Motorcycle Traffic Restriction?

The DKI Jakarta government’s discourse to limit the total number of motorcycles as well as to restrict the motorcycle traffic, by prohibiting the drivers passing through certain lanes in Jakarta, has created a heated number of polemics with those who are pros and cons.

Those who agree with the discourse point out that motorcycle accidents are increasing because their total amount almost is as many as the city residents. Being undisciplined while riding motorcycles and being too many on the roads during peak hours has caused an ever-increasing traffic jam.

On the contrary, those who are cons say that the motorcycle drivers, who are mostly from low class and credited with triggering the national economic activities will even suffer by being forced to ride on public transportation which is time-consuming and extra-cost spending in buying fares of city transport.

It should be underlined that the motorcycle as a mode of transportation is very effective and efficient from the point of view cost and benefit. It is unimaginable how crowded and dizzy the traffic would be if all of those motorcycle drivers should drive cars like those who are the haves. Not to mention how much the nation will spend more foreign exchange to import cars and additional gasoline consumption.

It is in this context that the decision should be made. We have not to punish those who are economically more efficient, who are sacrificing their comfort and sometimes endangering their lives in the middle of heavy traffic, and last but not least empowering the national economy.

Now, what is the best we have to do facing this dilemma?

Despite the pros and cons, it seems that the local government will launch the first trial to prohibit motorcycle passing through the lane of Blok M-Kota after the Lebaran Day (in less than one month period). The reason is that public transports are available and the presence of motorcycles frequently triggers the traffic jam. The plan, however, will be discussed more with Metropolitan police and city government. We hope that the discussion will not only cover the implementation but also further consideration of go or no-go of those plans.

One of the way-outs that can be suggested is to construct a special lane, mainly in busy roads, for motorcycles to reduce both accidents and traffic jam. If it is difficult and expensive to realize then to alternate time-schedule for motorcycles and cars during the peak hours to enter certain areas, say, for example, 06.00 to 07.00 exclusively for motorcycles, 07.00 to 08.00 for cars, and 17.00 to 18.00 and 18.00 to 19.00 respectively in the evening.

Some observers even have crazy and unrealistic idea pointing out that it is better to suggest people to buy and operate bikes rather than motorbikes because bikes do not consume fuel nor do they cause pollution. But how come that people who mostly from suburbs (Botabek) have to come to Jakarta by bikes?

Saving More Time More Money

Related to the economic attitude, most motor-bikers point out that it is only a matter of being economical to take a motorbike rather than city buses or Transjakarta, especially when they have to go to many places located in the areas where it is difficult for small car, let alone a city bus, to pass through. A motorbike can pass a very small and circuitous road.

In the case there is traffic jam, it is much easier for the motorbike to move forward as compared to the buses, and therefore, will save much worthwhile time.

For those sidewalk traders who are in high mobility, saving much time in every day working is a serious matter, because by doing so they can have more hours to work and gain more money as well.

Logical Consequence

The city government should not restrict the number of motorbikes because the owners are common people from the grass root. The drivers gain and save money from the use of motorcycles as mode of transportation and more importantly provide the trickle-down effects to the national economics. It is quite logical to reduce the total number of cars in Jakarta rather than motorbikes. Besides, the car owners have much more money related to their options to take any kinds of public transports.

The causal factors of traffic jam cannot be attributed to motorbikes because cars even take bigger spaces of all lanes and toll roads in Jakarta. Therefore, any idea of reducing the total amount of motorbikes or prohibiting them to pass the certain lanes in peak hours should be firmly rejected.

The inconvenience using public transportation is another consideration. The route of the public transportation is limited, the users of public transportation have to wait for certain time at certain shelters and pay they should pay extra money if they have to continue their journey to other destinations. When they come to the destination, is has been late to start working or doing business. So why should the city government reduce motorbikes?

Fatahillah, the Jakarta History Museum

Just close to the main station, walking to the northwest direction, we encounter a relatively old building located in the area measuring by 1300 square meters known as Fatahillah Museum, also known as Jakarta History Museum or the Museum of Batavia. It seems that the conservation of the museum has been long neglected but now the condition becomes better as it is undergoing the major renovation.

This building was once the Stadhuis built in the early 18th century. The City Hall building was consisting of the main building with two wings in the east and west as well as side buildings used as offices, courtrooms, and underground spaces were once used as a prison. In 1974, the building was later inaugurated as Fatahillah Museum.

