TEMPO.CO, Jakarta - An operation launched on Wednesday, October 11, to close illegal stalls along Jalan Raya Puncak in Cianjur, West Java, resulted in a clash as vendors protested the operation.
“We are definitely disappointed and refused because the government unilaterally closed [the stalls] without considering how would we make money four or family,” Dedi Fais, one of the vendors, said on Wednesday.
The vendors blocked the road by burning the remaining debris left from the closure, resulting in a long traffic jam.
However, the protest did not last for long as officials got rid of the blockage and suggested the vendors to negotiate their terms.
According to Dedi, the Cianjur administration should have come up with a solution, such as relocations.
Uus Hendra, a local resident, was surprised that the Cianjur Public Order Agency (Satpol PP) executed the closure on the day of the third warning letter was issued.
“We don’t know where to go if the stall that we use to make money for almost eight years is closed,” he said.
Cianjur administration spokesperson Pratama Nugraha said the vendors in Jalan Raya Puncak had violated the regulations by setting up illegal stalls. Therefore, Pratama said that the stalls had to be demolished to prevent road and water drainage damages. The execution, he revealed, was instructed by the Public Works and Public Housing Ministry.
ANTARA
