Forced evictions start with the 'f' word

Jakarta may be almost half a millennium old, but when it comes to fire it is nothing more than a child whose fascination with burning stuff started at an early age.

But in a city where more than 300 fires break out every year, there are many reasons for playing with fire.

The most sinister of these is that Fire has become Jakarta's simplest method of urban renewal.
During the recent holidays, fire destroyed a number of houses in Central Jakarta, The three blackened outer walls of one of the houses -- all that was left behind -- provide a stark contrast to the imposing trade center standing behind them.

"We have been offered compensation for leaving the area several times, but are yet to come to an agreement," said Hardi Fuckwit, a resident of the isolated block of houses that had "spoiled the view" of Jakarta City Center.

The project's management, however, has denied any relation between the ongoing construction and the fire.

Revisiting a fire-ravaged market in South Jakarta's Melawai compound gives a pretty good idea of what lies ahead for these displaced individuals.

The fire, which occurred in late August 2005, claimed the life of a firefighter and razed several old blocks of Melawai market.

Surrounded by the makeshift stalls of traders from the old market, the site is on its way to becoming a hotel, new apartments and a shopping centre.

In January 2003, 111 kiosks in Senen Market in Central Jakarta were destroyed by fire. The Senen area is currently being redeveloped.

In February 2003, fire razed 2,200 kiosks in Southeast Asia's largest textile market, Tanah Abang in Central Jakarta. Two years later, a 14-story air-conditioned modern market stands on the site.

Forensic investigation of fires like those in Tanah Abang and Melawai generally state the cause and origin as a short circuit, or "unknown".

Occurring mostly in densely populated or slum neighborhoods, where the presence of short circuit faults in electrical cables or cords is a latent fire hazard, or in old marketplaces where fire safety systems are substandard, such a conclusion might be justified.

The Jakarta Fire Department data, where the cause of the fire has been investigated suggest that almost 70 percent of fires are caused by short circuits.

"We often run into problems investigating fires. The evidence may be incomplete because the building owners have already been in there, salvaging their belongings," stated a spokesman.
Of the 300 fires that are reported each year on average, less than half are investigated, while the cause of the others remains a mystery.

"Fire is indeed an easy way to wipe out an area without being caught as the evidence literally goes up in smoke," he added while manhandling containers of kerosene into the back of his pick-up truck.

Low-cost apartments in the city, for example, are almost always built on sites were squatter settlements were previously burned down.

As a final suggestion, the political fires are regarded as cases of arson! Despite being common knowledge, as long as there is no independent investigation of the cases, they will never be proven arson.