Building architecture was of the 17th century Baroque-style classic with three ground floors with yellow paint, while windows and door frames were made of dark green teak wood. The main roof has a pointer part in every wind direction.

Jakarta History Museum building was built in 1620 by Jan Pieterszoon Coen, the then governor general, as the second City Hall in 1626 (the first one was built in 1620 near the east of Kalibesar). At that time, the building was only single-stage while the second-floor was built later.

Only around 20 years later the building was in very bad condition. Jakarta’s soil is very unstable and the weight of the building made it slightly tilted. The easy solution at that time was raising the floor about half a meter. In 1649, apart the floor was excavated to build five underground cells. The dungeons were used by the Dutch to keep prisoners including Prince Diponegoro before he was removed to Makassar in 1830. There had been rooms added in the east and west sides of the main building, and improvements and changes continued to be carried out until it took the form we see today.

This building was once used as the Raad van Justitie (judiciary council), and later on, the building was used as the West Java Provincial Government Office in the year of 1925 to 1942. In the era of Japanese occupation, the Japanese converted the building to become the warehouse. After independence, it became the City Military Command headquarters, which later became the West Jakarta District Military Command. In 1968 the building was submitted to the Government of Jakarta and was inaugurated as the Jakarta History Museum in 1974.

Collections

Its collections were amounting to 23,500 pieces inherited from the Old Batavia Museum, as the result of the Government procurement efforts and donations of individuals and institutions. Collections on display are more than 500 pieces, others are kept in the storage. The age of the collections is as old as 1500 years especially those related to people's lives such as prehistoric tools and a good variety of materials including metal, stone, wood, glass, crystal, earthenware, ceramic, porcelain, cloth, leather, paper and bone.

Other collections include the history of Jakarta, replicas of relics of the Tarumanegara and Pajajaran kingdoms, the findings of archaeological excavations in Jakarta, antique furniture from the 17th century until the 19th, which were the fusion of European style, People's Republic of China, and Indonesia. There are also ceramics, pottery, and stone inscriptions. The collection is available at several rooms, such as Prehistoric, Tarumanegara, Jayakarta, Fatahillah, Sultan Agung and MH Thamrin Rooms.

There are also various collections of Betawi culture, numismatic, and pedicabs. Among the interesting collections are the old cannon (Jagur) which some superstitious people believe to have magical powers, prehistoric community equipment, inscription and weapons, the statue of Hermes (removed from the Harmony intersection where it was once put there as the bridge ornament), the sword of execution, old furniture and painting of VOC and the Dutch East Indies Governor-General from 1602 to 1942. The collections were periodically carried out in rotation so that all items could be enjoyed by visitors. To enrich the museum collections, the directors called for the public, individuals, and institutions to lend or donate their properties to the museum.

Since 2001 the museum held annual seminars on the nature of the museum, both national and international scale, discussing, among others, the existence of the museum as viewed from various aspects. To reconstruct the history of past events, especially court for criminals and suspected persons, in some occasions, we can see some improvisations about the implementation of the court at the same time understand the condition around the 17th century.

Museum Gajah, the National Museum

At the west side of Merdeka Square, where the National Monument (Monas) is located, we can see a relatively old building popularly known as Museum Gajah (Elephant). It is so called because in its front yard there is an elephant statue easily seen from the street. 

This National Museum was built in 1862 by the Dutch Governor-General JCM Radermacher in line with the colonial government policy aimed at reviewing the scientific research in the Netherlands Indies. At present, the management of the museum is handled under the Ministry of Culture and Tourism. 

As an institution of a cultural and educational information center, it has been established to save and preserve objects of Indonesian cultural heritage. Until now the collections amounted to around 142,000 objects,  consisting of seven types of collections of prehistoric, archaeological, ceramics, numismatic, heraldry, history, ethnography, and geography, makes this museum is known as the most comprehensive one in Indonesia.

Rescue and preservation of this culture are informed to the general public through exhibitions and publishing catalogs, brochures, audiovisual website as well. The goal is that people know and participate in the preservation of national heritage. 

In general, the museum is divided into three main buildings (A, B, C), the front garden area where there are statues of elephants donated by a king of Thailand in 1871, a large anchor and the hall area connecting Building A and Building B. Exhibitions are arranged at the old building (Unit A) based on the types of collections, whether based on science, materials, or regionalism. 

