Jakarta hides foul river with giant net before Asian Games

[Vanhelsing]

Authorities install mesh net to hide sight and smell of Sentiong River from athletes. Photograph: The Asahi Shimbun via Getty Images

I recall once in India at the time of the commonwealth games in 2010 the Indian government built three metre high walls along both sides of some roads that would be used heavily by participants and visitors to hide the squalor of certain areas.Not much you can do about the smell, though.

By Kate Lamb
Thurs 26th July 2018

The administration installed a 600 by 20 metre black mesh net earlier in July to minimise the putrid stench and unsightly view.

“Its function is to elevate the beauty [of the river] so that the black water cannot be directly seen by international athletes,” the official, Supriyono, told Kompas.

The cost of the river beautification plan is just over 580m rupiah (£30,000), Jakarta’s deputy governor, Sandiaga Uno, told reporters at city hall on Tuesday.

The move has been criticised and ridiculed, with some saying the city government was more interested in covering up the river than in trying to clean it.

full https://www.theguardian.com/cities/...-foul-river-with-giant-net-before-asian-games

• 
  
• 
  

 

[waarmstrong]

Its the Asian Games, for crying out loud. A stinky, polluted river is not going to be shockingly unusual for most of the participants.

 

[Davita]

Not only did the Jakarta Municipality spend on this boondoggle it had holes.....J/P...

"Parts of the recently installed black nylon net covering the Sentiong River in Central Jakarta were already riddled with holes following the city administration’s efforts to further decorate the river — nicknamed Kali Item (Black River) due to its heavily polluted water — with strings of colorful lamps on Tuesday."

 

[vocalneal]

In Bangkok they built giant hoardings along the river to "hide" old warehouses and slums. Same,same but different.

 

[Anglian]

Well I hate to be a meany, but is anyone really that interested in the Asian games for the hassle it is causing, we have this horrendously expensive net cover over jakarta dirty rivers, the money I feel would be better spent actually cleaning it up, as Warmie has pointed out the participants probably come from bigger shit holes, so are quite used to see polluted rivers, then we have the ludicrous system of odds and evens for cars, the games haven’t started yet and I don’t really see all these cars going to the games, more like going to work, the pointless thing they have come up with is shut the schools down during the games are on, whose brain wave is this, I have yet to meet any one so far who is remotely interested, I wonder if there are some more daft ideas in the pipe line

 

[waarmstrong]

Shit Holes, you say. Now, now, polluted rivers, do not a shit hole make. Besides that, the characterization reminds me of our semi-literate President's language.

 

[snpark]

The holes come from discarded fag-ends and lets not start on the grass pavements that everyone has to walk across to get the bus
Plus the schools being closed "study at home for 2 weeks kids"

Why not dye the river green and say its St Patricks Day?

 

[Anglian]

Shit Holes, you say. Now, now, polluted rivers, do not a shit hole make. Besides that, the characterization reminds me of our semi-literate President's language.

Have you had a good look at some of the jakarta rivers, basically in some places open sewers, including your President I know a shite when I see one

 

[Vanhelsing]

How are they going to keep the top of the net clean of debris? Another net, I guess.

 

[snpark]

Thats what the holes are for, so it falls through into the river

But it stops the smell, right?
And you cant see the black water because its a black net, so it still looks like a black river anyway

Why not use a blue or green net?

The stupidity is endless

 

[centurion]

Blue or green net would get uglier when dirty, black will not.

 

[Anglian]

I have to laugh at the people throwing their cigarette ends into it, it’s going to look a right mess and the games haven’t even started

 

[harryopal1]

It seems whenever big international events are held it is the poorest sectors of society who seem to get the rough end of the stick. Those clinging to life in makeshift accommodation anywhere near games venues have their shelters demolished and they are pushed out. Street vendors have their stocks snatched and stalls smashed. Yes, I understand the need to free up sidewalks but worldwide the tendency is to bulldoze the poor aside without any serious effort to allow them a better alternative or a means to find other means of employment. I wonder how many of those whose minimal reserves have been taken will resort to crime in the absence of some other way of surviving.

Traffic management to ensure easy passage between venues for competitors and spectators seem to result in huge inconvenience for the majority of ordinary citizens.

Yes, the international events are often fabulous for amazing new, breathtaking architecture but those involved in the development are usually well heeled entrepreneurs.

With the never ending exposure of drug cheats, racist slurs and arrogance seen more often it seems than sporting decency it is hard to get enthusiastic about so many sports. And what with fighting spectators and the recent unholy basketball brawl between Australia and the Philippines the notion that sport is a wonderful way of bringing nations together seems questionable.

Perhaps the stench from foul canals is kind of emblematic of the games.

(P.S. I earned the right to be cranky the moment I turned 70 some summers ago.)

 

[waarmstrong]

Have you had a good look at some of the jakarta rivers, basically in some places open sewers, including your President I know a shite when I see one

Trump misspoke and you missed my point. That being that a polluted river does not make Indonesia, or any other nation, for that matter, a "shit hole" country.

 

[Minuteman]

Been here since 1974...get over it!!!

 

[Davita]

I recall the bus-ride to our hotel after landing in Jakarta in the mid 1970's. One crew member asked "What's that smell?" Another smart-ass remarked "That's shit!"... to which the reply was " I know that..... but what have they done to it!"...

 

[Puspawarna]

How are they going to keep the top of the net clean of debris? Another net, I guess.

It's nets all the way up!

 

[Anglian]

If they had used army camouflage nets they could pretend it’s row of bushes

 

[Vanhelsing]

There's probably some local fishermen considering a trip to the city.

 

[jstar]

Compared to a bit of smell which is already in the news for weeks, I would be more concerned about this:

Those are pics I took myself a couple of days ago btw. And they keep on insisting that the LRT will be operational before 18 August.
.