Jakarta, Aug 2 (Antara) - After the post-fasting Idul Fitri or Lebaran
festivities in Indonesia seasonal migration of people from small towns
or villages to urban areas or big cities has become an annual event.
Civil servants, private company employees, traders and other urban
dwellers of different professions traditionally celebrate the Lebaran
festivities in their hometowns.
But when they return to their urban environment after the festivities,
some bring back family members, relatives or friends who are willing to
try their hand in the cities.
After the Idul Fitri festivities last year, the National Family
Planning and Population Board (BKKBN) estimated that about one million
people would migrate to cities across the country, or about 5.5 percent
of the 18.1 million home-bound Idul Fitri holiday-makers.
This year, in the current Idul Fitri season, the Ministry of
Transportation has predicted that the number of home-bound travelers
will reach about 24 million.
Supposing urbanization accounts
for 5.5 percent of the 24 million holidaymakers, big cities in Indonesia
will have to receive some 1.3 million people migrating from villages or
non-urban regions to cities.
Jakarta, the Indonesian capital, is alone expected to receive some
300,000 migrants after this year's seasonal Lebaran festivities.
The flow of villagers to urban areas will increase after the Lebaran holidays, BKKBN has predicted.
"Urbanization will most likely be increasing. It is predicted that
about 300,000 will come to Jakarta after Lebaran," Head of the BKKBN
Fasli Jalal said on Thursday.
It was difficult to stop urbanization as long as factors that caused it
were not overcome. Disparities in living standards between villagers
and urban dwellers were clearly noticeable, Fasli Jalal said.
As Agung Laksono, chief people's welfare minister, once said that
villagers will not move to the city if the economy in their village
improves and life there becomes more convenient and affordable.
Development
and basic facilities like health, education, entertainment and work
opportunities are more varied in cities than in villages or other
non-urban regions, according to Fasli Jalal.
This is one of the factors that boost the high level of urbanization from villages to big cities.
"People are attracted to a place because of the concentration of facilities there," the BKKBN chief said.
To reduce the high rate of urbanization, infrastructure and various
other facilities in villages should be developed and improved.
"The key point is equitable development," Fasli added.
Advancement of the economy of one region is a normal matter. In this
point of view, there is no need to ban people from migrating to a region
where they think good for their life, a regional legislative assembly
(DPRD) in West Java said.
"Urbanization is a natural process, and no one should ban people from
migrating," West Java legislator Yod Mintaraga said in Bandung,
provincial capital of West Java, on Friday.
Yod Mintaraga reminded the regional government of West Java that it
should let its citizens migrate if they want to after the Lebaran
festivities.
"An advanced region should face the risk of becoming a target of urbanization by newcomers," remarked Yod.
He disagreed with any government regulation banning or restricting the
arrival of citizens in a city to try their luck there. All citizens in
the country have the right to live in any region without any regulations
hampering their stay, according to Yod.
"Our country is a unitary state so no one has the right to ban anyone else from living anywhere," he added.
However,
villagers who are willing to migrate for greener pastures to big cities
should first prepare themselves before leaving their hometowns, so as
to not create problems for themselves and for the local governments, Yod
suggested.
"They have to prepare themselves with skills and other requirements. It
should not happen that they only create problems for themselves," Yod
stated.
Urbanization often increases after the Lebaran festivities because
urban workers or people of different professions who had been successful
in big cities often take their friends, family members or relatives
when they get back from hometowns to work in urban regions.
Cities that often become the target of urbanization are those in Java,
particularly Jakarta as the country's capital. They come from different
provinces outside Java, such as provinces in Sumatra.
In the current Idul Fitri exodus, therefore, the ferry ports of Merak
in Banten and Bakauheni in Lampung that link Java with Sumatra are key
points for people who want to cross the Sunda Strait and migrate to Java
or vice versa.
The state-owned Inland Waterway Transportation Service (PT ASDP) has
predicted that the flow of returning travelers from Sumatra to Java will
increase because it will include people migrating to the cities.
About 20 percent of travelers in the Idul Fitri returning from Sumatra
to Java are people who want to migrate and try their luck in Java after
the Lebaran festivities, PT ASDP for Bakauheni predicted.
"Those moving to the cities for work are predicted to account for 20
percent of the Idul Fitri travelers, or about 80 thousand to 100
thousand people," Heru Purwanto, the PT ASDP manager for Bakauheni
office said, Friday.
The 20 percent increase was based on the number of 631 thousand Idul
Fitri travelers going home through Bakauheni Port while the number of
those returning was estimated at around 700 thousand, he said.
Based
on the experience during the Idul Fitri transportation service at the
port in 2013, the number of those migrating accounted for 14 percent.
During Lebaran last year, home-bound travelers through the port totaled
564 thousand while those returning were recorded at 644 thousand. This
meant that some 80 thousand travelers belonged to the urbanization flow.
"The 20 percent prediction this year is based on last year's 14 percent
increase plus another 5 percent estimated increase in view of the
national population growth," Heru Purwanto explained.
Urbanization during the Idul Fitri season is an annual event in
Indonesia because many travelers going home bring their relatives or
friends when they return to work in big cities such as Jakarta and its
satellites towns, he said. ***3***
(T.A014/INE)
EDITED BY INE
(H-YH)
(T.A014/A/BESSR/A/Yosep) 02-08-2014 18:53 |
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