One of the side effects of the economic boom in Indonesia in the 1990's was an internal, mass migration of people from the countryside to the cities. The migrants were lured by visions of more money and a better life, but many of them failed to realize their dreams, and the rural poor became the urban poor. For the least adept or the least lucky, a consequence of this dynamic was homelessness. Among the homeless were children, living in groups in almost feral conditions on the sidewalks, under bridges, in railways stations. After their families came to Jakarta, the children were compelled to fend for themselves because they wasn't enough to go around at home, or they had problems at school or they were abused.

In 1998, following the overthrow of Suharto, I began to document conditions of poverty in Indonesia. My investigation eventually brought me to a train station in Jakarta, Mangga Besar, or the big mango.



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