Local Perspective the Tourism Communication of Night Market

Community in Jakarta: Case Study - Night Market Puri Walk and

Cni on Puri Molek Street, West Jakarta

Yumeldasari

, Halomoan Harahap

, Ummanah

and Hiru Muhammad

Faculty of Communication, Esa Unggul University, Jalan Arjuna Utara No. 9 Kebon Jeruk, Jakarta Barat 11510

Keywords: Night Market, Tourism Communication

Abstract: Tourism can improve the surrounding economy and social environment. However,in fact, the community in

the night market is a society with an economic level and low purchasing power. For this reason, researchers

are interested in studying the local perspective of night market community tourism communication in

Jakarta. This study uses a case study method, by collecting data through interviews and observations in

twonight market locations, namely at Puri Walk market, and CNI night market, in West Jakarta.The results

showed that the local community around the night market, which was dominated by Betawi ethnic, realized

that the night market has the potential as a tourist destination. With this awareness, if previously Betawi

ethnic groups who felt as indigenous people had difficulty accepting other groups of people into their

territory, with the night market they could work together to create a conducive atmosphere so that night

market operations could be orderly and safe. This research is expected to encourage the government to

organize the night market, and enter the night market in tourism promotion programs.

1 INTRODUCTION

Night market or in the Indonesian language is

referred to as “Pasar Malam”, can be found in

various countries including in Indonesia. In

Indonesia, especially in DKI Jakarta Province, the

night market is one of the centers of entertainment

and shopping for the people, especially those with

middle to lower-income economies. The lower

purchasing power of some people in the City,

making the existence of modern shopping centers

like malls not easy to reach. Thus, the existence of

the night market is welcomed by the public,

especially the middle to lower economic class as an

affordable means of shopping and family

entertainment center.

In some countries such as Thailand, Taiwan, and

Hong Kong the night market is not just a place of

entertainment and shopping for local people, but is

also used by the government as a local and foreign

tourist destination. This is certainly economically

and socially beneficial for the country and the local

community where the night market is located.

However, this is not the case in Indonesia,

especially in the city of Jakarta as the capital of the

country. The night market in various regions in

Indonesia such as Jakarta is still limited to being

used as a shopping center and entertainment place

for people around the night market. Those who visit

the night market are still limited to the lower

economic class. Whereas the upper economic

community prefers to visit modern shopping centers

such as malls or supermalls which are considered to

be far more prestigious and classy than shopping at

the night market. Likewise with expatriates or

foreign tourists visiting Indonesia, until now the

night market has not become their tourist

destination, as happened in several other countries.

The community identifies the night market as a

buying and selling the place that operates since the

afternoon, which is around 4:00 p.m. to 5:00 p.m. in

the morning. The night market operating time which

starts in the afternoon and ends until the morning,

and occupies an open space in an area makes the

social and economic life around the night market

environment continue to live for 24 hours. As said

by Ngesan and Karim. (2012) that the sustainability

of nightlife in an area can be seen from four

Yumeldasari, ., Harahap, H., Ummanah, . and Muhammad, H.

Local Perspective the Tourism Communication of Night Market Community in Jakarta: Case Study - Night Market Puri Walk and Cni on Puri Molek Street, West Jakarta.

DOI: 10.5220/0009950927012705

In Proceedings of the 1st International Conference on Recent Innovations (ICRI 2018), pages 2701-2705

ISBN: 978-989-758-458-9

2701

interconnected aspects, namely social behavior,

night environment, nighttime activities, and out-of-

town spaces.

The night market which was the object of this

research were two night markets that settled on two

empty plots of land, Jalan Puri Molek, RT 002, RW

002, Kelurahan Kembangan Selatan, Kecamatan

Kembangan, West Jakarta, known to the

surrounding community as the Puri Walk market and

CNI. Both night markets are managed by

individuals, involving merchant communities, local

residents, and community organization groups

(organizations).

The reason researchers chose two night markets

in Kembangan Subdistrict because both night

markets are located very close to the West Jakarta

Mayor's office, which is around 50 meters away, as

well as a large shopping center. The location of the

two night markets is an office area, and about 10

meters from both night markets are apartments

inhabited by the upper economic community and

expatriates.

