I was
born in the middle of Central Jakarta at RSIA YPK and raised in the
surrounding area. By birth, I was a big city kid. By choice, I am a small
town woman.
A good friend who is a scholar at Deakin University in Melbourne,
Australia, said a similar thing recently that she, too, is actually a small
town woman.
She said, “Maybe you and I are the village kind of souls. We function best
in serenity and calmness, and we value life over money and earthly
possession. We are the odd ones out, according to the people of Jakarta.”
Jakarta is hectic, chaotic and never sleeps. Above all, living there is
expensive despite the low quality of life. A high quality of life in a city
comes with clean air, green with lush trees and public parks, minimal
noise, closed sewage system, drinkable water, appreciation for beauty and
art, sidewalks accessible to people with disabilities, clear roads with no
visible pot holes nor large open holes, good waste management, clean roads,
no visible trash and minimal people loitering on sidewalks, parking lots or
in front of houses idling doing nothing.
Above all, a good quality of city life comes with strong laws in public
places, including strong penalties for graffiti, littering and loitering.
Singapore and Tokyo are good examples. In Singapore, carrying durian “the
stinky fruit” at closed public places, like inside the MRTs, is forbidden.
How conscientious. Such a simple law teaches people to respect others, for
not everyone can stand the aroma.
And if people think Jakarta is too big a city to manage, such ignorance
shall eventually give birth to more chaos and more social problems. The
recent floods in January are a proof of bad city management resulting in
deaths and economic casualties. Those deaths could have been prevented and
I’m deeply saddened by the incidents.
I recall when an Indonesian journalist interviewed me at home in Northern
California. She said, “Your neighborhood is so clean, tidy and no one
sitting around in front of the houses. It must be an upscale neighborhood.”
I answered, “No, it’s a middle-class community. Not million-dollar houses.
No one is sitting around on the sidewalks because everyone is busy working,
studying and entertaining themselves indoors, except whenever they are at
the parks.”
While some Indonesian readers might get offended when I compare with the
USA, I mean well. Think with an open mind: What makes Jakarta dirty, noisy
and overcrowded, other than population explosion? A simple comparison with
Kuala Lumpur, for example, reveals that Jakarta wins in terms of trashing
places. KLIA and Rapid KL trains, for instance, are clean and international
tourists happily ride them to go places. It is rare to find international
tourists on public transportation in Jakarta.
Don’t we want our guests to feel comfortable and safe? After all, we don’t
and can’t live alone. Jakarta is a part of Indonesia and Indonesia is a
part of the global constellation. A clean, clear and safe capital city is a
reflection of the country’s overall well-being, if it is a valid
indication.
Observing how people lining up, or “queuing”, in Jakarta is also
interesting. You’d need to stand so close to the person in front of you or
someone would get in between and claim his or her spot. Even in the ladies
restroom, waiting in line requires more than just standing, it requires
standing up for the right to enter or someone would barge into the booth
despite it is your turn.
Loving a place requires ownership and it translates to not trashing it with
junk, excessive noises and respecting each other with courtesy.
My friend in Melbourne further added, “The fact that food and accommodation
are already double the price than those in Kuala Lumpur shows that it has
become a very expensive place to live. The more money one has, the more
quality of life one can get. The love for money is a norm, not an
exception there. Life and relationships become scarcity. In Robert
Cialdini’s book Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion, social proof,
reciprocity and scarcity are three of the six powers of influence. It is no
surprise that people who live there put money as number one, above
relationships and love for people.”
Living in a big city doesn’t need to be rude, dirty, insensitive and
despiteful. Inner high quality of life must be preserved and maintained,
for it is key to creating a high quality external life. ●
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