_{Source: Pexels, modified}

Today I was accompanying Maxim The Saxophonist to busking on Wittgenstein Street. We performed a duet with several songs that were frequently played on Radio Rising Star. We played several Indus Rus songs (Hive account@indusrush), such as Nowhere To Run and The Telephone Song. Several passers-by seemed to like our show and gathered to watch.

There was a teenager who was watching us with enthusiasm. He crouched about two meters from where we played. He had thick black hair and brown skin. He watched us with curiosity.

After we finished playing a series of songs, we took a break. The audience dispersed. The teenager came over us. He introduced himself as Joko. "I'm from Jakarta, Indonesia. I like your game," he said.

He also worked as a busker in his city. But, he said, busking in his city was a forbidden job. The street singers in Jakarta were often chased by officials because they were considered to had violated regulations regarding the orderliness and beauty of the city. The image of buskers was also bad and was often seen as criminals.

According to Joko, the buskers were often accused of being the perpetrators of crimes. One of them was the case false arrest of Arga Putra Samosir and Fatahillah on 2013. The two buskers were 14 years old at that time.

Arga and Fatahillah came to under Cipulir bridge, where they used to sleep. They found their colleague, Dicky Maulana, 15 years old, covered in blood. They did not dare to approach and slept not far from him. The next day, it turned out that Dicky had died.

They reported this case to the police. The police instead detained them and forced them to admit to being Dicky's persecutors. Arga refused and the police were even tortured him. The court later found the buskers guilty and sentenced them to an average of three years in prison.

The Jakarta Legal Aid Institute accompanied the buskers and filed an appeal to Jakarta High Court, which still found them guilty. The Institute then filed an appeal to the Supreme Court. The Supreme Court judge ruled that the buskers were innocent and released them from prison.

"Singing is hard work," said Joko. "Forget about pursuing a career as a musician, it's hard to live alone."

Maxim and I were concerned about Joko's story. "Yes, not all countries are friendly to buskers. Many countries consider busking not a proper job," said Maxim.

I then invited Joko to meet the buskers on Wittgenstein Street. We cheered him up with a few beers and funky songs. Yes, there was no easy way of life, nor was there a way of becoming a musician.

_{Source: Kyle Loftus from Pexels}

---

Mimpi Menjadi Bintang (Bagian 9): Pengamen dari Timur

Hari ini aku menemani Maxim The Saxophonist mengamen di Wittgenstein Street. Kami berduet membawakan beberapa lagu yang sering diputar di Radio Rising Star. Kami memainkan beberapa lagu Indus Rus (Hive account@indusrush), seperti Nowhere To Run dan The Telephone Song. Beberapa pejalan kaki tampak menyukai pertunjukan kami dan berkumpul menonton.

Ada seorang remaja yang menonton kami dengan antusias. Di berjongkok sekitar dua meter dari tempat kami bermain. Rambutnya hitam lebat dan kulitnya cokelat. Dia mengamati kami dengan penuh rasa ingin tahu.

Setelah selesai memainkan serangkaian lagu, kami beristirahat. Penonton bubar. Remaja itu datang mendekati kami. Dia memperkenalkan diri sebagai Joko. "Saya dari Jakarta, Indonesia. Saya suka permainan kalian," katanya.

Ia bekerja sebagai pengamen juga di kotanya. Tapi, kata dia, mengamen di daerahnya adalah pekerjaan terlarang. Pengamen di Jakarta sering dikejar-kejar petugas ketertiban karena dianggap melanggar peraturan mengenai ketertiban dan keindahan kota. Citra pengamen juga buruk dan kerap dianggap sebagai penjahat.

Menurut Joko, pengamen sering dituduh sebagai pelaku kejahatan. Salah satunya adalah kasus salah tangkap terhadap Arga Putra Samosir dan Fatahillah pada 2013. Waktu itu, dua pengamen itu berusia 14 tahun saat itu.

Arga dan Fatahillah datang ke kolong jembatan Cipulir, tempat mereka biasa tidur. Mereka menemukan rekan mereka, Dicky Maulana, 15 tahun, berlumuran darah. Mereka tak berani mendekat dan tidur tidak jauh dari situ. Esoknya, ternyata Dicky meninggal.

Mereka lalu melaporkan kasus ini ke polisi. Polisi malah menahan mereka dan memaksa mereka mengaku sebagai penganiaya Dicky. Arga menolak dan polisi malah disiksa oleh polisi. Pengadilan kemudian menyatakan para pengamen bersalah dan dihukum rata-rata tiga tahun penjara.

Lembaga Bantuan Hukum Jakarta mendampingi para pengamen itu dan mengajukan banding ke Pengadilan Tinggi Jakarta, yang tetap menyatakan mereka bersalah. LBH Jakarta lalu mengajukan kasasi kepada Mahkamah Agung. Hakim Mahkamah Agung kemudian memutuskan bahwa para pengamen tak bersalah dan membebaskan mereka dari penjara.

"Mengamen adalah pekerjaan yang keras," kata Joko. "Jangankan untuk meniti karir sebagai musisi, untuk hidup saja susah."

Aku dan Maxim prihatin terhadap cerita Joko. "Ya, tidak semua negara bersahabat dengan pengamen. Banyak negara menganggap mengamen bukan pekerjaan yang pantas," kata Maxim.

Aku kemudian mengajak Joko bertemu para pengamen di Wittgenstein Street. Kami menghiburnya dengan beberapa gelas bir dan lagu-lagu funky. Ya, tak ada jalan hidup yang mudah, juga jalan menjadi musisi.

_{Source: Pexels}

---

I am a writer, blogger, and photographer. I hope you like my work. Please vote and reblog this post and follow Hive account@blogiwank if you support me.