As the exhibition space prehistory, the Bronze Room, Room Textiles, Ethnographic Space Sumatra area, and others. While the arrangement of the exhibition at the new building (Building Unit B or statue) is no longer based on the type collection but rather lead to a theme based on aspects of human culture of which is positioned as actors in the neighborhood. Unit C Building is planned to be built to expand the existing exhibition layout. 

Until now the collections amounted to around 142,000 objects,  consisting of seven types of collections of prehistoric, archaeological, ceramics, numismatic, heraldry, history, ethnography, and geography, makes this museum is known as the most comprehensive one in Indonesia. The museum collects many antiquities from any parts of Indonesia in the form of ancient statues and objects, craft items and inscriptions. Collections are categorized into the ethnography, bronze, prehistoric, ceramics, textiles, numismatic, historical relics, and precious objects. Prior to the establishment of the National Library at Jalan Salemba, Central Jakarta, the museum collection also included ancient manuscripts which are now kept in the Library.

Sources of the collection came from archaeological excavations, grants collector since the days of the Dutch East Indies and purchases. Collections of ceramics and ethnographic articles represented most comprehensive in the world. This museum is the first and largest museum in Southeast Asia. 

An interesting collection is the tallest statue of Bhairawa with a height of 4 meters. This is a manifestation of the god Lokeswara, which is the manifestation of Boddhisatwa (radiance of Buddha) on the earth. This statue of a man, standing on the corpses and rows of skulls and holding a skull cup in his left hand and a short dagger with his right hand of the Arab style, was found in Roco, Padang, West Sumatra. This statue is estimated to come from century 13-14. 

The oldest collection of Buddha statue in the museum is Dipangkara, made of bronze and stored in a bronze room in a separate glass case. Such condition is contrary to Buddha-Hindu statue of the oldest in the archipelago, namely Vishnu Cibuaya (about 4M) which is just located in the stone-made statue room, almost neglected with no text, labels and is hindered by the statue of Ganesha from the Banon temple.

Unfortunately, conservation efforts to conserve collections mainly the collection of papers that need careful handling are not properly done. Often, the collection is removed and replaced with artificial materials. Although this reduces the authenticity, still it is considered that the aesthetics and form of the original works conserved.  Such an action shows the attitude of most museums in the region to prioritize restoration rather than keeping their authenticities. It seems that the amount of collections and the employees who handle them is disproportionate. The museum management should give more attention to improve this condition

TOKO MERAH, SLAVES ON SALES

Let us walk around the street known as Kalibesar Barat and stop in front of a remarkable two-story building wholly painted in red. It is called Toko Merah, literally means the red shop. It is one of the oldest and the most historical buildings in Jakarta, probably in Indonesia. The building was constructed by Gustaff Willem Baron van Imhoff, the then governor-general, for his office and dwelling house in 1730. Since then, many of his successors stayed in and owned the building.

The building once became the maritime academy (1743-1755) graduated many good sailors to meet the increasing demand for capable sailors as more and more galleons came from Europe. Its function was converted into a guest house (Heerenlogement) (1787-1808) as it was very difficult to rent good accommodation during that time. When today you read the reports from dagsblaat found at the National Library you will be surprised about the neglected cleanliness of the house at that time and it seemed the service did not meet at all the satisfaction of the guests.

Slave Auction

In 1851, the building was bought and converted into a store by a rich Chinese trader, wholly painted in red, the Chinese traditional color. That period was marked by intense slavery trading, the slaves were taken from different parts of the Archipelago. The local authorities supplied and sent slaves to Toko Merah to undergo auction in the yard of the building.

The slaves from Bali were sold and worked in the area which is now known as Kampung Bali (Bali village). Manggarai was the area where the slaves from Flores worked, got married, established families. Kampung Ambon was the area where the slaves from Maluku worked and lived.

One of the reports tells that when the widow of Governor General Reinier de Klerk died all her 181 slaves were sold at auction in 1786. The slaves stood in a long queue in front of Toko Merah waiting for their turn. The auctioneer called them by their names complete with their duties for example as the musician, the lacemaker, etc. Mother and daughter went into different directions as they had different buyers and new employers.

Slave auction took place early in the morning and buyers were Dutchmen who exploited them as the cheap workers (for males) or their concubines (for females) especially in a time when the European females were rare. The activities were dwindling in the 19th century following the abolition of slaves in America in a decree issued by the then President Abraham Lincoln.

Today the building belongs to the Indonesian Trading Company. The owner, however, is not allowed by the Jakarta Government to renew or improve it in such a way that it might change its old model since the building is included into Jakarta Heritage.

