Equal Development Distribution, Migration Control

Peopled tended to look for places where they could build better lives. The phenomenon of domestic migration to eastern Indonesia, especially Jayapura, was due to economic motives.

KOMPAS/FABIO MARIA LOPES COSTA

Passengers disembark from the KM Sinabung ship owned by PT Pelni which arrived at the Port of Jayapura, Papua, Saturday (29/3/2023). The ship carried 1,350 passengers,

The KM Sinabung, owned by state-run PT Indonesian National Shipping (Pelni), slowly docked at the Port of Jayapura in Papua at 7:45 p.m. Eastern Indonesian Time on Saturday (29/4/2023). Thousands of passengers got off the ship.

That day, the first arus balik, or returning mudik (exodus) travelers, arrived at Jayapura Port. Data from Pelni Jayapura showed that the ship carried 1,350 passengers, including those from Surabaya, Makassar, Baubau, Banggai, Bitung, Ternate, Bacan and Sorong.

One passenger, Sadap (38), said that he had been working in Jayapura city as a barber for 15 years. “[Finding] Jobs in Java for me, with minimal capital, are very difficult. I chose Jayapura and have been earning an income until now," said the man from Madura, East Java.

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> Main Migration Destinations Still Have Many Problems

> Jakarta No Longer a Migration Destination

The head of the Jayapura Municipal Population and Civil Registry Office (Disdukcapil), Raymond Mandibondibo, said the migration of people from outside Papua had resulted in a significant increase in the city’s population. The majority of migrants worked in the service sector, such as at shopping centers, restaurants and other businesses. Small and medium enterprises in the service sector contributed 70 percent to the Jayapura administration's 2022 regional revenue (PAD) of Rp 294 billion.

Raymond said Jayapura’s population at the end of 2021 totaled 368,000 people, and that it reached 403,118 people at the end of 2022.

The capacity of big cities on Java Island to accommodate migrants is increasingly limited.

Sociology professor Avelinus Lefaan at Cenderawasih University, Jayapura, said that peopled tended to look for places where they could build better lives. He opined that the phenomenon of domestic migration to eastern Indonesia, especially Jayapura, was due to economic motives.

"The capacity of big cities on Java Island to accommodate migrants is increasingly limited. Meanwhile, the attractiveness of regions like Papua, with vast land and job opportunities, is growing," said Avelinus.

KOMPAS/MACHRADIN WAHYUDI RITONGA

A number of newcomers registered their personal data at the Non-Permanent Population Data Collection Post for the Bandung City Population and Civil Registration Office, Cicaheum Terminal, Bandung, West Java, Thursday (27/4/2023).

He hoped the local administration and legislative council would create regulations to protect local human resources so they could continue to find jobs. What's more, migrants in Papua were more skilled and had high motivation.

“The more migrants control the economic sector, the more social inequality will arise in the local population, leading to conflict. Unfortunately, the special autonomy rule has not had an impact in empowering indigenous Papuans," said Avelinus.

Meanwhile, in Bandung, West Java, newcomers are expected to be skilled. Data from the Bandung City Disdukcapil show that the city had 4,206 migrants until 2022. In the first three months of 2023, an 1,500 additional migrants arrived in the city.

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> Moving to the City for Better Life

Acting Bandung Mayor Ema Sumarna welcomed people from other regions to come and improve life in the city. However, they were expected to bring skills or to have jobs lined up so they had better direction in their lives. In order to control migration, people who did not have a Bandung municipal ID card were asked to register at the Bandung City Disdukcapil for collecting nonpermanent population data when they arrived at a bus terminal or train station.

"This data is collected so they can be registered as temporary residents in the city of Bandung. This makes it easier for them to access public services," said Bandung City Disdukcapil head Tatang Muhtar.

This data is collected so they can be registered as temporary residents in the city of Bandung.

In the capital city, Jakarta Disdukcapil head Budi Awaluddin said on Saturday (29/4) that his office predicted an additional 36,000-40,000 new migrant arrivals after Idul Fitri, up 20-30 percent compared to last year.

With a population of 11,317,271, an increase in the population has the potential to create new problems for the capital. Jakarta currently has a population density of 17,000 people per square kilometer, or 118 times the national population density.

Budi added that a population density that was not ideal certainly had the potential to increase poverty, stunting, unemployment, transportation issues, and crime.

ADRYAN YOGA PARAMADWYA

Hundreds of passengers at Pasar Senen Station, Jakarta, Sunday (30/4/2023). Some of them are new residents trying to try their luck in the capital city. As of now, major cities, such as Jakarta, Surabaya and Medan, are no longer the main destinations for migrants, rather the buffer zones around these cities.

According to sociologist Ari Ganjar Herdiansah from Padjadjaran University, everyone should be free to access a source of livelihood. "Indonesian citizens have the right to work [anywhere] in this country," he said.

When migrants had sufficient resources, their presence clearly contributed to regional development. Competition in the labor market fostered creativity and innovation, and also supported the economy. However, Ari said that if the new arrivals had no skills, migration would lead to an urban sprawl and result in cities full of social problems.

Even development

Semiarto Aji Purwanto, dean of the University of Indonesia (UI) Faculty of Social and Political Sciences, UI sociologist Imam B. Prasodjo and the Association of Indonesia Policy Analysts (AIPA) chairman Trubus Rahadiansyah are of the opinion that development must be evenly distributed to overcome concerns about inequality and various social problems resulting from uncontrolled migration.

Local administrations collecting data on migrants, according to the three experts, could help plan and outline development and empowerment programs in the source regions. Imam suggested that jobs be created in areas with the most pressing needs. This was one way to curb the rate of migration from smaller regions to cities.

Migrant source regions cannot be held responsible for self-empowerment to create jobs. For this reason, there must be collaboration between migrant destination cities like Jakarta, Semarang and Surabaya and the source regions to create development programs together in the source regions.

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> Questioning Urbanization

Migrant destination cities could adopt the concept of assisted villages for empowerment. The administrations of the migrant destinations could cooperate with businesses, entrepreneurs, universities, migrant source villages, and the central government. This collaboration needed to be supported with regulations on the use of the state and provincial budgets for empowerment across regions, agencies, and governments.

If this was done well, it could brush aside fears that local residents would be marginalized, such as in Jayapura, as well as alleviate fears that big cities would be flooded with migrants without capital or skills.

This article was translated by Kurnia Siswo.