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Bukit Duri residents affirm rights through people's festival
In a move to affirm their resident status, inhabitants of the banks of the Ciliwung River in Bukit Duri, Tebet, South Jakarta, have organized a three-day festival called Pasar Rakyat (People’s Market).
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The three-day Pasar Rakyat (People's market) festival, organized by residents of Bukit Duri in South Jakarta, began on April 1. (thejakartapost.com/vps)
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n a move to affirm their resident status, inhabitants of the banks of the Ciliwung River in Bukit Duri, Tebet, South Jakarta, have organized a three-day festival called the Pasar Rakyat (People’s Market).
The event will start on April 1, and will include a range of entertainment, art installations, workshops and discussions.
Denizens of Bukit Duri and nearby neighborhoods will perform music, dances and poetry readings. Meanwhile, discussions will involve activists such as Sri Palupi from the Institute for Ecosoc Rights, history researcher J.J. Rizal and urban planning expert Marco Kusumawijaya.
“Around three weeks ago, officials from the [South Jakarta] municipality and [Tebet] district turned up and informed residents of the plan to relocate them. It was peremptory and one-sided - they gave us no chance to discuss,” Sandyawan Sumardi, the leader of NGO Sanggar Ciliwung Merdeka, which advocates for riverbank-dwellers, said on Friday.
“Pasar Rakyat aims to create a space for social interaction and demonstrate the independence of Bukit Duri residents,” Sandyawan added.
The city administration plans to demolish houses and buildings along the banks of the Ciliwung as part of flood mitigation projects.
As part of the plan to widen the Ciliwung from 20 to 50 meters, the administration plans to relocate some 300 residents of neighborhood units (RT) 5, 6, 7 and 8 of community unit (RW) 12 to city-owned low-cost apartments.
“I have tried to encourage the residents to redefine their form of struggle here,” Sri Palupi said after her discussion session on Friday.
“From the economic point of view, dense settlements like these have no economic value compared with apartments or shopping malls. But [the demolition] of this settlement will push aside one other thing: social and cultural values.”
Sri expressed concern over the growing inhumanity of Jakarta, and encouraged Bukit Duri residents to fight for their rights in the city.
In August last year, the Jakarta city administration forcefully evicted 1,041 families of Kampung Pulo in East Jakarta, across the river from Bukit Duri. Spirited resistance from the residents led to a clash with Public Order Agency (Satpol PP) officers, and 10 were arrested. (vps/bbn)
