Ulma Haryanto – The May 1998 riots that devastated the capital during the fall of former President Suharto, leaving more than 1,500 people dead and widespread reports of gang rapes, have left an indelible stain on the country's conscience.
Despite the presence of soldiers across the city, the orgy of violence that saw parts of the city in flames for days on end completely changed the face of relations between ethnic Chinese and indigenous Indonesians. But while some people seem to have moved on, others cannot forget.
Setiawan, 54, who was born and raised in Glodok, West Jakarta, told the Jakarta Globe on Tuesday that the lives of the city's ethnic Chinese were turned upsidedown on May 14-15 of that year.
Together with Mangga Dua in North Jakarta, Glodok – a predominantly Chinese-Indonesian neighborhood – was the worst hit area during the riots. In fact, Harco Glodok market, an electronics center, still bears the burn marks 12 years later.
"Those who had the money fled the country. Those who did not have money had to carry on," Setiawan said. "I was lucky. I had time to close everything and lock my family members in the house. Once I did that, I went outside with a machete and a samurai sword in both hands."
"Good luck if you think you can find anyone here to tell you what really happened in Glodok," he added, saying most of residents could not afford to renovate their shops after the riots.
Setiawan recalled that he did not eat or sleep for three straight days. "My dad patrolled so many areas after the riots broke – he is dark-skinned so was safe – and called us to report back on what was happening in other areas," he said, adding that he had also joined the neighborhood patrols for the next two months.
"I don't have to tell you about the rapes, do I?" he asked. Human Rights Watch reported 130 cases of women being raped during the riots, although that did not include those who did not come forward.
Amid the chaos
A 74-year-old shop owner at Harco Glodok who declined to be identified said that when soldiers eventually did come to secure the area, they instead herded people into the center and then set it on fire.
"I saw it with my own eyes. They allowed people in to loot but then barricaded the entrances. They burned the place down," he said. "I also saw Army trucks driving away with the looted goods."
The shop owner said Harco Glodok was now mostly occupied by new owners. He added that his shop had escaped the looting because it did not have any fancy signs in the window. "Those with brands like Sony displayed in windows were the main targets," he said.
Setiawan said that when his neighbor tried calling the fire brigade, they asked: "How much can you pay us to get there?"
"It was hopeless; we were not the kind of people who were accustomed to violence," he said. "When I told my neighbors to get knives or anything else to defend themselves, nobody dared do it." Setiawan added that some of his neighbors paid a few million rupiah to soldiers to protect their houses after the riots. "But there was no way I was going to pay!" he said.
Trying to move on
Stall owners at Glodok Market had to wait three years before they could return to their businesses, when it was finally rebuilt by city-owned PD Pasar Jaya.
It did not come cheap either, with a Rp 10 million ($1,100) down payment required from stall owners, although Pasar Jaya did offer interest-free credit for six years.
Although many of the original sellers managed to jump-start their businesses again, most agreed that things were not the same as before.
"Glodok is dead," said Teddy, 70, the owner of a jewelry stall. "I don't believe the media when it says that the economy is doing fine, or it's getting better. I don't see it here. They must have forgotten about us."
Ang Kim Soe, 78, who sells batik with his wife and daughter, said he used to own eight stalls at the market before the riots. "I started my business in 1975. I even joined an insurance program from Panin Bank. Paid Rp 850,000 every year, but apparently they did not cover riots," he said.