Jakarta's anniversary date, an endless controversy

Anissa S. Febrina, The Jakarta Post, Jakarta

Is Jakarta really 478 years old? The question should probably pop up in one's mind while observing the frustrating traffic woes, irregular spatial pattern in several places in the city and other out-of-order things that would make a list so long you would be bored to tears.

"There are no written documents that can prove the date of Jakarta's anniversary," Adolf Heuken, noted author on the city's history, told The Jakarta Post.

Heuken pointed out that it was natural that the origin of a city was derived from legends and myths, pointing out the origin of Rome as an example.

"If it was based on such legend it must be said so and not claimed as history," he stated.

Last year, prominent Betawi (native Jakartan) observer Ridwan Saidi argued that the date of Jakarta's anniversary, June 22, should be changed.

He said that on that date in the early 16th century, Fatahillah, also known as Falatehan, was instructed by the King of Cirebon to invade Jakarta, then known as Jayakarta. During the attack, Fatahillah destroyed buildings and homes belonging to the Betawi people.

In 1958, then-Jakarta governor Sudiro, made official the commemoration date based on a research by historian Soekanto. There has been controversy about the authentic date of birth of the city ever since.

Despite the controversy, the history of the capital is still worth observing. As Heuken quotes from another historian, "one who does not know the past, does not understand himself." The history of Jakarta, which Heuken compiled in his books, was to help people to appreciate what is left from the old city.

Jakarta is a young city compared to Beijing, Hanoi or Kyoto. But, compared to other capitals in South East Asia, Jakarta's history is much longer, he said, adding that cities like Bangkok, Singapore and Kuala Lumpur only dated back to the 18th century.

Located adjacent to the Jakarta Bay, which links it to the Java Sea, Jakarta started as the most important port of the a Sundanese kingdom, frequented by traders from Sumatra, India and Japan, as well as Europe.

The capital of Sunda was situated at Batutulis in Bogor, south of Jakarta. Sunda Kalapa port (kelapa means coconut, but kalapa was used in old documents), as it was known then, was first mentioned by Portuguese chemist Tome Pires who traveled to Malacca seeking spices.

The name Sunda Kalapa was recorded until the mid 16th century and written on Asian maps which date back to the early 17th century.

The name Ja(ya)karta was never mentioned until it appeared in a document written by Portuguese historian Jao de Barros in 1553. "Considering the travel from Asia to Portugal, the name Jakarta might have been first known to the public somewhere at the end of the 1550s," Heuken said.

However, he said, that the name Sunda Kalapa was still widely used until the end of the 16th century. "The first document to use the name Jakarta was done in 1602."

Meanwhile, the birthdate of Jakarta known to the public now is that which commemorates the victory of Fatahillah from the Islamic sultanate of Demak -- with the Bantenese as an ally -- in taking over Sunda Kalapa in 1527 from the Sundanese. The harbor city was run by the Bantenese since.

That was perhaps why some mocked the decision as "Sudiro's victory", after "Fatahillah's victory" which became the basis of the decision. "They think if they want to commemorate a city's birth it must be marked by something grandiose like a victorious take over," Heuken added.

Another fascinating thing that Heuken revealed was that "there are no indigenous Jakartans."

"What they are, if any, are a blend of ethnic groups ranging from Indian, Tionghoa (Chinese), Javanese and others," he said.

He explained that following the forcible takeover of Sunda Kalapa by the Dutch under the command of politician/accountant Jan Pieterszoon Coen, the Bantenese ruler retreated inland, followed by his people, leaving the city nearly empty.

"They (the Dutch) needed a work force to rebuild the city and they brought in people from India and Tionghoa," he said, while adding that later the Javanese and the Balinese would come. "The name Betawi (what people recognize now as "native" Jakartans) was derived from Batavia, the new Dutch-coined name of Jayakarta."

In his book Historical Sites of Jakarta, Heuken revealed an interesting fact that the name Batavia was in fact, used in remembrance of the Batavier (pronounced as "batavi", very similar to the word betawi), a teutonic tribe that were the ancestors of the Dutch in Europe.

"What characterizes native Jakarta culture from others is the fact that it has no specific character, it is a mix of a lot of cultures," he said. "A true melting pot."

He added that such things are common for old harbor cities as it is by nature very open to foreigners. It is very much what Jakarta is now, a blend of so many ethnic groups and races seeking opportunities to work in the city.

So many aspects of the history of Jakarta remain vague as very little written documentation has been found. "Even the ones that exist, must be interpreted carefully for they might have additional information, which show that other groups had held power at one time or another," Heuken explained.

Quoting another historian, maybe history is sometimes "his- story", a story essentially made up for reasons other than truth. "There are always interested groups that want to take part in the writing of history, but, there are written documents worth seeking, from where we can compare one story to another," Heuken said.

So, if you really want to know how old the city is, well, like the line from in a sci-fi show, "the truth is out there, ... somewhere."