Meet Reza Roovers, soon starting his 3rd year as Urban Studies student. How is he doing now?

Where are you now, and why?

I am now in Jakarta, Indonesia. I was told by my parents to return home just as the Indonesian government was about to close the borders, due to the corona virus.

 

How is it for you to follow the online classes from Jakarta?

Except for adjusting to the time difference, online classes weren’t that difficult for me to follow. My connection was pretty stable. However, some of my peers in the Netherlands had some difficulty in connecting to the online classrooms. This is comes to a surprise for someone like me who lives on the other side of the globe, in a country where Internet speeds are notoriously sluggish!

 

What do you see changing in Jakarta, from the perspective of studying Urban Studies?

There are two significant changes that I have observed in the city.

First, just like any megacity during the pandemic, pollution has dropped drastically. Before the city implemented a lockdown, huge traffic jams were pretty much a common sight. Not to mention the dangerous exposure to the toxic fumes that thousands of cars and factories emitted. Now that most offices and businesses are closed, you could say that the city is much healthier; the air is cleaner, the skies are clearer and urban nature is slowly reclaiming its place. This comes to show the potential the city could have invested in more sustainable technologies and practices that could have saved the huge medical costs of pollution-related health problems! Despite the enforcement large-scale social restrictions and the recent addition of tougher penalties, for whatever reason, cars are slowly making its way back on to the streets of Jakarta.

Second, crime rates are going up. This comes to no surprise as businesses were forced to close. With millions of Indonesians being laid-off without pay, this makes it very tough for people to feed their families while living in a marginalized economy. Some had no choice but to turn to crime. Theft and robbery are the two most common crimes committed. I know that they are unlawful, however, the motive behind it is understandable, with the reason largely being economical. You do need to sympathize with those who are struggling (financially) the most in times like these.

How do you think we can learn from this Corona Crisis?

An important lesson we can learn from the crisis is to not take our daily routines for granted. Yes, our schedules may have been repetitive. Some might even say that their lives were dull. Social interaction now is greatly limited. No matter how much you may have hated to go to class or work, it was certainly much better than working from home! We now see how such interaction is a life necessity, and we simply could not go about our lives without it.

 

Are you looking forward to coming back to The Hague?

Yes definitely!