The Money Talks

Now that I drive a motorbike, my Indonesian friends decided that I desperately needed a drivers' license, called a "SIM" (Surat Izin Mengemudi = Driving Permission Letter). Apparently, policemen in Indonesia like to stop drivers for no reason but to check and see if they have a SIM. From an unofficial poll with a very small sample size (asking folks at our office) the majority of people who drive motorbikes in Pontianak have not bothered to get a SIM despite the fact that the permit costs less than $10, and is good for five years. For example, my friend Yadi has been driving for 7 years with no license, and thus refuses to drive past policemen - he takes roundabout routes that avoid police hangouts all-together.

Given that I stand out - even with a helmet on and the visor down and long sleeves - my friends suggested it was simply a matter of time before I was stopped by a policeman and asked for documentation. Plus, my motorbikes skills aren't stellar yet, so there could be reasons to stop me other than my extraordinary tallness and whiteness. So on Friday morning I headed to the police station to try and secure a SIM.

Just as in the US, a new driver must take both a written and practical test to qualify for the motorbike driving permit. But unlike the US, in Indonesia if a person does not want to take the test, a bribe is usually enough to get the license. The written test worried me since I can't read formal Indonesian, and there were bound to be words (e.g., pedestrian) on the test that are not in my vocabulary. The practical test didn't seem so bad until I watched a couple of Indonesians at the police station try - and fail. The driving test consists of navigating the motorbike in a very small figure-8 without using your feet to help the bike around. Given these two relatively steep barriers to getting my license (but really, I'm qualified to drive!) I decided to try bribery. My friend Neli, a sweet-looking young woman who is wily and always gets what she wants, accompanied me to the police station. Upon arrival, the policemen joked around with us for about 10 minutes before sending us through the inevitable bureaucracy.

The most disturbing part of the whole process - besides the fact that you don't actually have to take a test to get a SIM - was that although they checked my blood pressure, no one tested my eyesight! On the whole, Indonesian eyesight seems to be better than American eyesight. This fact is perhaps connected to the lack of book-reading that goes on here, but I'm open to suggestions explaining this phenomenon. However, some Indonesians probably have bad eyesight, don't wear glasses or contacts, and also drive motorbikes, which is a bit disturbing.

After about a half hour of filling out forms and making photocopies, I was finally ready to meet the boss and offer my bribe. The boss chatted me up for about ten minutes, including endless questions about Obama. Then he ushered in three other policemen, they took my photo, printed my SIM, and that was it! We paid $15 to the boss' assistant in the room next door, and shook hands with everyone before heading home. For once, I am glad that Indonesia is still dominated by corruption - money talks here.

Eat Until Stupid

Or, in Indonesian, "makan sampai bodoh." That was the theme of the reunion dinner with my field team (and a few extra friends) last night. We all met at a restaurant called "Italian Restaurant" in the old part of Pontianak. In this case, "italian food" must be taken very loosley to mean "shabu-shabu" (see Wikipedia on this subject). After everyone, except over-Americanized and on-time me, arrived about 45 minutes late, we loaded our plates and stuffed ourselves with self-cooked vegetatbles, shrimp, random pieces of meat, mushrooms, and rice. For the field teams, this was a reward - they have been in Ketapang for almost three weeks, mapping landholdings in some of our study villages, and they returned to Pontianak on Friday for rest and data entry. We have two new team members, and have (sadly) lost a couple of my longtime teammates to other pursuits. Windi is pregnant, and due to have a little girl next week. Tono got a job with the Department of Forestry, and will start work in April. Even in Indonesia, where the constant weather makes life feel unchanging, life shifts unexpectedly!

Blog Revived!

Here I am in Singapore, waiting for my 6 pm flight to Jakarta and then off to West Kalimantan a 6-month field campaign. I'll do my best to post regularly! Please poke me if I forget.