The Jakarta Post, Jakarta
Dozens of squatters around Angke railway station in West Jakarta have started dismantling their plywood shelters as state railway company PT Kereta Api plans an area-wide eviction on Thursday.
On Tuesday squatters took apart four shelters, while two had been dismantled the previous day. All of around 100 huts in the area are expected to be dismantled by the owners within two days.
Narni, a squatter, said Tuesday it took her husband about four hours to take apart their plywood shelter, which was about 20 square meters.
"I have moved my valuables, like television, VCD player and mattress, to an empty warehouse nearby," said the mother of three children.
Narni, whose husband sells chicken in a nearby market, said she had not yet found an affordable new place for her family.
"I have seen a house not far from here but I don't have enough money to rent it," she said, adding that it cost Rp 3.5 million (US$372) per year.
Narni's neighbor Idris said he built his shelter, which also served as a food stall, in the area in 2005. He said that from the beginning the railway company had warned him of the possible eviction.
"People already understand that setting up huts here is illegal and we are ready to leave if the officials evict us at any time," he said.
He said he preferred to dismantle his shelter by himself because he did not want officers to bulldoze it along with his belongings such as television and clothes.
"Besides, I don't want to argue with the officers during the eviction," he said, adding he would dismantle his shelter tomorrow.
A railway company spokesman, Akhmad Sujadi, said his office planned to deploy around 500 officers to clear the structures around Angke station if the squatters had not dismantled them by Thursday.
"We plan to develop a new route carrying passengers from Manggarai in South Jakarta to Soekarno-Hatta airport, passing through Angke station," he said.
The company, which has recently opened new routes in an effort to ease chronic traffic congestion in the city, will start the construction in March.
He said his office told squatters in Angke about the eviction plan last month and had issued two warning letters dated Jan. 3 and 14.
"We will provide them with a free ride if they want to return to their hometown," he said.
The railway company plans to evict people from illegal shelters around 14 train stations across the city by the end of this year in efforts to meet safety standards that prohibit any construction within 5.5 meters of the railway.
Many people have established their shelters as close as 20 centimeters from the railways.
After it does away with the illegal shelters, the company will refurbish the train stations and build parking lots. (ewd)
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