Jakarta City Profiles

Jakarta formerly known as Batavia and officially the Special Capital Territory of Jakarta), is the capital and largest city of Indonesia. Located on the northwest coast of Java, it has an area of 661 square kilometres (255 sq mi) and a 2010 census count population of 9,580,000. Jakarta is the country's economic, cultural and political centre. It is the most populous city in Indonesia and in Southeast Asia, and is the tenth-largest city in the world. The urban area, Jabodetabek, is the second largest in the world. Jakarta is listed as a global city in the 2008 Globalization and World Cities Study Group and Network (GaWC) research.

Established in the fourth century, the city became an important trading port for the Kingdom of Sunda. It was the de facto capital of the Dutch East Indies and continued being the capital city of Indonesia, after its independence in 1945.

The city is the seat of the ASEAN Secretariat. Jakarta is served by the Soekarno-Hatta International Airport, Halim Perdanakusuma International Airport, and Tanjung Priok Harbour; it is connected by several intercity and commuter railways, and served by several bus lines running on reserved busways.

Etymology

The site which nowadays is referred to as Jakarta, has been home to multiple settlements along with their respective names: Sunda Kelapa (397–1527), Jayakarta (1527–1619), Batavia (1619–1942), and Djakarta (1942–1972).

Its current name is derived from the word "Jayakarta". The origins of this word lie in the Old Javanese language. "Jayakarta" translates as "victorious deed", "complete act", or "complete victory".

Jakarta is nicknamed Big Durian, because the city is seen as the Indonesian equivalent of New York City (the Big Apple)

Administration

Kota or kotamadya (cities) and regency of Jakarta

Officially, Jakarta is not a city, but a province with special status as the capital of Indonesia. It has a governor (instead of a mayor), and is divided into several sub-regions with their own administrative systems. As a province, the official name of Jakarta is Daerah Khusus Ibukota Jakarta ("Special Capital City District of Jakarta"), which in Indonesian is abbreviated to DKI Jakarta.

Jakarta is divided into five kota or kotamadya ("cities" – formerly municipalities), each headed by a mayor – and one regency (kabupaten) headed by a regent. In August 2007, Jakarta held its first ever election to choose a governor, whereas previously the city's governors were appointed by the local house of representatives. The poll is part of a country-wide decentralization drive, allowing for direct local elections in several areas.[30]

The cities/municipalities of Jakarta are:

Central Jakarta (Jakarta Pusat) is Jakarta's smallest city and home to most of Jakarta's administrative and political center. It is characterized by large parks and Dutch colonial buildings. Landmarks include the National Monument (Monas), the Istiqlal Mosque, the Jakarta Cathedral, and museums.[31]

West Jakarta (Jakarta Barat) has the highest concentration of small-scale industries in Jakarta. The area includes Jakarta's Chinatown and landmarks include the Chinese Langgam building and the Toko Merah building. West Jakarta contains part of the Jakarta Old Town.[32]

South Jakarta (Jakarta Selatan), originally planned as a satellite city, is now the location of large upscale shopping centres and affluent residential areas. Jakarta Selatan functions as Jakarta's ground water buffer,[33] but recently the green belt areas are threatened by new developments. Much of the CBD area of Jakarta is concentrated in Setia Budi, South Jakarta, bordering the Tanah Abang/Sudirman area of Central Jakarta.

East Jakarta (Jakarta Timur) territory is characterized by several industrial sectors erected in this city.[34] There are also still some areas of swamps and rice fields in this city.[34]

North Jakarta (Jakarta Utara) is the only city in Jakarta that is bounded by the sea (Java Sea). It is the location of the Tanjung Priok Port. Big-scale and medium-scale industries are concentrated in North Jakarta. North Jakarta contains the location of Jakarta Old Town, formerly known as Batavia since the 17th century, and was a centre of VOC trade activity in Dutch East Indies. Also located in North Jakarta is Ancol Dreamland (Taman Impian Jaya Ancol), currently the largest integrated tourism area in South East Asia

Government

In September 1945, the government of Jakarta City was changed from the Japanese Djakarta Toku-Betsu Shi into the Jakarta National Administration. This first government was held by a Mayor until the end of 1960 when the office was changed to that of a Governor. The last mayor of Jakarta was Sudiro, until he was replaced by Dr Sumarno as Governor of the province (as the city had now become).

