Jakarta – Dozens of residents staged a protest over state-owned railway company PT KAI's plan to evict residents from their houses in Manggarai, South Jakarta, on Sunday.The residents, mostly retired railway company workers, grouped under the State Land and House Occupants Community (KPRTN), object to the company's plan to evict them from the houses they have occupied for more than 30 years.
KPRTN spokesperson Puji Haryadi said the protestors repeatedly hit their kentongan (traditional drum) as a symbol of their objection. "By sounding the kentongan, we hope the officials at KAI listen to us," he said, as quoted by tribunnews.com.
Puji, a retired employee of PJKA, which was later renamed KAI, has been living in Manggarai since 1955. He said the residents also urged the railway company to prove its ownership of the land on which their houses sit.
"We want the company to prove they own the land, because as far as we know, KAI is a private company, not a state company," he said. "We have been living here for 30 years. According to the Criminal Code [KUHP], those who have been living on land for 30 years can claim ownership," he claimed.
Manggarai Station is set to become a major transit hub for railways, as it will connect to the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport railway.