Old Batavian kampong played historical role

By Ida Indawati Khouw

This 44th article of a weekly series on protected buildings and sites is about the roles of Jatinegara Kaum, one of the oldest kampongs in Jakarta, and the tombs of two local figures.

JAKARTA (JP): Located in East Jakarta, the Jatinegara Kaum area has a long history as a "refugee" settlement for inhabitants of Jayakarta (an old name of Jakarta) following the Dutch occupation since 1619.

The former inhabitants of the approximately 300-year-old kampong played major roles in the early struggle of indigenous people against the occupation of the United Dutch East-India Company VOC (Vereenigde Oost-Indische Compagnie) in the old city of Jayakarta (in the same location where the Dutch built the walled city of Batavia, now the Kota area in West Jakarta)

At present, the only structures that can explain its roles in the past are the two old graveyards beside the bus lane on Jl. Jatinegara Kaum.

Local residents believe that the graves belong to two noted people leaders at the time: Pangeran (prince) Achmad Jaketra and Pangeran Sanghiyang (others called him Sanghyang).

The two princes lived during the time of the Islamic kingdom of Banten in West Java, which ruled Jayakarta between 1526 and 1527.

The location of Jatinegara Kaum itself was relatively far from Jayakarta.

At that time, Jatinegara was covered by a dense forest from which it got its name (Jati means teak, negara means state or land).

Available sources revealed that its name could also be interpreted as "the real country" replacing Jayakarta, which was burned down by the Dutch in an attempt to conquer the city.

Jayakarta (meaning victorious and prosperous) was the second name given to the harbor city located close to Jakarta Bay after it was conquered by a commander called Fatahillah from the West Javanese Sultanate of Banten.

It was during the leadership of Prince Jayawikarta that many inhabitants fled and sought refuge in the secluded area of Jatinegara Kaum following the attack of Dutch troops under Jan Pieterszoon Coen.

Many believed that about 5,000 followers of Jayawikarta, the last indigenous leader of Jayakarta, retreated to the Jatinegara Kaum area after the Dutch aggression.

Sources said that Prince Jayawikarta then named the isolated site as his new place of residence and the center of operations against the Dutch troops.

But others said that Jayawikarta troops had been removed from the area by the Bantenese, after the two parties did not get on with each other, just before the Dutch came.

The name of Jatinegara Kaum, however, appeared later when the term Jatinegara was widened following the growth of the area.

"So, to differentiate between old Jatinegara and the new area, the old one was identified as Jatinegara Kaum," according to the book Kampung Tua di Jakarta (Old Kampongs in Jakarta), published by the then city museum and history agency.

Kaum meant the residential place for santri, students at traditional Muslim schools.

"However, we have yet to determine when the word 'Kaum' started to be used," says the book.

Local residents claiming to originate from Banten refer to the fact that they speak Sundanese with a Bantenese dialect, but the book says that the people might be also from as far as Cirebon in West Java and Demak in Central Java.

According to the book, Jayawikarta's followers were not only faithful Muslims from Banten, but also Cirebon and Demak.

"There are about 100 'original' families who are still living here. In the past, it was forbidden to marry those from other areas, but I don't know the reason why," said Supriadi, 56, the caretaker of the grave of Prince Sanghiyang, whom Adolf Heuken described in his book Historical Sites of Jakarta as the local leader during the end of the 17th century .

Supriadi said that local residents were proud of having the Sanghiyang and Jaketra graves which the residents, and also those from other areas, considered sacred.

"About 20 outsiders visit the tombs every week," he added.

The two graves are located close to each other. The grave of Achmad Jaketra is within the old Assalafiah Mosque complex.

His grave, together with four other tombs, is located under a pavilion with a marble floor. The another four graves belong to Prince Lahut (the son of Jaketra), Prince Soeria bin Padmanegara (the great grandson of Jaketra), Prince Sageri and his wife Ratu Rapiah (the daughter of Sanghiyang).

There is no information about Sageri.

Local people and some experts believe that Jaketra is Prince Jayawikarta, who struggled against J.P. Coen. Others, however, including Adolf Heuken, say that the corpse is one of Jayawikarta's offspring.

"A tomb at Katengahan village in Banten since the beginning was acknowledged as the tomb of Jayawikarta ... Historical data show that Jayawikarta was called back by the Bantenese sultan as the latter did not like the fact that Jayawikarta cooperated with the British.

Regarding Jaketra, Heuken said that in 1752 a man, identified as Mas Achmat, purchased land in Jatinegara, and that he was regarded as regent of Jatinegara.

However, the Jakarta administration officially acknowledges the Prince of Jayakarta with a plaque donated by former Jakarta governor R. Soeprapto and other families with the inscription: "We submit to you for your merit and sacrifice toward the country and state."

The grave of Sanghiyang is located inside a building with a carpeted floor, together with three other tombs bearing the names Pangeran Nasib, Pangeran Tanzoel Arifin and Ibu Sri Pembayu.

There is yet another grave which has a relationship with Jayakarta history. It is located on Jl. Pangeran Tubagus Angke in West Jakarta, far from Jatinegara Kaum.

It contains the remains of Pangeran Wijayakusuma, a war advisor to Jayawikarta. The lone grave with a nine-meter-wide pavilion was restored in June 1968 by the city administration.