In 1974, Based on the Act No. 5 of 1974 relating to the Fundamentals of Regional Government, Jakarta was confirmed as the capital of Indonesia and one of Indonesia's 26 provinces.

Municipal finances

The ability of the regional government to respond to the many problems of Jakarta is constrained by extremely limited finances. In 2011, the total budget available to the regional government was around Rp 28.5 trillion (about $US 3.3 billion), equivalent to around $US 300 per citizen. The Jakarta provincial government, like all other provincial governments in Indonesia, relies on transfers from the central government for the bulk of budget income. Local (non-central government) sources of revenue are incomes from various taxes such as vehicle ownership and vehicle transfer fees and so on.

Geography

Jakarta is located on the northwest coast of Java, at the mouth of the Ciliwung River on Jakarta Bay, which is an inlet of the Java Sea. Officially, the area of the Jakarta Special District is 662 km2 of land area and 6,977 km2 of sea area.[39] Jakarta lies in a low, flat basin, averaging 7 metres (23 ft) above sea level;[citation needed] 40% of Jakarta, particularly the northern areas, is below sea level,[40] while the southern parts are comparatively hilly. Rivers flow from the Puncak highlands to the south of the city, across the city northwards towards the Java Sea; the most important[clarification needed] is the Ciliwung River, which divides the city into the western and eastern principalities. Other rivers include the Pesanggrahan, and Sunter.

These rivers, combined with Jakarta's low topography make it prone to flooding from swollen rivers in the wet season and high sea tides. Other contributing factors include clogged sewage pipes and waterways that service an increasing population, in addition to deforestation near rapidly urbanizing Bogor and Depok in Jakarta's hinterland. Furthermore, Jakarta is an urban area with complex socio-economic problems that indirectly contribute to triggering a flood event.[41] Major floods occurred in 1996[42][43] when 5,000 hectares of land were flooded[44] and 2007.[45] Losses from infrastructure damage and state revenue were at least 5.2 trillion rupiah (572 million US dollars) and at least 85 people were killed[46] and about 350,000 people forced from their homes.[47] Approximately 70% of Jakarta's total area was flooded with water up to four meters deep in parts of the city.[48][49]

May 2011: The Jakarta Environmental Management Agency categorized all river at Jakarta were polluted, 71% of them were heavily polluted, 20% were partly polluted and 9% were lightly polluted.[50]

East Flood Canal (BKT) in eastern Jakarta was a national project which began in 2003 and late 2009 reached the Java sea and will be accomplished in 2011. It was 23.5 kilometers length which linking five rivers: Cipinang, Sunter, Buaran, Jati Kramat and Cakung. It will reduce flood and hope as a 2 kilometers rowing sport venue too.[51] To ease from flood, Jakarta Emergency Dredging Innitiave (JEDI) phase-2 will make underground canal (siphon) from Ciliwung river to Cipinang river and then go through to East Flood Canal. It will lowering flood at Cawang, Kampung Melayu, Bukit Duri and Kebun Baru. The length will be one kilometer and will be finished at 2016.[52]

Besides flood from the rivers, Jakarta is also sinking about 5 to 10 centimeters each year and up to 20 centimeters in northern Jakarta mainland. To solve it, the Netherlands will give $4 million for a feasibility study to build a dike on Jakarta Bay. The ring dike will be provided with pumping system and retention area, would regulate and control seawater and use also as additional toll road. The project will be built by 2025.[53]

The Thousand Islands, which are administratively a part of Jakarta, are located in Jakarta Bay north of the city.

Climate

Jakarta has a hot and humid tropical wet and dry climate (Aw) according to the Köppen climate classification system. Despite being located relatively close to the equator, the city has distinct wet and dry seasons. Wet seasons in Jakarta cover the majority of the year, running from November through June. The remaining four months forms the city’s dry season. Located in the western-part of Indonesia, Jakarta's wet season rainfall peak is January with average monthly rainfall of 385 millimetres (15.2 in), and its dry season low point is September with a monthly average of 29 millimetres (1.1 in).

