Form Unions, Be Strong, Don’t Overdo

KOMPAS/TOTOK WIJAYANTO

Online ojek (motorcycle taxi) drivers await passengers outside Manggarai Station in Jakarta on Monday (2/3). Ride-hailing ojek have become a solution to deal with traffic jams and to reduce unemployment.

“I’m about to drive a customer to Depok. Please monitor.” “OK, we are on standby.”

M Irfan, 40, put away his cell phone immediately after this short exchange in the chat group of a messenger service application. The ojek (motorcycle taxi) driver from Kemayoran, Central Jakarta, then drove away on his motorcycle.

Even before he arrived at the destination, his phone rang a few times. Via online messaging, his fellow drivers in Depok, West Java, reached out to him to make sure he was safe.

Irfan said that this was the standard communication procedure among ride-hailing ojek drivers, as the drivers’ safety and protection was not provided by the ride-hailing company. Since 2015, criminals, especially muggers, have been increasingly targeting ojek drivers who operate around the clock.

Robbers attack drivers not only in deserted areas, but also in highly populated and busy areas. In the small hours of Oct. 29, 2016, Adi, 21, was assaulted by six individuals on motorbikes along Jl. Raya Otista in East Jakarta. After the robbers were unsuccessful in stealing Adi’s motorbike, they stabbed him in the chest (Kompas, 4/11/2017).

Ojek driver Ridwan Limbong, 43, died six months ago in Medan, North Sumatra, after he was stabbed by four robbers while driving a customer on Jl. Juanda at 4:30 a.m. (Kompas, 25/9/2017).

To prevent such attacks, ride-hailing ojek drivers have established informal communities. Nana Mulyana, 43, said the CX Community comprised ojek drivers who usually gathered in front of CX Water Park in Ciracas, East Jakarta. Its members help one another in their day-to-day activities.

The mushrooming and expansion of such informal communities has led to the creation of a national union. These include Gograber Indonesia, the Go-Jek Drivers’ Union (SDG), the Indonesian Online Driver Communication Forum (FKDOI), the Indonesian Online Transportation Service Drivers’ Association (PPTJDI) and the Indonesian Special Anti-Robbery Team (Tekab).

Power and aggression

Tekab secretary-general Fidin Prasetyo, 42, said that the communities had increased the ojek drivers’ bargaining position in facing their companies and the government. Their voices are now heard, even by the President. They felt that they had become a mass force that could persuade others.

Ride-hailing customer Devy, 27, said that she deplored the situation. In Sarinah, Central Jakarta, ride-hailing ojek drivers often parked their motorbikes on the roadside, causing traffic jams. The authorities seemed to ignore the violation.

Kusuma Indra, 39, said that he often used ride-hailing ojek or car services to travel between Salemba and Tanah Abang Station in Central Jakarta. “I once gave three [out of five] stars to a driver, who ended up harassing me. He texted me and threatened to share my name and phone number to his friends so that they would all reject my orders,” he said.

When Kusuma said that he would report the driver to the police, the threats started coming from multiple numbers. Kusuma no longer uses ride-hailing services.

Gadjah Mada University anthropologist Paschalis Maria Laksono said that ride-hailing ojek drivers gathered in communities in a show of power. They worked with, and became part of, a power structure backed by huge financial capital, but they had no influence within the structure. “There is an extraordinary sense of powerlessness in the face of such a huge structure,” said Laksono.

Jakarta State University sociologist Asep Suryana said that the existence of ride-hailing drivers’ communities highlighted their desire to foster internal solidarity. Apart from their positive impacts, their potential for negative impacts must also be anticipated. “Once they use certain approaches, they will engender a collective logic that has its own way of justifying things,” he said.

Asep added that only the ride-hailing companies could control such behavior. Therefore, the government must be able to impose strict rules on those companies and implement strict transportation regulations without exception.

(DD01/DEA/NEL)