Pulau Seribu, Thousand Islands in the Sun

As we have a thousand islands for our salad dressing, Jakarta also has a thousand islands but the real ones. Pulau Seribu which is located at Jakarta Bay in the Java Sea literally means "Thousand Islands". However, in reality, it consists only of 128 small islands, but still a large number. Most of these are inhabited and can be reached within one or two hours from Marina Ancol by ferry or by chartered boats. The surrounding reefs are home to a wide variety of fishes, making Pulau Seribu an ideal location for diving, snorkeling, and fishing. The real islands in the sun.

Some of the islands in this group already developed for tourism are Pulau Bidadari, Pulau Ayer, Sepa, Coconut, Pelangi, Bira, Pantara, Kul-kul, and Pulau Putri. There are also cabins for us, from which we can view the golden beaches fringed with coconut palms.

The changes of season and some degree of pollutions are believed to have given a degree of effect to the declining coral reefs of Pulau Seribu, though the surrounding waters are still a paradise for those who are accustomed to diving and snorkeling. The sea water is filled with a myriad of tropical fishes, which live among the multicolored coral reefs. Pulau Putri, Melintang, Petondang, and Papa Theo are among the islands becoming holiday resorts with cottages, restaurants, diving and sailing facilities.

The islands are located at the northern part of Jakarta Bay around 40 to 100 kilometers off the bay. The whole land area of all islands is not more than 860 hectares. Pulau Sebira is the farthest distance from Jakarta Bay, up to 100 kilometers. However, all are easily reached by speed boats available at Marina Ancol.

As the islands are very near to Jakarta which economically powerful, businessmen from Jakarta have converted many of the islands into tourist spots, where marine activities such snorkeling and diving are supported by diving equipment and nice hotel and motel where we can stay.

Degrading Condition

Following its nearness to Jakarta, and highly exploitation of coral reefs and fish catching, the islands’ condition is degrading due to human and natural factors. These factors include the unsustainable technique of fish catching such as bombing, blast, cyanide use, coral mining, and dredging, degrading of water quality due to industrial pollution and solid waste thrown by locals into the sea. The pollution might also contribute to the establishment of various resorts on the islands which involve various activities from project to tourists.

Important Islands to Note
Onrust Island is one of them to mention. Among the cultural preservation, which has a historical value related to the period of Dutch colonial rule in the 17th century, the island was once important boat repairs. Here we can see the relics of the remaining buildings which have been built in a fortress around the 17th century.

We can visit Hope Island to stay overnight in a fine home-stay, which is relatively inexpensive. There are also other islands worthwhile to be visited, namely Angel and Cipir Kelor islands, which become the Heritage Park Archeology of Onrust but, unfortunately, their existence is less a tourist attraction for local residents and foreign tourists respectively.

Princess and Bidadari islands are famous for snorkeling and viewing the underwater aquarium. If you like to lay down in the sand beach, Sepa Island is particularly good for its white sand.

Edam Island, almost forgotten, looks different from the surrounding islands because of its old lighthouse which now is still active. The lighthouse was built at the initiative of the King Willem III in 1879. Five guards and their families occupy the old buildings. We can see the beautiful scenery around the island from the height of  52 meters sweeping the horizon as far as  be 20 miles distance from the island. The building has never been renovated and using exactly the same equipments as it did around 120 years ago.

Apart of this unique lighthouse we can also find the remaining of Dutch fort and a tomb complex apparently belong to the relatives of exiled Banten Sultanate. Sometimes, some visitors come to the island just like to take care for the graves.

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Sunda Kelapa, An Old Lively Traditional Port

Just 15 kilometers at the western part of Tanjung Priok, we can find an old port of Sunda Kelapa. Today it serves as the anchoring spot for sailing ships, especially Bugis phinisi bringing wood and logs mostly from Kalimantan, Sulawesi, and Papua. In turn, the sailing ships are loaded with cement, iron bars and other imported products to the various parts of Indonesia. It is indeed an amazing view as we can see so many masts in front of us as though we live a couple hundred years ago.

History

Sunda Kelapa has already been well-known since the 12th century. During that period, it became a busy port of Hindu kingdom of Pajajaran in West Java, selling pepper and spices. Foreign ships coming from China, Japan, South India, and Arabic already docked at the port carrying goods such as porcelain, coffee, silk cloths, perfumes, horses, wine, and coloring substance in exchange for spices, the wealth of the homeland at that time.

