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75 | Golden Riverbank 2
PAPADOPOULOS continued, since the chaos in Slatyville, the plan to evict Key Phu Thich was never realized. It's just that life was getting more difficult because the status of residents who live on the outskirts of the Golden River was not recognized as residents of Surabaya.
To work in offices, they were rejected because they didn't have identity cards. Even being a beggar, they were arrested by City Guard personnel. Even if they intended to do business, they didn't have the capital. Most of the residents worked as scavengers, including Papadopoulos and Aretha.
"We really felt the discrimination. We only eat one meal a day,” said Papadopoulos, staring at Amelia.
"Then there's this little boy," said Papadopoulos, still staring at Amelia. "Periodically, he came to visit this slum area with a basket full of groceries."
Amelia seemed so fixated on Papadopoulos's story that she didn't even blink. I could feel the sadness turning into warmth from Amelia.
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In the Name of the Sacred Tree 76 | Golden Riverbank 3
Throughout the trip, Amelia couldn't stop smiling. It was as if she had just discovered something extraordinary. In fact, her white teeth were showing because she couldn't help it. But I didn't know what Amelia was really thinking.Meanwhile, I was still processing new information from Papadopoulos and Aretha earlier. They said that Key Phu Thich was actually going to be evicted by the Surabaya City Government for a long time, but it has not been realized. In contrast to Guysville, which had been evicted by the Newton Regency Government. On the other hand, Saltyville was likely to have the same fate.I suspected it was because in Key Phu Thich there was no sinful activity going on over it, such as drug trafficking and drinking, gambling, and prostitution."Why are you so gloomy?" asked Amelia."Oh, I'm all right," I replied. "I just thought why the Surabaya City Government insisted on evicting Saltyville but not Key Phu Thich."Amelia just nodded a
In the Name of the Sacred Tree 77 | The Phone Call
I was grateful Amelia didn't ask any further questions about me. I thought she already understands why it is difficult for me to find a lover. Now, in my room, my mind returned to Saltyville.Vincent Limantoro has made it clear that he is on the side of the villagers. Meanwhile, he was supported by Malique with his Saltyouth. Before this, Aisha said, from Zidan's confession, her younger brother was kidnapped and held by the group with a coastal accent.Malique and his Saltyouth group come from Saltyville where was located on the north coast of Surabaya City. As I recalled, Sisters Ursula and Zoey said that the Saltyouth non-governmental organization was often asked by certain parties for dirty work such as collecting debts.But I felt weird about it. The problem was, if it is true that Malique and his friends were involved, it would be detrimental to them. Hendryx the Boumerank was the owner of the Saltycraft and Resources trading business. It helped to keeps Sa
In the Name of the Sacred Tree 79 | The Phone Call 2
JULIA came home with her face down. I did not know what makes her that way. On my happy day, she should be cheerful too. Earlier, Julia congratulated me and claimed to be joyful. But I did not see and feel it that way.Light drizzle finally got heavier. I only saw Julia's back until she disappeared behind the door of her house. While I was still standing under the cherry tree. My feelings were mixed between happiness and sadness. I sensed that Julia had something to hide from me on purpose.I then returned home to notify my friends. The first one I used to call when I was happy is Julia. But, she already knew firsthand from me beforehand. So, I thought I would connect with Big K, Cole, and Santos. They had the right to know in advance."Hello," said Big K, "What's up, Bro!""Hey," I replied, "do you have time? I have something to say.""Yes, I'm at Inferno. Don't tell me you want to quit Ryg's and join Boumerank?” called Big K and laughed.
