He said that he suspected that military personnel had been involved as a show of force against Kalijodo residents who were still resisting the eviction.

“It was previously said that this removal was aimed at maintaining public order in the area. If so, they [city officials] should initiate a dialogue in implementing their plan. But what we can see right now does not give the impression that the Kalijodo eviction has involved a dialogue with residents at all. There’s only arrogance,” said Hafidz as quoted by kompas.com on Monday.

The commissioner further said that if the city administration was acting in the spirit of reform, it should not involve TNI personnel in any  building demolition activities, such as those currently taking place in Kalijodo.

“Eighteen years ago, we agreed that the TNI should not be involved in such activities anymore,” he said.

Hafidz went on to say that the Jakarta administration should initiate dialogue with Kalijodo residents who were still holding out in their homes.

Hafidz plans to visit Kalijodo on Monday  to help residents who have decided to hold out in the area. “I believe that if they are approached carefully, they will agree to move from their homes,” he said.

Separately, Jakarta Legislative Council Deputy Speaker Mohamad Taufik has called on city administration officials to be transparent about the number of families who were still holding out at their homes in Kalijodo on Monday.

“This shows that they [city officials] are not transparent about the data. It’s dangerous if they manipulate data in their building demolition plan. Mayors of the impacted areas earlier said there were only one or two families who were still holding out in their homes but according to media reports, there are still 65 families in the location,” said Taufik as reported by kompas.com on Monday.

The lawmaker said the Jakarta administration should communicate with all Kalijodo residents who were still the area. “Please talk to them. If they are approached carefully, I’m sure that they will respond in a positive way,” said Taufik.

The Jakarta administration said earlier on Monday that it would begin to demolish buildings in the Kalijodo area to transform it into what it was originally zoned as; open green space. A joint team of around 6,000 personnel is reportedly involved in the demolition. The group consists of TNI and National Police personnel and security officers from the Jakarta administration, including the Public Order Agency (Satpol PP).     (ebf)

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