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Kalijodo evictees live under toll road
A group of about 20 people has been living in makeshift tents erected under a toll road in Penjaringan, North Jakarta, since their houses were torn down by the city administration during the clearance of the historic Kalijodo district in February.
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About 20 residents, who formerly lived in the red-light district of Kalijodo in North Jakarta, live in makeshift houses under a toll road after being evicted in February. (The Jakarta Post/Indra Budiari)
T
hree women emerged out of their tents, and despite the scorching sun that day they ran toward a truck full of cardboard and scrap metal that was coming down from the main road. One of the women shouted “Finally, the debris!” to attract another group to join them.
About eight people climbed into the back of the truck to find decent-quality used cardboard boxes, giving the driver no choice but to stop the truck suddenly, jostling everything inside it. But the women did not seem to be bothered, as it gave them time to hunt.
A group of about 20 people has been living in makeshift tents erected under a toll road in Penjaringan, North Jakarta, since their houses were torn down by hundreds of officials deployed by the city administration during the clearance of the historic Kalijodo district in February.
“I used to think that it would only be a temporary shelter before I find a decent place to live,” Deki Ratuprisa, a man in his early 40s, told The Jakarta Post as he lit up his third cigarette that day. “But here I am, almost six months later, and I’m starting to adjust to life in a tent under the toll road.”
Deki’s tent is a one-by-three-meter makeshift hovel that can barely accommodate a shabby bed for himself and his wife, a few clothes and a bag. The residents share a bathroom with others for taking baths and washing their clothes.
While his place is protected from rain by the road above it, cool nights and mosquitoes remain the biggest problems for them, but Deki, who works as a parking attendant, said he had no choice but to survive.
Everyone living long enough in this area is aware of the unwritten rules: Help your neighbors and do not commit any crimes, as that will put the entire community at risk.
“Some people have wrong ideas about our lives. I assure you that I, and some folks I know here, earn nothing but an honest living,” he said.
The city administration in February evicted 1,340 families from Kalijodo — an area known as the oldest red-light district in the city that stretched along the border of North and West Jakarta — as part of a plan to turn the area into a green zone. Residents were promised low-cost apartments in Marunda, North Jakarta. However, only 202 families were entitled to the privilege. The remaining families were not eligible, as they did not possess Jakarta ID cards.
The Kalijodo evictions were considered a success by the city. Many residents had left their houses a few days before excavators were deployed to the district. However, as with any other forced relocation, the Kalijodo eviction left some evictees with a bleak future.
Along with 201 other Kalijodo families, Anthony Sianturi had obtained a low-cost apartment for a rental fee of Rp 170,000 (US$13) per month. However, the costly transportation to get to his workplace as a parking attendant forced him to move with his son to under the toll road, only 500 meters from the place he used to call home.
Anthony said his son had stomach ache a few days earlier, as hygiene was not a priority for the people living in the area. “He should pick his food more carefully from now on,” he said. “It is not easy for a young child to live here.”
