The Ciliwung is by far the most famous of the bunch.
Jakarta rests on top of an aquifer known as the Jakarta Groundwater Basin. Unfortunately, the output is higher than the input, which means that the city is not only sinking, with north Jakarta going quicker than the rest, but that the water supply is being tapped out. In addition, there is serious saltwater intrusion into the aquifer from the Java Sea, and local industries continue to pollute all water sources at an unchecked rate. Luckily, there seems to be no shortage of Teh Botol, so no one will die of thirst—and as cheap as it is, theoretically one could bathe in it as well.
HISTORICALLY SPEAKING The history of Jakarta before the 16th century is patchy. Traders from India most likely brought Hinduism and then Buddhism to the area, and Chinese merchants headed through the Malacca Strait started visiting islands here on a regular basis in the 15th century. But it wasn’t until the Portuguese rocked up in 1513, the first European ships to do so, that historical records become detailed.
At that time, Jakarta was known as Sunda Kelapa and was the port town for the Hindu Kingdom of Pajajaran. As the Hindus wanted to temper the Islamic Sultanates of the region, they signed a deal with the Portuguese that allowed them a presence in the area. Before the Portuguese had a chance to establish a foothold though, Fatahillah of the Banten Sultanate destroyed Sunda Kelapa in 1527 and then founded Jayakarta—meaning ‘Victorious City’.
The Dutch came to shore in 1596, unknowingly changing the course of Indonesia’s history, in order to establish the VOC (Dutch Trading Company) and capitalize on the spice trade. At that time, there were only around 3,000 houses in the town, a far cry from residential counts of today. The British weren’t too far behind, though, as they began settling in around 1615. Until 1619, Jayakarta was ruled by the Sultan of Banten, but it was the Dutch Governor-General Jan Pieterszoon Coen who walloped the Sultan’s troops, destroyed the city and built one to his liking, with a castle called Batavia at the center. The name Batavia was chosen in remembrance of the Batavians, a tribe of people regarded as the ancestors of the Dutch people. The name stuck for the next 300 years.
In 1650, Chinese temples went up in Glodok and Ancol, and in 1710 the City Hall at Fatahillah Square went into service. Starting in 1730, the unfortunate inhabitants of Batavia were being ravaged by malaria so badly that there was a mass exodus southward for those looking for somewhere more livable. In 1750, the Dutch murdered 5,000 Chinese residents in a killing spree that followed a period of growing suspicion and unrest. This event, helped by horrendous sanitation issues, led to Batavia’s eventual downward spiral. In 1796, the British whooped up on the Dutch, and in 1799 the VOC was considered to be all but washed up.
By 1811, much of Kota had been dismantled or destroyed and new construction was replacing the damage. At the same time, Sir Stamford Raffles, the Lieutenant-Governor of Java from 1811to 1815, was pushing for an end to slavery across the country. The Dutch came back to power in 1816 and turned the Monas area into the center of business as well as the new hotspot for the rich and famous. Dutch rule lasted until the Japanese arrived in 1942 with swords drawn and a kamikaze spirit, thereby becoming the new overlords and ruling with an iron fist. The city’s name at this time, Jayakarta, was shortened to the current Jakarta.
An early Dutch map of Batavia, the name given to Jakarta by the Dutch in the 17th century.
The City Hall of Batavia, 1710–1913.
The Dutch, tenacious as always and loathe to give up both the city and country, made a power grab again after the Japanese surrendered the war in 1945. It was then, on August 17th, 1945 that Indonesia declared de-facto independence. Unfortunately, without the American assistance that almost came through, the Indonesian people had to continue to fight for the next four years until the Dutch, outnumbered and outfought, gave in and agreed to grant Indonesia its independence in 1949. The population of Jakarta at the time was less than 1 million and Kebayoran Baru was the newest Dutch-built neighborhood.
Founding President Sukarno had a grand vision of modernity for his newly freed city, and he set about to make it so by backing projects such as the Istiqlal Mosque, Monas and the Gelora Bung Karno Sports Stadium, all connected by Jl. Thamrin running through the middle of the city. With Sukarno’s fall from power in 1965, having been ousted in a coup led by Suharto, the job of running the city was left up to Lieutenant-General Ali Sadikin, who worked feverishly to develop and modernize the city, sometimes for the good, sometimes for the bad.
With the economic collapse of 1997, a year permanently etched in the minds of many Jakarta residents, all development came to a screeching halt when funding evaporated. In 1998, all hell broke loose in the city as tanks rolled through the streets to prevent looting and rioting, sparked by inflation, fuel price hikes and utter dissatisfaction with the 32-year rule of dictator Suharto. Armed forces killed four students at Trisakti University in west Jakarta during a political rally, and in the pandemonium that ensued over the following months, more than 6,000 buildings were torched, burgled or destroyed, and approximately 1,200 people died. Mobs targeted Chinese residents in Glodok, and the evidence of these times remains visible to this day.
The latest ills to affect the city were the bombings of the JW Marriot Hotel in 2003, the Australian Embassy in 2004, the Ritz Carlton and again the same JW Marriot Hotel in 2009 and substantial flooding in 2007.
But time heals all wounds and Jakarta, while falling one step back for every two steps forward, continues to forge ahead and to establish itself as a major player on the international market. The Indonesian economy was little affected by the economic crisis in 2008, and growth, development, modernization and waistlines have continued to grow at an exponential and seemingly unabated rate. Skyscrapers and high-rise apartment towers mark Jakarta’s skyline like blades of metallic grass, and suburban sprawl devours surrounding farmland and rice fields like an insatiable, wild-eyed beast. The rich line their Lamborghinis and Porsches in front of Pacific Place Mall to ensure they get noticed, and to have any less than two mobile phones is something to be ashamed of.
The incredible forward momentum of the city is simultaneously being tempered though by the city’s planners who seem to be on permanent holiday. With the local government continuously demonstrating that it is powerless to create change, the city’s future seems, at times, mildly frightening. All this being said, it’s the lawlessness that runs rampant in Jakarta that is half the city’s charm, and perhaps the chaos and disorder that so well define Jakarta should be something to be accepted as part of its very soul rather than seen as a disorder which must be cured.
Jakarta, for all the airs it may put on from time to time, is and always will be nothing less than a great big village.
Staying Active in Jakarta
SPORTS CENTER
One of the toughest things about living in Jakarta is trying to get some outdoor exercise, mainly because finding out when and where to go can be challenging. The central sports complex is located in Senayan and various sports are mentioned in the Senayan tour (see p. 136). Other sports are covered in this section of the guidebook, and while not exhaustive, it should provide a good start for keeping fit.
AUSSIE RULES RUGBY
Also known as footy, football or AFL, this is a game in which two teams of 18 players each try to score points by kicking a ball between vertical posts at each end of an oval-shaped field. Players move the ball by either kicking it, running with it or hitting it with a closed fist or open hand. The ball is never thrown. A ‘mark’ is taken by catching a kicked ball on the full, entitling the mark taker to a free kick. There are no offsides, with possession turned over if an attacker is tackled or held with the
