Eleventh Global Studies Conference

Abstract

The idea of slum upgrading is complex. Governments emphasize slum upgrading as a pathway to equality for urban development by providing basic physical and social infrastructure to all citizens. However, the opposite has been found in the Indonesia National Slum Upgrading Project (NSUP). This project of Indonesia’s central government aims to provide access for citizens to optimally utilize the city’s resources and opportunities. However, with 0% slums in 2020 as the goal, forced evictions were found to be inevitable. Under the perspective of gender mainstreaming, women as part of the affected group are becoming victims of the policy. Women in Jakarta’s informal settlements work in or nearby their neighborhood. Some forms of employment undertaken includes informal activities and domestic work. This differs from men who mainly have formal employment, which will not necessarily be eliminated as they are relocated. Deep-rooted patriarchal values in informal settlements oppress the voice of women, excluding them from family decision making processes causing them to helplessly accept evictions. The project victimizes women workers by job elimination. This socio-legal research, with feminist legal and critical urban theory approaches, analyzes how laws should position women workers in urban development and ensure equality. Indonesia, as the first state to implement slum upgrading concepts, under the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) era, will set the standard for this project to be implemented by other states. Therefore, this research accentuates the urgency of sustainable implementation with gender justice perspectives.