Jakarta – Something is missing from the city streets during the fasting month of Ramadhan this year.
Seasonal beggars that usually flock to the city's intersections are rarely seen due to the efforts of the Jakarta Administration, which has vowed to net at least 1,000 of what the government called "people with social and community problems" (PMKS). The administration has said during the holy month this year.
Officers from the Social Agency and the Public Order Agency (Satpol PP) were seen guarding areas notorious for their high number of beggars, namely in Matraman, Pramuka, Cempaka Putih and Taman Mini Indonesia Indah (TMII) in East Jakarta; Kelapa Gading in North Jakarta; as well Fatmawati and Mampang Kuningan in South Jakarta.
A 2007 city bylaw on public order prohibits street beggars and street children, but their number was usually increasing during Ramadhan as some of them hailed from other towns to earn extra money. As the holy month is often defined as a month to fulfill God's merits, people race to do good deeds. It is during the month that people tend to give more to others and that wealth is often distributed by either money and or staple food to the poor.
Some beggars, however, are clever enough to dodge the law. By disguising as street sweepers in orange Sanitation Agency jumpsuits, for instance, the beggars swept the street and asked road travelers for donations. Agency head Eko Baruna denied that they were part of the agency, saying that the agency forbade such actions, arguing that they could be beggars and probably rented the clothes elsewhere, kompas.com reported on Thursday.
Some others simply avoid big intersections. Taxi driver Kodrat, 40, said although he was glad that the number of beggars during Ramadhan had significantly declined this year, as they often annoyed his customers, he said that seasonal beggars were still seen in quieter areas.
"Some [of the beggars] stand beside the windows and keep knocking until my passengers give them money," Kodrat said, adding that he rarely saw such beggars other than during Ramadhan.
He also said that he still spotted cart-dwellers here and there, especially near housing areas, away from the watchful eyes of officials conducting raids. They usually parked their carts by the roadside, waiting for people to either give them food or money.
Yanto, 40, is one of them. Along with other cart-dwellers Yanto, his wife and his two daughters lounged on cardboard spread over the sidewalk of a quiet neighborhood on Jl. Pulomas Raya, East Jakarta. His cart was parked next to him.
It is not that Yanto is homeless. After dark, he and his family go back to his house in Kayu Putih, East Jakarta, which he had rented since leaving Indramayu in 2004. The family has dressed up as cart-dwellers every Ramadhan since 2006 to earn more money.
"I can make more money by doing nothing but sitting here. I usually get Rp 10,000 [US$1.05] from scavenging, but I can get Rp 20,000 by simply staying here," he said. Moreover, people also give him food, especially when it is near the time to break the fast.
Joko, 42, a nearby resident said that the presence of the cart people was common every Ramadhan. "We don't like them here, sorry to say, as they are such an eyesore. But we don't have the heart to chase them away," he said.
Operating in housing complexes far from busier streets seems reassuring, but other beggars take more risk to operate on busy streets while not letting their guard down.
Even new beggars such as Susi, 27, know well how to avoid raids. For this Ramadhan, she has only just started cadging near a crossing bridge in Cililitan, East Jakarta. The Bekasi resident, however, said she had nothing to worry about. "I simply have to stay on guard. If fellow beggars are suddenly nowhere to be seen, there is probably a raid nearby and I have to quickly make my move." (aml)