Photo from Rujak Center for Urban Studies
Kampungs – dense, organic settlements that house millions of Indonesia’s urban poor – have long been stigmatised as in official and cultural discourses, making them easy targets for eviction in the name of “development”. Yet, these communities represent spaces of anticipation and incremental growth, where residents continuously adapt and improve their living conditions despite systematic marginalisation.
In this episode of Talking Indonesia, Clara Siagian and Tito Ambyo speak with Dian Tri Irawaty, Program Director at Rujak Center for Urban Studies, about the ongoing struggle for housing rights in Jakarta’s kampung communities.
The conversation explores Rujak’s innovative approaches to urban advocacy, including translating complex spatial planning regulations into accessible tools for residents, forging political contracts with candidates to secure policy commitments, and fostering transdisciplinary collaboration between architects, lawyers, planners, and kampung communities themselves. Dian discusses the concepts of invited political spaces and newly “invented spaces”, and how marginalised groups create their own political opportunities when formal channels exclude them. Dian also reflects on some small but significant victories, from securing land certificates to improving basic infrastructure.
The interview also reveals stark inequalities: kampung residents paying five times more for water than middle-class Jakartans, being excluded from government housing programs due to unclear land status, and facing increased climate vulnerability without adequate support.
In 2025, the Talking Indonesia podcast is co-hosted by Tito Ambyo from RMIT, Dr Elisabeth Kramer from the University of New South Wales, Dr. Jacqui Baker from Murdoch University, Dr Jemma Purdey from the Australia-Indonesia Centre, and Dr Clara Siagian from the University of College London.
https://www.antaranews.com/berita/1390682/mahfud-sebut-anies-baswedan-sudah-ajukan-soal-karantina-dki-jakarta 
