Merlihat Malaysia (Observing Malaysia)
vol. 14 Jakarta, Indonesia

[ (C) Copyright 1998, J. Snell, San Jose State University & Universiti ]
[ Putra Malaysia. A series of notes on living and working in Malaysia, ]
[ during my Fulbright Fellowship near Kuala Lumpur. Copies may be      ]
[ freely distributed, but must retain this preamble. To (un)subscribe, ]
[ send a note to Jackie <jsnell_j@cob.sjsu.edu                         ]

Dear Friends,

Once again, as my note to Dave started taking shape, I thought I might turn
it into a Merlihat. So here is a short one.

If KL is one step down from Singapore, then I guess Jakarta is the same
step down from KL. I guess I am in one of the nicer parts of town. There
are several "business" hotels nearby, like mine, perfectly comfortable even
by American standards: good shower, good phone, firm bed, clean, good view
of the air-well, nothing fancy. My hotel is on a triangle where several
roads meet, so it's basically the only thing on the block. On the next
block in one direction are several fancy restaurants, including a French
bistro and a Tony Roma's (not fancy in the US, but exotic and foreign here,
and definitely not a warung), and the Spanish embassy. Possibly walking
distance to the US Embassy, even in this heat and pollution, so you know
it's close. The next block another direction is expensive residential
housing, well kept, large. The next block in the other 3 directions that
meet here are dirty and poor beyond anything we saw in KL. City-poor, so
more depressing for me than Cambodia. I think I'd rather be poor in the
country than the city, but most rural poor seem to be drawn to the city, so
maybe I've romanticized. Buildings are ramshackle, but most business is
done on the street from carts that are dirty and ramshackle. This is not a
night market, but all roads seem to be lined with carts every 10, 20, or
100 feet. The carts are smaller than in KL, and not well stocked. Most are
selling a little bit of food, the rest doing shoe repair or some such, not
selling goods. The poverty and lack of English makes the place feel more
foreign than KL, but Islam is much less of a presence here. Pretty nearly
everybody dresses western-ish here: cotton or polyester, not silk, solid
colors or small prints with one color on a white or black background. Some
skirts are longer than in the USA, but not ankle length. Or jeans and
hard rock café T-shirts (also common in KL). Boring. There are almost no
covered heads and very few Indonesian prints seen on the streets.

I have been here less than 24 hours, and am being very cautious in feeling
out what is safe for me to do. When my taxi stops at a traffic light,
people come to the window to beg, usually children, or a mother with a
baby, but once a young man with an unidentifiable stick, metal jangles on
the end. He didn't seem to be threatening us with it, but after he moved
on the taxi driver locked the doors. Noteworthy at least as much because
the driver doesn't automatically keep the doors locked, and didn't lock
them while the guy was there, as much as for the fact of locking them.
People are not used to being paranoid here, not even after 2 years of
economic and political problems, but there is no doubt there is some unease.
probably worth giving readers a bit more, noting that there is a much more
stringent form of notice that they reserve for REALLY serious situations,
such as they did a year or two ago, and that the Fulbrighters were
evacuated then, but felt it wasn't necessary.

The US State Department is advising Americans to think carefully about
coming to Indonesia at this time. Unrest is likely to increase as they
work their way up to June 7 elections. However, the Fulbright commission
is still sending scholars here. Another measure, as about a year ago they
forced scholars in Jakarta (but not the rest of Indonesia) to leave. The
scholars didn't want to leave, and returned as soon as allowed. There are 2
Fulbright grad students staying in my hotel, who have been here about a
week. I had dinner with one of them last night. He is a grad student who
grew up here and in Yogyakarta (I think the 2nd biggest city in Indonesia
and about an hour plane flight from here), so he has lots of friends here
and speaks Bahasa Indonesia well. He said he was shocked to hear one of
his friends say she won't take a taxi alone here, late at night, anymore.

Jakarta is not a pleasant city in the best of times, purely on the basis of
the air pollution (based on spending a few days here about 10 years ago).
We Americans have heard a lot more about KL than Jakarta, but that is
because KL's chronic problem is not so bad (perhaps not as bad as LA smog
in the olden days) but they have recurring, severe, short term problems
caused by fires in Indonesia, so want the publicity in order to pressure
Indon.

When I was in Jakarta 10 years ago, I didn't see beggars and the food carts
were in better shape, but I wouldn't have considered a Fulbright in Jakarta
just because of the air pollution. Someday I would love to spend a year in
Indonesia, but not Jakarta. So I'll check out Bandung and Yogyakarta next.

Jackie