As in other countries, the night market in Jakarta

also sells various fashion products, household

appliances, and food and beverages. Also, the night

market in Jakarta provides various entertainment

facilities for children and adults. Lee et al., (2008)

stated that most of the night markets offer

entertainment, buying and selling transactions that

can be done by bargaining, and performing local

customs. Also, the night market also sells a variety

of traditional products, such as clothing, fruit, snacks

and new items.

Traders who sell at night markets in Indonesia

are community street vendors and a small toy or

entertainment businessmen. The chosen location is

usually a public road, public spaces such as Green

Open Space (RTH) or parks, vacant land belonging

to local governments, other institutions such as open

land owned by the Indonesian National Army and

private and private property. The absence of

government interference in the arrangement of the

night market, making the existence of the night

market has a negative impact on the environment,

such as being a source of road congestion, slums and

chaotic environment, crime-prone, and others.

As said by Feng and Wu (2016), that the

existence of the night market has a positive impact

in addition to the negative impact on the social

environment. Among the positive impacts is a

change in the lifestyle of the urban community,

quality time for the family, improving the quality of

the urban community, and the night market can be

used as a means of socialization. While the negative

impacts usually arise due to lack of security and

comfort in the environment around the night market,

the emergence of social problems, as well as the

threat of negative cultural influences from tourists to

local communities.

The magnitude of the tourism potential in the

night market for improving the economy of the

surrounding community as well as the country's

foreign exchange income is unfortunately not

utilized in Indonesia. Even the local government

seems to ignore the existence of the night market by

not interfering in the arrangement and management

of the night market, so that the night market,

especially in Jakarta, has not been favored by local

or foreign tourists. As a result, the existence of the

night market has not been able to improve the

economic and social conditions of the local

communities where the night market operates. This

condition encourages researchers to research to

assess the local conditions of the tourism

communication perspective of the Night Market

community in Jakarta.

2 LITERATURE REVIEW

Huang et al.(2009); Kuo et al. (2012); Aziz and

Yeng (2011); Sin (1987); Liu (2012); Tsai (2013);

and Gindi et al. (2016) define the night market as a

trading place that takes place at night, where small

businesses offer a variety of products and foods that

are cooked at lower prices. Whereas Lee et al.

(2008); Ishak et al. (2012) define the night market as

a street market that operates at night, especially in

urban or suburban areas which generally tend to

have more free time, shopping, and eating areas.

A study of the night market in Taiwan found that

the main factor that attracted local Taiwanese people

to the night market was because of the low price of

their goods, and their convenient location. (Lee et

al., 2008; Ishak et al., 2012). Ishak et al., (2012)

wrote that the night market offers a variety of food

and non-food items, and usually night market

operations take place one or two times a week,

depending on how popular the night market is in the

area. Traders will sell fruits, vegetables, fish, meat,

poultry, dairy products, toys, accessories, clothing,

or exotic plants of local forests and foods that will

be typical only for certain areas where they sell.

The existence of a night market in Malaysia as

written by Salleh et al., (2012), received support

from the government. The government recognizes

the presence of street vendors in the night market as

one of the most important economic activities in

ICRI 2018 - International Conference Recent Innovation

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Malaysia. The night market is seen as a proven

sector that can provide retail services to the

consumer community, and supply goods and

customer services. Night market trading activities

contribute to Micro, Small and Medium Enterprises

(MSMEs), which have economic value. The role

played by the night market traders is huge for

economic progress.

Ishak et al., (2012) refer to the night market as a

street market, because the existence of the night

market is most commonly found along major roads,

and other popular locations, such as playgrounds,

parking lots and residential areas. The motive that

drives people to visit the night market is similar to

the concept of shopping value that reflects the

hedonic and utilitarian benefits of shopping

experience (Babin et al., 1994; Michon and Chebat,

2004; Machleit et al., 2005; Feng and Wu, 2016).

