Publicness of streets in informal settlements: The case of Indonesian kampung

The boundary between public and private space is often blurred and contentious. It is not only defined by spatial boundaries and physical features of the space, but also by invisible social systems and collective values practiced and perceived by particular societies. Therefore, the publicness of a space depends on how societies define and perceive the space at specific moments and places, which is shaped by social practices and norms that are constantly transforming the nature, manifestation, and meanings of public space. While it is commonly argued that streets are the most pervasive public space in the city, the publicness of streets is constantly contested and negotiated, and power dynamics played out among various actors determine the degree of publicness of streets. Drawing upon this argument, this paper seeks to examine the publicness of streets in the context of informal settlements, where complex social and political relations exist. By looking at streets in Indonesian kampung in Yogyakarta, it would like to argue that despite being shared and used for public interests, the publicness of streets in kampung is largely relied on the tolerance and consensus among actors, and landowners have a greater power and control over the publicness of the streets. Consequently, the role of streets as public space is vulnerable to conflict and very much rely on social and power relations among residents