City of skyscrapers and homeless people

The 10-year-old homeless boy trudges through the muddy roads of Kuala Lumpur. His stomach rumbling in hunger. He walks into a bustling coffee shop and asks for food.

The owner, a middle-aged woman, views him with suspicion at first but then asks if he would be willing to work for a meal. The boy agrees.

When he is not washing dishes, the boy explores the town streets, his favourite spot being the busy wooden post office along Jalan Panggung, off Jalan Sultan.

This was in 1969, six years after the Federation of Malaysia came into being.

Standing on the same road on the eve of Malaysia's 50th birthday, Jasni Johari, now 54, fixed his gaze on the abandoned post office.
 
The more than 100 year-old building is to be torn down to make way for the MRT project.

"I like this place, but now they're tearing it down for the MRT and down the road they're going to build a 118-floor tower," he said in reference to the upcoming Menara Warisan.
            
There is a sense of concern that in the haste for development, the country is forgetting its history and heritage.

Despite the feeling of nostalgia, the progress has seen better days for Jasni, who now has a roof over his head.

'Better life'

But while the nation struggles to preserve its past amid the onslaught of development, Jasni, who works in a soup kitchen just across the road from the abandoned post office, said he would not forget his past.

"I have a roof over my head now, but I still come here to interact with everyone else.

"I remember how tough it was for me last time where I had to ask for food here and there and even rummage through the dustbins," he said.

The soup kitchen, dubbed "Dapur Jalanan" is organised by Kelab Bangsar every Sunday along Jalan Panggung.

Though activists like Adam Adli, Mandeep Singh and Hishammuddin Rais would normally be associated with protests, it is this group of people who are putting on aprons for the project which started six months ago.

And yesterday, on top of food, they threw in a treat for the homeless, bringing in a band to sing for them in front of a banner that read: "Food is everyone's right".

While Jasni has moved on to a better life, Mohd Jaafazudin, 32, who also works in the soup kitchen, is still homeless.

"I sleep in Pudu with just a blanket and cardboards, but the police always conduct raids for urine test in the middle of the night.

"There is no problem about the urine test, but they take me to the Dang Wangi district police headquarters and release me at 4.30am. I have to walk back to Pudu in the dark," he said.
                        
Jaafazudin, who helps out at a food stall on weekdays in Masjid Jamek, said he is forced to live on the streets as he doesn't make enough.

On the 50th anniversary of Malaysia, he lamented about the growing inequality his generation faces.

'Out of sight'

But at the very least, he is grateful that in this generation, there are activists like the ones from Kelab Bangsar, who have taken it upon themselves to help the less fortunate.

Mandeep, one of the organisers, said the soup kitchen was to help the homeless who are often hidden from public view.

"Homeless people are like us too, they should be celebrated and appreciated.

"We don't want to get into their personal lives because it makes them feel uncomfortable, so we just serve food," he said.

Find out about Dapur Jalanan here.