Watson (2006) shows how markets become

magical and coincidental meeting places occurring in

public spaces, such as the connection of sociality that

can be damaging if the area where the market is

locatedis ignored by local authorities and other

people involved in production and management in

the public space which is critical. In other words,

Watson tried to reveal that in places tend to be

forgotten, lack of leadership or service, and ignored

by key players from both the government and the

private sector to empower the market tends not to

develop.

Speaking of tourism communication, of course,

we also have to discuss the understanding of tourism

in general. Pendit (1990) writes, Robert Melntosh

with Shasikant Gupta revealed that tourism is a

combination of symptoms and relationships arising

from the interaction of tourists, businesses, local

governments and local communities in the process

of attracting and serving these tourists and other

visitors. While Yoeti (1982) explained that tourism

is a journey from one place to another with the aim

of sightseeing and recreation to fulfilldiverse desires,

not business trips or making a living.

Tourism Communication is a combination of

tourism science studies and communication science

studies. According to Bungin (2015).

Communication contributes to persuasion

communication theories, mass communication

theory, interpersonal communication and group

theory. While tourism contributes marketing studies,

tourism destinations, accessibility to destinations

and human resources, as well as tourism institutions.

Paramita (2015) writes that tourism

communication is part of communication science

that focuses on individuals in a group or community

related to tourism-related problems. The focus in

tourism communication is a special process on

issues related to tourism and factors that influence

transactions. The process takes place both verbally

and non-verbally, verbally or in writing, personal or

impersonal. So it can be said that tourism

communication is the application of concepts and

theories of communication in the process that occurs

between individuals or groups.

3 RESEARCH METHOD

This study uses descriptive qualitative case study

methodology. Case studies are suitable strategies for

answering a research question related to how or

why. Case studies are divided into three types,

namely explanatory, exploratory, and descriptive.

The components of this research design include

research questions, propositions, units of analysis,

logically related to data with propositions if any, and

criteria for interpreting findings. The subject of this

research is the night market. The object of research

in this study is the community involved in the

management of the night market, namely managers,

traders, and community groups who help manage

parking facilities at both the night market, and night

market visitors.

Data collection techniques in this study using

primary and secondary data. Primary data is the

result of observations of researchers at the location

of the two-night markets, and the results of

interviews with research objects. While the

secondary data in this study is a literature review and

relevant online data in this study. Data analysis

techniques performed in this study, namely

determining the unit of analysis studied, namely the

CNI Night Market and the Puri Walk night market,

both located in West Jakarta, Indonesia, which then

collected data with interview and observation

techniques, and designed the findings and discuss

with relevant theories. The study was conducted for

three months, from December 2017 to March 2018.

4 RESULTS AND DISCUSSION

The one-stop shopping concept offered by the night

market as it is also available in modern shopping

centers such as malls is the main attraction of the

night market as a family tourism destination. In the

night market the needs of each member can be

fulfilled, for example, mothers shop, children enjoy

Local Perspective the Tourism Communication of Night Market Community in Jakarta: Case Study - Night Market Puri Walk and Cni on

Puri Molek Street, West Jakarta

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entertainment and games at the night market, and

fathers enjoy coffee or food while waiting and

keeping their children playing. The advantage of the

night market is certainly the price of various types of

food or non-food products, and various types of

games offered at prices are much cheaper than those

offered by modern shopping centers such as malls.

The difference is, in shopping malls mothers shop

inside buildings or shops that are equipped with air

conditioners, clean and comfortable, if at the night

market the goods sold are offered with a sidewalk

concept, usually equipped with simple tents. Also,

the night market stands on open land, so if it rains,

visitors/buyers must immediately find shelter.

Whereas food offered at malls is available in cafes,

restaurants and food courts, so at night markets food

is sold by traders using carts, such as meatballs,

ketoprak, fried rice, somay, fried foods, bottled

drinks, and others, as well as traders selling food in

the stall plots rented from the night market manager.

