Jakarta city, Indonesia, is an international centre and a top tourist destination. People from across the country flock here to enjoy food, drink, clubbing, shopping and entertainment uniquely Javanese. The bustling modern metropolitan city hosts some of the country's most famous bars as well as awesome nightclubs. Because of this, a few tight residents are concerned about noise pollution and noise control regulations in Jakarta City.
The Jakarta Governor's office regulates noisy bars within the city. According to city regulations, new bars cannot open in areas with other bars on the same street. Owners must provide a public address system inside each establishment. They must erect signs indicating when the doors open for business. As you know, the concept of noisy bars is not new. In fact, the phenomenon has been regulated by governments for a long time. That's why Indonesia's government enacted noise control regulations in the city and then justified it with a commitment to protect the citizens' health.
Through the Office of the City Mayor and the Regulation and Development Division, the Jakarta City Government has been regulating noise levels in bars, restaurants and entertainment venues since 2007 to protect residents from noise pollution caused by such activities. Jakarta City Regulation Number 44/BL/V-1/2011, nicknamed the "License to Live Act", regulates noisy bars within the city. For example, each bar must be located at least 50 meters from the other. A bar should be located higher than three floors above the ground level; there should be enough space to play musical instruments and revel.
Bar owners who want to operate in the city must obtain a license from the City Hall. They are then subject to regulations, including noise, ventilation and lighting requirements. We've noted Jakarta City has regulations to control the noise emitted by bars and clubs. Noise levels above 60 decibels between midnight and 6 am is illegal. Any activity that disturbs traffic, residents, and their privacy is also against the law. There are fines for wearing masks or headphones whilst drinking alcohol in a public place, disturbing people, breaching the peace, and disturbing morals.
There are penalties for upsetting customers who are enjoying something in the other entertainment area (e.g., watching sport on TV). Also, fines exist for abusing others- verbally or physically- with insults or gestures, doing anything illegal in a bar, or causing noise pollution with communication devices for excessively long periods.
Essentially, Jakarta's local laws require bars and restaurants to play soft music in their establishments. However, these rules are not strictly enforced. This is why the Jakarta City Government proposed regulations to control the noise. The laws are published on the city hall notice board. If a bar is located within walking distance of a school or mosque, the place must stop serving food at 11 pm. If you were to measure the noise levels at different times of the day and night around Jakarta seems likely the main noise would not come from bars and clubs...
Still however, the law prohibits loud music from playing from 10 pm to 5 am. Jakarta rules and regulations are enforced by city-based police as well as private security companies, who are sometimes on the lookout for intoxicated customers, loud music, and rowdy behaviour. The regulations aim to help people sleep in peace. Another intent of this legislation is to ensure establishments serving liquor and drinks have good air-conditioning facilities and adequate noise controls.
The regulations work under Jakarta city's public order law. Thus, any person who causes a public nuisance that disturbs the peace or causes a disturbance by noise (other than those authorized by this law) could be sentenced to six months imprisonment or fined no more than Rp 1 million ($ 100), or both. If violence is involved and it results in physical injury or death, the offender could be committed to one to five years of imprisonment or fined not less than Rp 5 million ($ 500). However, the fine should not exceed Rp 20 million ($ 2 500). Since the city authorities don't directly control the establishments, bar owners are encouraged to play it safe by ensuring their business is not noisy.
Further, other rules are imposed on the proprietors to control noise made by bars and pubs. For example, they have to install acoustic panels in the ceiling, allowing the noise from above to be absorbed by the floor area below. It results in consistent background sound levels throughout the bar area (which meets Indonesia's standards).
Technology makes places as quiet as possible. Further, bar owners need to keep their licensed premises registered at the Jakarta Municipal Licensing Office. The proprietors must present a local audit report whenever they wish to adapt or change their business license.