would revitalize the area for tourism, which would likely become one of the city’s flagship tourist areas for 2018.

“If we are able to finish the project by 2018, the area will probably become an added attraction for tourism in the city,” Tuty added.

Penjaringan district head Abdul Khalit said the eviction was part of the city administration’s effort to “revitalize” the slum neighborhoods surrounding the Maritime Museum and Sunda Kelapa harbor.

Khalit said that the revitalization would also serve the 2018 Asian Games, although it was not the main aim. “Revitalizing the area doesn’t have to wait for the Asian Games, right?” he said.

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