ISKANDAR was at the wheel of his angkot (city public transportation), a Daihatsu Espass minibus, on Monday last week looking for passengers on Jalan Jamin Ginting in the densely populated part of the city of Medan in North Sumatra. He did not mind the heat as the sun slowly rose to high noon. All he was concerned with was how to earn enough fare to meet the days setoran (rental) payment to the owner of the vehicle.

Suddenly, like a scene from a Ho