The ‘Old
Town’ makeover
Imanuddin Razak ; Staff writer
at The Jakarta Post
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JAKARTA
POST, 16 Februari 2013
Who says that attractive or beautiful tourist spots,
along with the availability of comfort and safety, are the only reason for
tourists to come to a place? In fact, many tourists also look for artistic
and historical parts of the country or the city they intend to visit.
This is
apparently the reason behind the Jakarta administration’s decision to
beautify the oldest part of the capital city to attract more tourists — and
subsequently to increase the city’s revenue from tourism. So far, tourism
has contributed 16 percent to the city’s revenue a year for the past four
years.
The capital
city’s economic performance has been impressive. Jakarta’s gross domestic
product (PDRB) went increased by 6.5 percent in the last quarter of 2012,
beating the national growth rate of 6.2 percent in the same period.
The head of the
Jakarta Statistics Agency, Nyoto Widodo, has predicted that the city’s PDRB
would remain stable this year. A move to increase revenue from tourism is
apparently part of measures to ensure the stable economic performance of
the city.
As reported
earlier, the Jakarta administration is now working on a makeover to turn
the oldest part of the city, located on the western bank of the Ciliwung
River, into a Venice-like tourist spot. The project will commence at the
end of this month.
The area, known
as Kota Tua or Old Town, is part of a 15-hectare complex built by the Dutch
in 1620. It has now become an inexpensive tourist destination mainly for
Jakartans.
However, many
of its buildings are in need of renovation and the whole complex is untidy
with vendors and squatters occupying every corner. The administration is
now drafting a regulation that would effectively turn the area into a
favorable spot for tourists — both local and foreign.
There are currently
700 street vendors jostling around the area. However, Jakarta Deputy
Governor Basuki “Ahok” Tjahaja Purnama said recently that the refurbished
complex would be able to accommodate only 260. Those eligible to re-occupy
the area will be those who have been operating there for a long time and
hold Jakarta IDs.
The project
will effectively clear out vendors occupying Fatahillah Square, thereby
giving tourists unobstructed views of the classic buildings.
An outline for
the new complex has been prepared by the Jakarta Small Business and
Cooperation Agency, with agency chairwoman Ratna Ningsih describing the
breakdown. She said that vendors who sold cooked food would sit on the
sidewalk beside the Pos Indonesia building and next to the Bank Mandiri Museum,
while non-food vendors selling items such as clothes and accessories would
occupy the alley near Batavia Cafe and non-cooked food vendors would be
located near the river.
The city
administration has allocated Rp 12 billion (US$1.24 million) from the 2013
regional budget to restore the semi-slum once known as “The Queen of the
East”. Funds in excess of Rp 150 billion will pay for the renovation of
Kota Tua, including several historic buildings, in 2014.
All those
figures and facts show that the Jakarta administration is serious in its
plans to renovate and tidy up the Old Town area as a landmark of the
capital.
The problem
that might erupt in the process is the relocation of some 440 vendors who
cannot be accommodated in the new Old Town area. But Jakarta Governor Joko
“Jokowi” Widodo demonstrated that he can peacefully relocate street vendors
when he was mayor of Surakarta in Central Java. Resettling the vendors will
unlikely be a problem for him here in Jakarta.
The next
challenge is Old Town’s vulnerability to floods, as evinced by the most
recent disaster last month. For the first time since Dutch Indies governor
general Jan Pieterszoon Coen ordered the area built 370 years ago, Old
Batavia was inundated by floods as high as 80 centimeters.
Restoration of
the Old Town, which is situated close to the sea, should therefore be
incorporated in the city administration’s flood resistance plans. ●
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