Culture

The Betawi (Orang Betawi, or "people of Batavia") is a term used to describe the descendants of the people living in and around Batavia and recognized as an ethnic group from around the 18th–19th century. The Betawi people are mostly descended from various Southeast Asian ethnic groups brought or attracted to Batavia to meet labor needs, and include people from different parts of Indonesia.[55] The language and Betawi culture are distinct from those of the Sundanese or Javanese. The language is mostly based on the East Malay dialect and enriched by loan words from Dutch, Portuguese, Sundanese, Javanese, Chinese, and Arabic. Nowadays, the Jakarta dialect (Bahasa Jakarta) used as a street language by people in Jakarta is loosely based on the Betawi language.

Betawi arts have a low profile in Jakarta and most Betawi have moved to the suburbs of Jakarta, displaced by new migrants. It is easier to find Java or Minang based wedding ceremonies rather than Betawi weddings in Jakarta. It is easier to find Javanese Gamelan instead of Gambang Kromong (a mixture between Betawi and Chinese music) or Tanjidor (a mixture between Betawi and Portuguese music) or Marawis (a mixture between Betawi and Yaman music). However, some festivals such as the Jalan Jaksa Festival or Kemang Festival include efforts to preserve Betawi arts by inviting artists to give performances.[56]

There has been a significant Chinese community in Jakarta for many centuries. Chinese in Jakarta traditionally resides in old urban areas such as in and around Jakarta Kota, Pluit and Glodok (Jakarta Chinatown) area, they also can be found in old chinatowns of Senen and Jatinegara. Officially, they make up 6% of the Jakartan population, although this number may be under-reported.[57] Chinese culture also had influenced Betawi culture, such as the popularity of Chinese cakes and sweets, firecrackers, to Betawi wedding dress that demonstrate Chinese and Arab influences.

Jakarta has several performing art centers, such as the Taman Ismail Marzuki (TIM) art center in Cikini, Gedung Kesenian Jakarta near Pasar Baru, Balai Sarbini in Plaza Semanggi area, Bentara Budaya Jakarta in Palmerah area, Pasar Seni (Art Market) in Ancol, and traditional Indonesian art performances at the pavilions of some Provinces in Taman Mini Indonesia Indah. Traditional music is often found at high-class hotels, including Wayang and Gamelan performances. Javanese Wayang Orang performance can be found at Wayang Orang Bharata theater near Senen bus terminal. As the nation's largest city and capital, Jakarta has lured much national and regional talent who hope to find a greater audience and more opportunities for success.

Jakarta hosts several prestigious art and culture festivals, and exhibitions, such as the annual Jakarta International Film Festival (JiFFest), Jakarta International Java Jazz Festival, Jakarta Fashion Week, Jakarta Fashion & Food Festival (JFFF), Indonesia Creative Products and Jakarta Arts and Crafts exhibition. Flona Jakarta is a Flora and Fauna exhibition, held annually in August at Lapangan Banteng park featuring flowers, plant nurseries, and pets. The Jakarta Fair is held annually from mid June to mid July to celebrate the anniversary of the city and is largely centered around a trade fair. However this month-long fair also features entertainment, including arts and music performances by local bands and musicians.

Several foreign art and culture centers are also established in Jakarta, and mainly serve to promote culture and language through learning centers, libraries, and art galleries. Among these foreign art and cultural centers are Netherlands Erasmus Huis, UK British Council, France Centre Culturel Français, Germany Goethe-Institut, Japan Foundation, and The Jawaharlal Nehru Indian Cultural Center.

Air

Soekarno-Hatta International Airport (CGK) is the main airport serving the greater Jakarta area. The airport is named after the first President of Indonesia, Soekarno, and the first vice-president, Mohammad Hatta. The airport is often called Cengkareng by Indonesians. The airport's IATA code, CGK, originates from the name of the Cengkareng locality, a district situated to the northwest of the city. It is Indonesia's busiest airport handling nearly 40 million passengers annually. A second airport, Halim Perdanakusuma International Airport (HLP) serves mostly private and VIP/presidential flights. Other airports in the Jabotabek metropolitan area include Pondok Cabe Airport and an airfield on Pulau Panjang, part of the Thousand Island archipelago.

Pictures Gallery

The view of Central Jakarta from the viewing tower at the National Monument

Jakarta On Video