Based on observations, on weekdays, namely

Monday - Thursday the number of visitors in both

night markets is not as crowded as on Friday-Sunday

nights. On Mondays-Thursdays, visitors to both night

markets are mostly office employees around Jalan

Puri Molek, very few visitors to the family or visitors

who bring their children. This can be seen from the

loneliness of the children who play in the children's

playground, and that can be evidenced by the

turnover received by the managers of children's

games.

Observations at both night markets showed that

on Saturdays-Sundays until 9:00 p.m., there were still

many children playing in the children's playgrounds

at Puri Walk and CNI markets. Even they are willing

to stand in line to wait for their turn to play because

the number of playing facilities in both markets is

insufficient for the number of children who come and

want to play. The parents also patiently wait for their

children to play until they are satisfied, there are even

some children who continue to whine at their parents

so that they can be allowed to return to play or climb

the game that they have gone.

Based on interviews conducted, the relationship

between the merchant coordinator and the traders

and supporters occurred because of the Patron-Client

factor. In this case, the merchant coordinator acts as

a patron and the traders and groups of mass

organizations who help manage the parking at the

night market are clients.

Tourism in an area can only live if there is

openness from the local community to the migrants

who enter the area. From the results of interviews

and observations carried out, community groups

calling themselves Karang Taruna, consisting of a

collection of young people from the local or

indigenous population in the area dominated by

Betawi ethnic groups said that since the two night

markets stood in their territory, and they benefit

economically from the operation of the night market,

namely the income from the parking lot they manage,

making them able to accept the presence of other

community groups coming from outside their

territory.

This group of people who came from outside

their area helped to manage parking lots in both

night markets. Uniquely in some public places in

Jakarta, there are often disputes from these

community groups, which are caused by the struggle

for parking management. However, this did not

happen in both night markets. These community

groups can work together to divide their territory in

managing parking lots.

The attitude of openness of ethnic Betawi people

as indigenous people is also inseparable from their

awareness that the presence of migrants including

night market visitors provides economic benefits for

indigenous people. In addition to getting a job from

maintaining parking lots, this Betawi ethnic youth

group can also join in trading in stall with rental

prices cheaper than traders from outside the area.

The attitude of cooperation between these

different groups of community organizations in

managing parking lots in both night markets cannot

be separated from the role of the merchant

coordinator who in this case is their patron. This

merchant coordinator mediates groups of community

organizations so that they can share the land

managing the parking of vehicles around the night

market.

The actors or communities in both night markets

are very hopeful of the role of the government in the

effort of structuring the night market location to be

more comfortable and orderly so that the number of

the main visitors of the family becomes more than

now.

The night market concept that researchers have

visited in the countries of Thailand and Hong Kong

is not much different from the concept of the night

market in Indonesia. The difference between the

night markets in both countries is that they are

relatively more organized and provide ample

parking so that buses carrying foreign tourists can

enter the area.

According to researchers, the night market in

Indonesia also has great potential to be promoted to

foreign tourists, especially because the night market

in Indonesia also sells products both food and non-

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food that have local characteristics, which are not in

the markets night abroad.

To make the night market in Indonesia,

especially in Jakarta, the government should take a

role as a form of support for the management of the

night market, as the Malaysian government in the

study of Salleh et al., (2012) as explained earlier.

5 CONCLUSIONS

From the findings in the field and discussion, the

researchers concluded that communities consisting of

indigenous people who are predominantly Betawi

ethnic could accept the existence of the night market,

and have felt the economic benefits of operating the

night market in their territory. So if initially as a

group of people who felt they owned and controlled

the area, they were very close to the presence of

migrant groups, since the night market was they

could now cooperate with migrant groups in

managing parking lots in both night markets. This

shows that the perspective of the local community on

the presence of migrants including night market

managers, night market visitors and other community

groups, has changed since the night market.

This condition will certainly make it easier for

the government to invite communities in the night

market to organize and organize the night market so

that it can be promoted as a tourist destination for

domestic and foreign tourists. By making the night

market a tourist destination, it will certainly provide

many economic and social benefits for the local

community.

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Local Perspective the Tourism Communication of Night Market Community in Jakarta: Case Study - Night Market Puri Walk and Cni on

Puri Molek Street, West Jakarta

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