Millions of Indonesian Muslims to travel to their hometowns to celebrate Eid with kin

By Kazi Mahmood, IOL Southeast Asia Correspondent

KUALA LUMPUR, November 26 (IslamOnline) – No less than 20 million people will be on exodus, moving from major cities and towns back to their original villages to celebrate the “lebaran” or Eid-ul-Fitri that marks the end of the Muslim holy fasting month of Ramadan December 6.

In Jakarta, it is a traditional situation since this metropolitan city of more than 8 million residents will have to face a huge outward movement by several million people a week before the Eid.

The city administration is already promising a safe passage of the residents who want to “balik Kampung” which means “going back to village” in Malay, the widely spoken language in South East Asia.

The city administration said it is expecting an increase in the number of residents leaving the city this year, adding that preparations have been made to accommodate the some 1.97 million people expected to leave the city, which has a population of more than eight million. Last year, some 1.82 million residents went home for the holiday.

Jakarta’s population has dwindled since the “reformasi” and the impending economic situation in the country. Jakarta officials altogether enforced laws that reduced the number of residents in the city, which was around 11 million at one time, sources told IslamOnline.

Eid-ul-Fitri is expected to fall December 6-7. The fasting month of Ramadhan began November 6. A two-day holiday is granted for Eid though some political figures had urged for another day of holiday for the Eid due to the heavy influx of people moving around in the country during that time.

Besides Jakarta, other cities too are gearing for the movement of people to and through during the holidays, widely celebrated in the largely Muslim country with fiestas and visits to families all day long.

Holiday makers start their movement back to their hometown seven days before the Eid, causing massive jams in Jakarta and other cities affected by the movement.

Nationwide some 20 million people are expected to travel for the Eid-ul- Fitri holiday, a 9 percent increase from the 18.1 million people last year, Jakarta officials said.

“It will not be a good time being in Jakarta or anywhere in Indonesia for foreigners during Eid, transportation will be difficult though hotels might be almost empty,” a city official said.

The Ministry of Transportation has established the week before and the week after Eid-ul-Fitri periods where the influx and exodus will be at its height. The ministry will ensure that all modes of transportation will be carefully monitored to satisfy the crowd.

The Ministry is predicting that some 895,000 residents will get out of town by bus, with another 727,000 taking the train and others cars or vans.

Some residents, about 248,000, are expected to travel by plane and another 100,000 by boat.

Authorities are preparing additional bus terminals to cater for the exodus in 10 days time, with new buses and train schedules arranged in advance. Some 159 trains were ready to transport outbound passengers from the capital.

There may be 207 regular trains and 29 additional trains with a total of more than 1,000 cars to carry some 3.2 million passengers for the Eid.

As many as 6,562 buses have been prepared at the four main terminals in the capital and 13 smaller terminals.

A total of 47 trains with 174 cars are also available to transport migrants back to their home villages, after they reach certain destinations outside Jakarta.

More than 17 ships were ready, and seven more would be on hand to assist with sea transportation. The Navy has also prepared two ships and put three more on standby. As many as 127 passenger planes have been prepared to meet the rush going home, and if necessary, 10 cargo planes will also be on hand.

That shows the dimension the Eid festivals have in a country like Indonesia, which is an archipelago of more than 17,000 islands with a population of 212 million, 85-90 percent of which are Muslims.

A few more thousand Indonesians will also be leaving Singapore, Brunei and Malaysia back to their home towns with lots of goodies for their children and parents.

Transportation from these countries will get a sudden boost for the Eid period beginning a week before the Muslim festival itself. Ferry companies transporting the Indonesian workers and expatriates from these countries told IslamOnline they are fully booked for this season.

The bookings extend until the end of the year, with the Christmas and New Year coming two weeks after the Eid, many Singaporeans and Malaysian Chinese still hoping for a good time in Indonesia despite the security threats, a Ferry owner said.  

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