In 1522, the Portuguese Governor Alfonso d'Albuquerque, whose home base was in Malacca, sent Henrique Leme to attend the invitation of the king of Sunda to build a fort at Sunda Kelapa against the expansive people of Cirebon.

So on August 21, 1522, both the Portuguese and Sunda king made an agreement saying that the Portuguese could construct a castle at the Sunda Kelapa, while the king and his people would receive the necessary goods. In turn, Sunda king had to give the Portuguese 1000 baskets of pepper as a sign of friendship annually. A memorial stone or Padrão became the means to commemorate the event. Padrão stone was rediscovered in 1918 at the corner of Prinsenstraat (today it is called Jalan Cengkeh) in Jakarta.

Meanwhile, Demak kingdom had become the center of Islamic power politically. Realizing that the port was a good stepping ground to develop one’s power, and with the aim to eliminate Hindu religion and strengthen Moslem kingdom, Demak and Cirebon military personnel, headed by Fatahillah alias Sunan Gunung Jati, attacked Sunda Kelapa and occupied it on June 22, 1527, the day considered as the birthday of Jakarta. Being occupied, the name was changed into Jayakarta which means the real victory.

The occupation did not last long, however. Dutch colonials under Jan Pieterzoon Coen, destroyed it in 1619, on which he founded Batavia and enlarged it to the southern and eastern parts with Tanjung Priok as its port. This port was getting important because the silting process at the estuary of Ciliwung River made Sunda Kelapa become too shallow for extra-large galleons from Europe to the harbor.

In the 19th century, the area around Sunda Kelapa, in which the Dutch elite lived, became very unhealthy and they removed to the Batavia, and the port was relatively neglected. But in 1817 the Dutch government improved the port by extending its canal from 810 meters to become 1,825 meters.

After Indonesia independence, Sunda Kelapa was improved and enlarged. The canal was made deeper and longer. Following the improvement, the then Jakarta governor, Ali Sadikin, issued a decree, in 1974, stating that the name Sunda Kelapa was officially used.

Today’s Condition
Currently, the port of has a land area of 760 hectares, and water pond area of 16,470 hectares, with the main harboring space at Kalibaru, which has a length of 3,250 meters and 1,200 meters wide to accommodate 70 sailing ships.

From the economic point of view, this port is strategically close to the trading centers in Jakarta, such as Glodok, Pasar Pagi, Mangga Dua, and others. As inter-island port, Sunda Kelapa is still visited by sailing ships of around 175 tons.
Goods transported from this port are the staple food in addition to grocery items and textiles. For development outside of Java Island, Sunda Kelapa also delivers building materials such as iron and cement.

All of the ships are traditional sailing boats coming from all traditional ports throughout the archipelago. Bugis and Madurese are famous for their ability as traditional sailors since olden times. Loading and unloading of goods at the port are still using traditional means and this why the port does not have any international certificates. Sunda Kelapa is also called the Fish Market Port because there is a fish market inside the area, where the newly caught fishes are auctioned every morning.

Why Declines?
Why does Sunda Kelapa decline? That the old and prosperous port finally declined and the newly constructed Tanjung Priok grew into a big port even at the international level, this must be traced back to the era of Dutch colonial, where they considered that Sunda Kelapa was not able to accommodate European galleons coming here to buy pepper and spices.

They constructed Tanjung Priok as the new port of Batavia, the newly built city under Jan Pieterzoon Coen in 1619, and since then trading activities were removed to this new port. It had a deeper pond as compared to Sunda Kelapa’s and therefore could accommodate big galleons coming from Europe.

The construction and opening of Sues Canal in 1869 made more galleons come to Tanjung Priok with ever-increasing tonnage and the estimated capacity amounting to 1,000 tons made them difficult to the harbor at Sunda Kelapa but easy to anchor at Tanjung Priok, accelerating its development. The invention of the steam-ships, which all harbored at Tanjung Priok, was another blow for Sunda Kelapa.

Important Buildings

Indonesian Maritime Museum has located here in which it keeps nautical equipment, replicas of Indonesian sailing boats, pictures from olden kingdoms up to the present day era.

Another building is the watchtower. It was built in 1839 with the main aim to monitor/control the ships that docked in the port of Sunda Kelapa. The wide and open view from the top of the tower made the job of the watchmen easier.
The tower is now leaning because the soggy soil is not able to support the big building, especially from the past. The leaning process goes on, around one centimeter annually. Jakarta officials have cemented and strengthened the foundation of the building, but it is of little value to re-erect the building.