In the Name of the Sacred Tree 79 | The Phone all 3
Still, in the room, I left the last two special people to contact. Both of them had two different personality backgrounds. One was religious, and the other was mysterious. Yes, they were Aisha and Kacey. I was wondering who to contact first.Alright, I would contact Aisha first. You see, I had a promise with her to help her find information about Zidan's kidnapping and imprisonment. Said Aisha, the kidnappers had an accent on the north coast of the Surabaya.Before this, I met Malique, Darmann, and Jack at the announcement of Vincent Limantoro's advance as a candidate for mayor of Surabaya from the Indonesian People's Democracy Party. The three of them were people from Saltyville who have a distinctive north coast accent.Especially Malique. He was the leader of the non-governmental organization Saltyouth. According to Ursula and Zoey, Saltyouth used to work to collect debts and incite the public to join in demonstrations. Because of that, I thought Malique was
In the Name of the Sacred Tree 80 | The New Member
TODAY was a special day. I would be introduced as a replacement for Hendryx Boumerank at the Grand Wahid Hotel - where he was arrested for alleged drug involvement. The venue for new members of the Boumerank introduction was in the same ballroom as the anti-drug seminar held by the Indonesian National Narcotics Agency some time ago.I still remember that day. At that time, I first met Zoey, who was participating in the government's anti-eviction demonstration. And now, I was with Brother Quinn and Brother Eric - hotel manager - once again.From behind the ballroom curtain stage backdrop, I could see many reporters and invited guests who attended. Some of which I could recognize. Flashes of camera light were visible from where I was standing. It looked like the reporters were taking pictures of a beautiful female master of ceremonies."Are you ready?" asked Brother Quinn."Ready is my middle name," I said and laughed."Confidence is a good thing for
In the Name of the Sacred Tree 81 | Private Interview
AFTER the introductory ceremony was over, Boumerank - including me, of course - and Quinn returned backstage. They laughed incessantly at the answer, "Hell yeah, I'm a rockstar, and I can do anything.""That's a really great answer," said Ray."I did not think you would say something like that in front of the media," added Ivan."I'm sure it will be in the headlines tomorrow," Frank said.They then laughed again while I just smiled.At the same time, I saw Quinn talking to a reporter. I recognized him from the East Java Regional Police Headquarters. A young man with dreadlocks. They seemed to be talking, seriously.Quinn then came to me. He said there was a journalist who asked permission to interview me privately. Quinn added that the journalist was from Indonesia Herald."Are you willing to be interviewed privately?" Quinn asked me."He's from Indonesia Herald, isn't he," I said, "it's the media company owned by Alex Limantor
In the Name of the Sacred Tree 82 | The Rehearsal
I was with Quinn in a car that took us to the Boumerank Homebase on Pourapenh Street, northern Surabaya City. I was still hearing what Ethan said about the oligarchy. Was Surabaya really controlled by certain people or groups? That obviously bothered me a lot.This was because the people and groups who were in power in Surabaya are Abdul Rasheed and his family. Jamaal Al Rasheed was a mayor, while his wife was a chairman of parliament. Before Jamaal, Fatima was the mayor of Surabaya. Fatima was Abdul Rasheed's wife and Jamaal's mother.Alex Limantoro said that the Surabaya City Government was trying to change the status of the Saltyville community land to state land. That way, foreign investors invited by the Mayor of Jamaal could build elite housing complexes and beachfront hotel resorts.It was just that their plan did not go smoothly. The problem was, the residents of Saltyville village strongly rejected the eviction. They were determined to survive on their
In the Name of the Sacred Tree 83 | The Rehearsal 2
AFTER finished training, Quinn came back to us. He informed that the agenda for the concert tour at Rock in Rio, Brazil, was still going according to schedule, namely on weekends. Quinn said that previously Boumerank would cancel their concert at Rock in Rio.However, because they quickly found a replacement for Hendryx, Quinn immediately contacted the committee for the biggest concert in South America if Boumerank was still present. Quinn said the Rock in Rio committee was happy to hear that."So, your first concert with Boumerank was at Rock in Rio," Quinn told me. "We ready to leave the day after tomorrow.""Good. I'm getting nervous just hearing that," I replied."Isn't that a cool thing," said Ray, "a new member playing at a big concert.""Yes," added Ivan, "that will be a great introduction."“Che,” added Frank, “Boumerank's New Bass Player Introduced at Rock in Rio. That's the sound of the mass media headlines."
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