Life without "Citizen" Status

KOMPAS/SATRIO PANGARSO WISANGGENI

IItuh Sitorus, 51, and Ani, 27, a homeless married couple living under an overpass in Kampung Melayu, East Jakarta, speak to Kompas reporters on Friday (14/2/2020)

The noisy vehicles and windblown dust under the Kampung Melayu overpass in East Jakarta before dawn on Friday did not reduce the closeness of Ituh Sitorus, 51, and Ani, 27. Life goes on for them.

Under the dim light of street lamps, a homeless husband and wife eat a plate of fried rice and a bowl of chicken noodles. Despite having to live under the overpass with cardboard as the carpet, Ituh and Ani were grateful to have lived together for three years.

This togetherness might not have happened if in 2017 they did not get married in an Indonesian Bethel Church in Kalimalang, Bekasi, West Java. "At that time it was difficult to register a marriage because we didn\'t have an ID card. So everything was taken care of by the church," said Ituh.

However, the marriage received state recognition.

The couple from Medan, North Sumatra, do not know how the marriage finally took place without an identity card. However, the marriage received state recognition. "We have marriage books," he said.

The lack of an ID also causes various problems for Ucok, 44. The man from Medan has been living around Kampung Melayu and Tebet, South Jakarta, for almost 27 years. During this time, he has not been able to access public services. "I migrated to Jakarta before I had an ID card, and I have never had one," he said.

Public health services are the most difficult thing for Ucok to access because, without an ID card, he cannot have a Healthy Indonesia Card, a special card for citizens to obtain free health services. Life on the road makes him vulnerable to illness and has forced him to seek treatment at a private clinic.

"There is a 24-hour clinic on Otista Street. The clinic staffer does not care about the patient\'s identity. I just need to say I live under the overpass; they already understand. The important thing is to pay Rp 20,000 to Rp 50,000 and get the medicine," Ucok said.

KOMPAS/SATRIO PANGARSO WISANGGENI

Ucok, 44, who comes from Medan, North Sumatra, lives under an overpass in Kampung Melayu, East Jakarta. He spoke to Kompas reporters on Friday (14/2/2020).

Political rights

A number of residents who were not recorded in the state population data run the risk of being unable to exercise their political rights. Bambang Pundiharto, 60, for example, has twice been unable to vote in elections.

For the past 10 years, the man from Surabaya, East Java, has been living under the Cikini overpass in Menteng, Central Jakarta. His ID card has been lost somewhere

since he no longer lives in a permanent house after a quarrel with his wife. "If I could only have an ID card and be registered as a voter, I would love to vote during the election," he said.

According to him, his vote could help elect the leaders who would determine the country\'s fate going forward.

Some of the homeless residents of Jakarta have tried to register themselves. Paringgotan Gultom, 51, a man who lives under the Kampung Melayu overpass, said that he had repeatedly tried to register for an electronic ID card at the nearest village office.

However, the complicated process and the unclear schedule for the ID card issuance frustrated him. He abandoned his plans.

Not enumerated

In addition to not being recorded in the population data, Ituh, Ani, Ucok and Paringgotan said they had never participated in the census.

The number is less than 1 percent of the total population, including homeless people.

Statistics Indonesia (BPS) demographic statistics head Nashrul Wajdi acknowledged that some residents had not been recorded in the 2010 Census. The number is less than 1 percent of the total population, including homeless people.

That number is still acceptable by international standards, which state that the number of undocumented residents should be below 5 percent of the total population. Various attempts were made to optimize the enumeration. The 2020 Population Census, for example, is being carried out by combining online registration and house-to-house counting methods.

Nashrul explained that the purpose of the census was to refine the population data, which was currently based on the e-ID. "If there are residents who are not recorded in the census, it means that their population data has not been updated. Moreover, if the person concerned does not record e-ID data, his or her rights as citizens will not be fulfilled," he said.

Accurate and high-quality data is important for formulating policies, planning and implementing development.

Indonesia Institute of Sciences (LIPI) Population Research Center researcher Sari Seftiani said that, as much as possible, enumeration should reach the entire community so that population data is more accurate. Accurate and high-quality data is important for formulating policies, planning and implementing development.

Ituh and Ani hope that this year\'s population census will reach them. The couple intends to have children in the future. They do not want the administrative obstacles that have affected their marriage to also affect their children.