Introduction to Jakarta, Indonesia

Bounded to the north by the Java Sea and the south by the low Bogor Hills, Indonesia's overwhelming capital, JAKARTA, is one of the fastest-growing cities in the world. From a mere 900,000 inhabitants in 1945, the current population is well over ten million and continues to grow at a rate of 200,000 every year. The capital currently sprawls over 656 square kilometres of northern Java. Unfortunately, few foreign visitors find the city as alluring as the local population, and down the years Jakarta has been much derided. Its dangers have been much exaggerated, and except for the period around Suharto's downfall in May 1998, the safety of foreigners has not really been in question. Yet the suburb of Kota in the north, the former heart of the old Dutch city, still retains a number of beautiful historic buildings, as does the neighbouring port of Sunda Kelapa. The capital also has some of the country's finest museums, including the Maritime Museum, the Wayang Museum and the  National Museum.

The site of modern-day Jakarta first entered the history books in the twelfth century, when the Pajajarans, a Sundanese kingdom based in West Java, established a major trading port at Sunda Kelapa and held on to it for over 300 years. In the early sixteenth century, the Islamic Sultanate of Banten, 50km to the west, invaded the city and renamed it Jayakarta, "City of Victory"; the date of their invasion, June 22, 1527, is still celebrated as the city's birthday today. By 1619 the Dutch had won control of the city and the newly named Batavia became the administrative centre of their vast trading empire; it was also given a facelift, with a new network of canals and a host of imposing civic buildings. When the Japanese invaded Batavia on March 5, 1942, the city was once again re-titled Jayakarta, or Jakarta for short. Immediately after World War II, a British force engaged the new Republic of Indonesia. Dutch power declined, and many of their buildings were pulled down. In 1949, Sukarno entered Jakarta, amid scenes of wild jubilation, to become the first president of the Republic. In the following two decades, ugly, Soviet-style monuments sprouted like warts on the face of the city and huge shantytowns emerged on the fringes to house economic migrants from across the archipelago, a population shift that continues to this day. Since then, Jakarta has continued to be the focus of Indonesia's changing political face, most recently and dramatically with the demonstrations against Suharto in May 1998, during which time the city was looted and set alight by angry mobs, who were apparently orchestrated by elements in the army. The city is much less tense at the moment, though the armed forces still maintain a presence. Some radical Islamic groups have emerged, but the general population remains stoically oblivious to them.